Tag: architecture

The Oscar B. Balch House is For Sale

The question comes up occasionally. “Balch? Oak Park? Any relation to Oscar Balch?” Nope, no relation.

Frank Lloyd Wright left his family in 1909 and skipped off to Europe with Mama Borthwick, the wife of a client who had done the same to be with him. Scandalous! Upon their return, not many people were willing to work with Wright, but Oscar Balch hired him to build his home here in Oak Park on Kenilworth (a really lovely street in town). Balch was a decorator who had worked with him previously to build a storefront, and the new home was built in 1911 in the Prairie style that we now associate with Wright.

Brandon’s family is not related to him, and I had to convince him when we were kicking around baby names that Oscar was off the table for us because of the connection (or lack thereof). If we lived somewhere else, sure, but another Oak Park Oscar Balch of no relation? That’s weird, right? (He didn’t agree, but obviously we didn’t choose the name for either of our boys).

The first photo was one that I took last spring while walking in the neighborhood, and below, I’m including several photos from the real estate listing. The seller’s asking price is $1,250,000.

The right side of the floor plan above is the side that faces the street. The main entrance is hidden along the side of the house (a typical Wright design) — you walk along the driveway to get to it.

The kitchen is part of a new remodel and expansion, but done to mimic the FLW style. Many Wright homes in the area (and nationwide, I’m guessing) had been poorly remodeled in the past, and there are a lot of historic houses with cheap mid-century kitchens that look completely out of place and are now falling apart. The trend now that these homes are desirable (and expensive) again is to go with quality custom cabinets and finishes with natural wood finishes and earth tones.

Would you want to live in a house like this? The layout and details are so interesting, but the color scheme (which is period-appropriate) wouldn’t make me happy. I can appreciate it, but it’s not the kind of home you can put too much of yourself into. Or maybe you can? I suppose paint colors and furniture are non-permanent ways to customize any space, but it seems like one buys a Wright home to live with that style.

The real estate listing has more photos of the home, and you can read more about the history of the Oscar B. Balch house.

March 28, 2016
The Wright Plus Housewalk, 2015

The Wright Plus Housewalk took place this past Saturday, featuring historic homes here in Oak Park and also in nearby Riverside, IL. The three Frank Lloyd Wright homes on the tour have been maintained and decorated in the Wright style, which is probably as it should be, and the other homes were a mix of modern and traditional.

The Avery Coonley House and Avery Coonley Stables/Coach House

Frank Lloyd Wright, 1908 and 1911, Riverside, IL

The estate has several properties on it, and it’s the grand house with the lily pond that is currently for sale with a listing price of $2.1 million. Wright said that at the time the Coonley estate was built (supposedly with a nearly unlimited budget), that it was the finest house he was capable of creating. The stable is nothing to turn your nose up though — those horses were living large, and of course there were renovations undertaken to turn it into a home fit for humans.

The Oscar B. Balch House

Frank Lloyd Wright, 1911, Oak Park, IL

Balch (no relation!) was a decorator, and one of the only people to hire Wright upon his return to the States after having ran off with a client’s wife. He collected and helped popularize Teco pottery, and it seems fitting that the current owners display their own extensive collection of it throughout the house.

The Mary Walker Herron House

Tallmadge & Watson, 1924, Oak Park, IL

This house started its life as a Victorian in the 1880s, was completely remodeled and reworked as a Tudor by Tallmadge & Watson in 1924 (who won out over a competing remodeling bid by Wright), and has gone through another transformation inside by the current owners with modern stark white walls and trim, dark flooring, and mid-century modern furniture. Very now.

The Hemingway House

Fiddelke, 1906, Oak Park, IL
Hemingway’s birth house is in town too, but this was his boyhood home, where he likely formed the opinion that “Oak Park is a neighborhood of wide lawns and narrow minds.” I’d like to think that the latter characteristic has changed some in the years since he lived here. The home was designed with great input from Hemmingway’s mother, and has recently been brought back to a single-family dwelling after having been split into a three-flat since the 1930s. We got to head all the way to the third floor to see Hemingway’s old bedroom.

The Paul Blatchford House I

Architect Unknown, 1887, Oak Park, IL

The porch features a keyhole opening which is not original, but was recreated based on photographs of the original design. The bones of the home were very similar to my own — same unpainted oak trim throughout, tall windows with wooden shutters, Victorian hardware, and so on. The owners kept it to a traditional Victorian look though (as opposed to what I’ve been doing with my 1891 home), choosing historical paint colors, wall treatments, and furnishings.

* Interior photography was not allowed. All exterior photos in this post were from the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust.

May 18, 2015
Imposing my Interests upon my Children
But you know, in a loving way.
1. Colorframes Blocks
2. Pillow Fort Architect Pin
3. Iggy Peck, Architect
  Looking forward to Rosie Revere, Engineer too.
4. Hardwood Workbench and Tools
5. xs Lille City
July 10, 2013
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home and Studio in Oak Park

Brandon’s aunt and uncle were in town this weekend. His sister mentioned that they were going to tour the Frank Lloyd Wright home and studio, and we were invited on short notice to tag along. Revisiting it was on my Lovely Life List, so I said yes. I took Eleanor with while Brandon stayed home with a napping August.

I’d taken the tour before in high school, but I’d been meaning to go again. It only takes an hour and we live 10 minutes away, so there’s no good reason for me not to have gone already. $15 buys you a ticket. $20 gets you a ticket and a permit for photography (personal use only). Eleanor, being 3, was free.

She loves it when I drag her along to these things. Culture, kid! (She was well-behaved, I promise. And contrary to my photographic evidence, she did enjoy herself at least somewhat.)

There are more than two dozen homes and buildings designed by Wright in Oak Park, at least three of which are for sale right now. For a little under $1 million, you could buy the George Furbeck house. The Thomas Gale house is listed at $849,000, or for rent at $4500/month. Spend a little more ($1,248,500) and you can buy the Martin house. And outside of Oak Park, there are plenty of Frank Lloyd Wright homes for sale.

If you want to see the private residences (without bothering real estate agents when you have no intent to buy, ahem), there is an annual Wright Plus Housewalk in Oak Park with tours inside many of the homes. It falls on May 18 this year, and I’ll be going. Only photos of the exteriors will be allowed, but there will be spring greenery and I won’t be bringing my kids along, so I should be able to get at least a couple of decent shots. I plan to visit the Robie House that day too, leaving only Taliesin East and Fallingwater on my list to see, while crossing off extras I hadn’t even thought to add.

Have you been in any of Wright’s houses? I don’t think I could live in one (budget aside, living in a time capsule would be too limiting), but they’re inspiring.

March 18, 2013
Honor Roll
Chicago Edition!
- I keep returning to look at the photos from this former bath house in Wicker Park. Even if we could afford it ($2,300,000!), it’s too much house for us (10,000 sq ft!). It’s fun to think about though.
- Chicago is divided clearly by neighborhoods, but also by class.
- Drawing on that last article, want to know where Chicago’s creative types live? This is a good start. Oak Park is one of the top spots.
- This is the lone non-Chicago link among the rest this week, but I like The Windows of New York. (And hey, they feel pretty familiar.) (via Swiss Miss)
- The Vintage Bazaar is popping up again this weekend. Brandon and I are going tonight. Will we see you there?
- Maybe the finishing touches to my kitchen are among these? (I’m looking at you, Mano storage jars, you cute little things you.)
- I came across this cute line of lingerie, and liked the retro look of it. Turns out, they’re trying to solve a… shall we say ‘delicate’ situation?
- My desk is perfectly fine, but that doesn’t stop me from dreaming about redecorating with these.
- Stop talking. (That print cracks me up, big time.)
February 15, 2013
The Farnsworth House

Number 18 on my 30 Before Thirty list: done. ~~Visit The Farnsworth House by Mies van der Rohe.~~

It was beautiful, but SO impractical. There was a lot of client/architect drama between Edith Farnsworth and Mies van der Rohe. Ms. Farnsworth claimed that the house was unlivable (it had almost no storage), and the price skyrocketed as work progressed. Mies took the stance that it was a getaway house and you should have little more with you than a change of clothes, therefore it doesn’t need to be practical.

Still, The Farnsworth House was amazing. It’s constantly under threat of flooding, so go see it sooner than later if you’re able.

August 18, 2010