Portland Architect Frank Shell began designing homes, churches and schools in 1949. He passed on in 2006 at the age of 86.

I first visited this particular house two years ago, before it had been renovated. I brought two clients in with me who were visiting from LA and I believe they thought I was a bit nutty to be bringing them there. The house had been vacant for several months and was looking a little tired and cold so it may have been difficult to see the beauty in the materials and design. I,  however, could never get this house off my mind! And those two clients, no longer in the market for buying a home, have been back since just to savor the space, literally, for hours!

This  special Frank Shell home on SW Canterbury makes me nostalgic for that bygone era of expansion after the contraction of WWII. But! Trapped in time we are not! Not in this house! Although the renovator mindfully kept certain important period details, fixtures and cabinets, this space is sooo adaptable to our contemporary needs. It offers an open floor feel with the privacy of various rooms that expand from the central living/ dining hub. They could be bedrooms, media rooms, office, guest rooms. There are also two options for those that like to work at home between the bonus rooms along the entry and the garage/ studio space.  Each room has its own relationship to the exterior landscape with large sliding doors. Exterior patios seem to pinwheel around the building following the topography of the landscape.   This indoor/ outdoor relationship, classic to the mid-century modern period, is also expressed in the interior punctuations of atria which act as buffers from the public to the private spaces.

The radiant floor heat and new windows provide a cozy vantage point for reflecting on winter’s falling snow, spring showers, May flowers or the potential of the abundant and rolling landscape outside the window. Shall it be left al natural? Or landscaped with a specific design in mind? Should you decide to the yard work yourself you’ll find the sauna a pleasing way to rest your bones. Click for ideas for Fun in SW Portland or to see other mid-century modern properties currently on the market.

Classic design features of MCM architecture:

• Open floorplans   (Frank Shell:  Check!)
• Floor-to-ceiling “walls of glass”   (Frank Shell:  Check!)
• High ceilings with exposed beams   (Frank Shell:  Check!)
• Open-air center Atriums & Courtyards   (Frank Shell:  Check!)
• In floor radiant heat   (Frank Shell:  Check!)

That’s right, and now you’re on your phone or computer and contacting me. Let’s go!!

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Daria Crymes
Cell: 971.244.2508
daria@livingroomrealtors.com
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