Sneak Peak at Portland’s Modern Architecture and Design House Tour 2017
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First of all, what the heck is the Modern Architecture + Design Society ??
Since I am a complete moron at explaining things, hear it from the society themselves.
“The Modern Architecture + Design Society (MA+DS) serves as a forum for members of the architecture design and lifestyle community to share ideas, propose innovation and uncover the hidden gems of our favorite cities in the US and abroad. Through tours, media and idea exchange, established and emerging talents can collaborate, showcase their work and better connect with a worldwide audience to build better living spaces, lifestyles and brands for the modern consumer.
Through their Modern Home Tours (now MA+DS Home Tours) the Modern Architecture + Design Society has delivered the most robust residential tour experience in the US and Canada since 2009. With more than 50 events celebrated, MA+DS Modern Home Tours are the longest running and most prestigious home tour series, having visited over 25 cities coast to coast. Based in Austin, Texas, the international event series was created to introduce modern architecture and living to people across the United States and beyond. Today, almost 10,000 attendees gather each year to view some of the most exciting examples of modern architecture and design coast to coast.”
It’s like a traveling circus but with houses and architects and amazing staging in some of the best cities in the United States.
What’s not to love?
So how exactly does it work?
The first step is to buy a ticket for the house tour. The actual tour is self-guided, meaning you get a map and then you take off like little adventurers to each house on the map. I love the setup because you can go to whichever houses you want, at whatever pace you want, in whatever order you want. The self-guided tourist is always right!
“The self-guided tours offer a remarkable look at amazing architecture, and a chance to learn from the creative minds who designed them. The all-day events are set at your own pace and provide a space to share with like-minded design lovers. Day-of tickets are $40. Children are free.” (Got that one from the website too)
If you buy the tickets online, the price is only $35 each BUT! I have a special awesome coupon code for you to save $5 OFF! Savings on savings! Just use coupon code : PDXFASHION at the checkout for another $5 OFF!
So, this weekend, I had the amazing opportunity to take a sneak peak at few of the houses on the tour. The first one I stopped by was in Lake Oswego, house 6 on the tour map.
Built by JT Roth Construction, the house is currently for sale at 1,500,000 (how many burritos do I have to skip to save up for that?) in Northwest Lake Oswego. The entire home is three stories, with an attached casita. The head realtor, Christina, was so informative and excited to show the house, and was happy to point out all the super cool features.
For example, the kitchen has all stainless appliances and a gas stove (I’ve watched enough house hunters to know that’s a plus). Just think of all the bowls of cereal you could eat at this smoother-than-jazz bar! The double ovens and stove also has a super nifty feature where you can customize the clock animation!
What really stole my heart was the deck.
Makes me want to invite friends over for a summer BBQ potluck. With fireplace finishes like this, why would you even consider going back inside? The glass doors opening up to the deck are in an accordion window panel style, so they open ALL THE WAY OPEN. They just keep folding and folding and folding. Plus, with the mahogany floor and cedar above, there’s really no going wrong here.
Moving on, the house is equipped with surround sound pretty much everywhere, and a smart thermostat (the Nest) regulates the temperature on each floor. We headed downstairs and Christina oh-so-casually pointed out the wine cellar that can hold 490 bottles of wine.
490.
And that’s not even including how many you can fit if you put a wine fridge inside! The entire bottom floor was a nice little entertainment area with a bedroom and a walk-in closet, as well as a den area and tons of storage.
On the top floor, the master bathroom was literally bigger than my apartment.
This is only half of the bathroom, and the window above the free standing tub lets in so much natural light.
The architect, Mark Stewart, definitely had an eye for big windows, which I can appreciate. JT Roth is a small company, Oregon based and family owned, but they never rush a job. It’s amazing how different they make each of their houses. One of their developments, Medallion Meadows, has 26 different floor plans! Talking to Christina, I could see the passion in her eyes as she talked about her company and the work that they do. Seeing a housing project come to life, she described, was like raising a child. From standing on bare dirt to being able to dance around in a kitchen pantry (that is also probably bigger than my apartment) was a proud feeling of accomplishment and excitement.
I’m not even good at building Lego houses, but I feel that Christina.
Next, we traveled to house 7 on the map, also for sale!
Two things I loved about this house: the little office and the big yard. But first, let’s talk about the study room.
It’s technically a bedroom since there’s a closet, but what a perfect nook to be productive! The corner windows let in so much light, and look right out to the street. I would probably spend all day people watching rather than writing, but at least I can pretend what it would be like to get lost in a good book or file my taxes or some other adult errand thing. If you need a break from working in the beautiful office all day, the entrance to the crawl space is just a few feet away!
The floor plan is very open, with the clean kitchen opening up to the living and dining room. I know what you’re wondering, and YES, there is enough room for plenty of cartwheels and pretend snow-angels. But yanno, I guess if you want to be practical you can also put in a beautiful dining room table so gaze out the window while you munch on some organic free-range omega-3 extra raw berries.
I didn’t get a shot of the yard, but it’s beautiful! It’s so huge and green and fenced off with it’s own latch entrance out to the sidewalk. My imaginary puppy loved it! You’ll just have to see it for yourself!
Again, the Modern Home Tour is Saturday, June 3rd from 11am to 5pm. Tickets online are $35, but use the code “PDXFASHION” to get them for $30 ! Woohoo coupon codes! Tickets at the door are $40, so be sure to buy them ahead of time and use the code “PDXFASHION.” Plus, children are free! Round up the gang and go pretend-house shopping; you can finally live out your House Hunters fantasies!
You can also follow Modern Architecture on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest ! And Stay Weird, Portland.
