Introduce Yourself!

[dimone2]

Hello everyone.
My name is Aaron, and I'm an architect here in Phoenix. My wife and I are currently house hunting, and I'm tying to find a mcm house that fits our area/budget/size, etc. We just lost out on a gorgeous house on Manzanita, so the hunt goes on.

I've looked on this forum morehan once for information, so I thought I would sign up and say hi.

[Rawja]

Hey,

My name's Roger (Rawja if you're from LawnGuylind). Just moved to the valley in January, living in a rented house in Maricopa.

I've always been into modern design and was determined not to live in a nasty stucco'd, spanish tile roofed house as the thought of it was simply too depressing.

I'm recently widowed and am out here to reinvent myself for my second act. I spent 25 years doing commercial construction back in NY though I'm looking to do "something else" out here.

My house in NY is under contract and this weekend i submitted a bid on a HUD house in Glendale which I won! The place basically is a basket case, I'm planning on doing a complete gut-reno. It's kinda cool that very little was altered since its construction in '59, still has the original kitchen and built-ins (all of which are going to go), but at least I'm not paying for recently-installed knotty pine kitchen cabinets.

Here's a link to some pics:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set= ... 430&type=3

[valihomes]

Hi all, My name is Austin Trautman. I run a small, "green modernism" home building company in the valley. With the home tour going this weekend it seemed like an appropriate time to introduce myself.

We have previously remodeled architecturally significant, affordable, mid century homes. We are currently working on developing a prototype home for high quality, high design, high health, affordable construction on infill lots in the Phoenix area. I am also getting a blog rolling at our website at http://www.valihomes.com to discuss all things relating to modern, energy efficient and healthy construction.

I know there are a lot of you out there searching for an affordable home with some style that actually lives like a home and isn't covered in brown stucco. I hope we can fill that void and complement the great work that others are doing to restore our mid century gems.

Check out the blog, shoot me an email or give me a call. We'd love to hear about any features you'd like to see or options you can't live without. After all these houses are being built for you so let us know what you want to live in!

See you all at the tour tomorrow!

[Gwen]

Hi,

While I have always admired those cute little Haver neighborhoods, I never was a rabid fan of MCM. That is until the economy finally shoved me out of my beloved (and way too big) 70's Hancock home in the suburbs and into an MCM foreclosure close to work. Now, I just feel sorry for those who haven't seen the light.

My home was built in 1954 and has one of those single-gable, almost flat roofs. It's not in a known Haver neighborhood (Cranbrooke Manor near Scottsdale and Thomas Rds.) but it has enough Haver-like features to make me love it. I have the big multi-pane window in front and dyed concrete floors. It originally had a single car carport, but, like many, it has been enclosed. My ceilings follow the roof line inside but sadly no beautiful exposed beams (only insulation and the plywood roof above that dry wall). And I don't have that distinctive angle at the the ends of the roof gable.

My little subdivision is one of the only ones I could find in early Scottsdale in which the homes are wood-frame. These houses were originally sheathed in asbestos siding. Many have been stuccoed, mine (and a few others) still has the original siding. Currently the house is just a long, low horizontal box on an unadorned lot. I hope to use some great ideas I have found by driving through the neighborhoods I find listed here.

Gwen

[ModPhotog]

Greetings!

My Name is Kim Perina. I am a local photographer based in Scottsdale with a growing interest in Modern/midcentury Architecture in and around Phx.
http://www.kimperina.com

Looking to learn more and shoot more modern interesting homes. Also meeting some like minded people - Artist/creatives/visionaries!

With gratitude !
Kim

[Jaypro]

I'm a long time lurker and finally have decided to take the plunge and start posting. My wife and I hope to close on a 1954 ranch home in the Biltmore district by the end of July.

We're planning on opening up the space and adding some modern finishes to the property (concrete floors, patio, landscape design, lighting and interior design) so any recommendations or insight will greatly be appreciated.

[Aeni]

Hi all! My name's Aeni and I'm a makeup artist and FX artist in Phoenix - specifically the Cactus Heights neighborhood and hugged by the Phoenix Preserve. I was drawn to Modern Phx as my hubby and I bought "a old California beach house that was plunked in the middle of the desert" that we're currently gutting and renovating with more modern design elements. Love all the help, inspiration, and information here!

[PixelPixie]

Welcome Gwen, Aeni, Jay, Kim and Austin!

[Ray and Jo Ann]

Hi,
We are Jo Ann (Joey) and Ray Muench. We just purchased a Fred Weaver home at 522 E. CHEERY Lynn. Amazingly, very little has changed, in the house since it was built in 1948 or 1949. We are currently cleaning and sprucing up the house but want to keep it as close to it's original design as possible. Luckily, no major structural changes were made over the years. The house has it's original cork tile floors, fixtures, stove, etc. We closed on May 25 so we are still in painting, sweeping and cleaning mode. I'm so excited by this house and, having been an Art History major long ago, I have fulfilled a longtime dream in purchasing a early mid-century modern home.

This forum is great and we look forward to participating.

Joey and Ray Muench

[PixelPixie]

Welcome Joey and Ray, thanks for keeping up the Weaver! That's ChEEry Lynn not Cherry Lynn, right?

[Ray and Jo Ann]

U always misspell the street name. Yes, our house is 522 E. Cheery Lynn!
Jo Ann

[kaseybill]

Hello, My name is Kasey (Kaseybill) and my family lives in the Piestewa Peak/ Biltmore Highlands neighborhood now for 5 years. We broke out of the east valley cookie cutter home trap- hurray!!! We love design, indoors and out, and gravitate towards modern designs for their simplicity, clean lines, geometric shapes and interesting colors. It's hard to say what our favorite neighborhood is... of course we love ours, and there are some great old and new designs, but I see my favorite homes in Rancho Solano, Windsor Square and the Biltmore 'hood just north of Missouri between 24th St & SR51. We are continuously remodeling our home, but now have to make big decisions on what to do with the outside of the home. To keep, to paint or to cover the slump block is what we have been debating for 5 years now. We need help!

[PixelPixie]

Welcome Kasey! Keep your slump block, lol! It looks GREAT with matte black wood trim. That will make it extreme modern enough. Earlier this year I toured a Drake with slump and black trim and it was THE BOMB! Go for it!

[carelesswhisker]

My name is Martyn and I've finally signed up for this site that I read so often. Briefly: I like playing my nylon strings, climbing the odd rock and eating at happy hours. I've lived in Phoenix for 6 months and it has given me a new passion for modern architecture. Sometimes I'll get in the car and check out buildings I find on here. White Gates especially was quite a treat.

I want to pick your brains / complain about having to move up north but I should probably post that elsewhere on the forum. Anyway, hi :]

[tyler@velocity]

Hi Tyler here. When I'm not working I spend my time cycling and doing anything related to classic cars. I love this site because it helps to define part of Phoenix's personality and it explains some of our past.