Beauty can be only skin deep, even in architectural design. How many times have you stepped into an architecturally dazzling building only to be disappointed – maybe even appalled – at what’s inside?
Fortunately, there are many wonderful interiors in Los Angeles, some of which outshine their exterior. And here are five of my favorites:
1. The master bedroom (and bathroom) in the stunning Sheats Goldstein House perched on a hill above Beverly Hills. Designed by the legendary architect John Lautner and built in 1963 for the Sheats family (and later restored by James Goldstein), this mid-century marvel has it all – a sexy James Bond vibe, an indoor-outdoor flow ingeniously done, and killer vistas. All of that is captured in the master bedroom and adjoining bathroom, plus you get huge glass doors that glide back at the flick of a button.
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2. The hallway of the Adamson House in Malibu with its magnificent Oriental carpet – which is made of TILE! The house, a lovely Spanish Colonial Revival home built in 1929, is known for its spectacular tile work, but the tile carpet is especially remarkable. In fact, you have to look closely to see that it is, indeed, not real.
3. The lobby-bar-lounge of the landmark Culver Hotel, which the owners have preserved in its historic context, but have added a bit of whimsy to appeal to a younger crowd. Enter this space and you feel like you’re back in the 20s and 30s, when Hollywood stars such as Clark Gable, Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, Red Skelton, Buster Keaton, Ronald Reagan and others maintained part-time residences within the hotel’s classic walls.
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4. The old lobby in the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, which has retained its grand splendor of past eras. Fortunately, the stunning murals, the ceiling treatments, the Beaux Arts and Renaissance Revival features throughout the hotel have been preserved. But what I especially love is the staircase with the gargoyles that are so wrong in so many right ways.
5. The living room in my own home, designed by Ian Patrick. With its English Tudor Revival roots, a grand fireplace, brocades, silks, tassels, velvets – all in teals and golds and cranberries – my living room makes me feel like Eleonora of Toledo in the flats of Beverly Hills.
