The lower level is dominated by
a large open living and dining area
with a wall of east-facing glass. The
kitchen is connected by a pass-through
of sliding glass above cabinets with
drawers that open into either the
kitchen or dining area.
The entry foyer opens into
the living and dining area with a
connection to the attached garage
and half bath to one side and the
kitchen entrance to the other. What
was originally designed as a maid’s
suite is accessed from the kitchen.
Many of the light fixtures are from the
Cleveland-based Perfectlite Company,
where Joseph Jaffe held design
patents for various lighting fixtures.
The ribbon-style awning windows
set high on the wall in the north-facing
front of the house are carried through
to the western wall of the living room.
This wall, constructed of redwood,
extends into the backyard beyond the
room itself, creating a continuous
separation that originally created two
outdoor “rooms”: the child’s play area
to the west that captures the afternoon
sun, and to the east, a garden outside
the large glass windows of the living
room. This tied into the arrangement
of the bedrooms: the parent’s bedroom
and balcony look out onto the garden,
while the child’s room looks out onto
the play area below.
The placement of the windows
and roof overhangs also takes into
consideration the position of the sun
as it varies with the seasons: high in
summer, low in winter. This design
function incorporates Little’s taste for
including nature in his work, and was
so often part of his process that he
patented a machine called Solux to aid
architects with passive solar design.
Background:
A George Nelson &
Associates Ball Clock
designed by
Irving Harper for
Howard Miller.
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