Category Archives: Homes

English Estate Tour: Corn Mill Farm, Lower Kilcott In The South Cotswolds

Situated eight miles from Tetbury in Gloucestershire, it’s an idyllic small country estate in the scenic Kilcott Valley, nestled between the Cotswold Hills to one side and the Berkeley Vale to the west.

Penny Churchill, January 21, 2021

The property’s focal point is an impeccably restored 17th-century former ‘gryst mill’ set in 107 acres of ring-fenced farmland — a mix of ancient pastureland, meadows and deciduous woodland rising from the bottom of the valley to the top of the escarpment, with glorious westerly views towards Wales.

The land flanks the house to the north, east and south, adjoining the Midger Wood wildlife sanctuary to the east and, to the far south, the Duke of Beaufort’s Badminton estate.

The enchanting, 5,206sq ft Cotswold-stone house was comprehensively restored and extended in the early 1990s by its then owner, Trevor Reeves, one of Margaret Thatcher’s advisers and speech writers, with guidance from local architect Robert Hardwick.

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Venice Palazzo Tour: Castello On Canal (Video)

Five minutes from the Ponte di Rialto and Piazza San Marco, elegant restored apartment on the first floor of a 17th-century historic palazzo in the Castello district, Venice. The property (85 sqm) is made up of an ample living room with cooking corner, a studio/bedroom, double bedroom, and bathroom. The building was recently restored and improved with the restoration of the private bridge, the porta d’acqua and the beautiful entrance hall.

Castello, Venice, covers a large vibrant area, with one section bordering St. Mark’s Square and dotted with luxury hotels. Farther from St. Mark’s, the neighborhood gets more laid-back, with casual bars where locals stop in for a glass of wine. Shops and eateries catering to all budgets line buzzing Via Garibaldi. In alternating years, the Giardini della Biennale park hosts the Biennale exhibition of contemporary art. 

French Estate Tour: ’12th Century Abbey Aubeterre-sur-Dronne (Video)

This beautiful former abbey has been restored to a high standard and comes with 6 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms served by a central stone spiral staircase. It also offers beautiful views, land and 2 stocked lakes. Located 100 kms from Bordeaux, 30 kms from Angouleme (TGV to Paris under 2 1/2 hrs), near Aubeterre-sur-Dronne (one of the prettiest villages in France) in a quiet location down a no through road.

Aubeterre-sur-Dronne is a commune in the Charente department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. It has been officially listed as “One of the most beautiful villages in France” since 1993. Aubeterre-sur-Dronne is also well known for its Church of Saint Jean, an underground, Monolithic Church.

Visualization: Modern Villas Overlooking The Pyramids In Egypt (Video)

A Visualization of Modern Villas Overlooking The Pyramids Of Egypt.

Visualized by VanillaStudio: http://www.vanilla-studio.com/​

Architecture by IMAM Architects: https://www.imamarchitects.com/

Home Tours: San Miguel De Allende, Guanajuato In Central Mexico (Video)

Set in a quiet enclave in Centro, Casa William is one of San Miguel’s most stunning properties. Stone arches and walls, high, wood-beamed ceilings, generous room proportions and wood and stone floors evoke a gracious style from generations past. As soon as you step into the barrel-vaulted entryway, you know you are about to be treated to something very special.

A large, professionally-landscaped garden with refreshing pool and jacuzzi, mature vegetation and multiple lounging areas is an invitation to socialize with friends and family or simply indulge in an afternoon siesta or invigorating swim. Located just a few minutes flat walk to dozens of restaurants, shops, art galleries, high-end hotels and the Jardin, Casa William is a gem designed for the discerning buyer looking to live the gracious, luxurious yet easy lifestyle for which San Miguel de Allende is famous.

San Miguel de Allende, a colonial-era city in Mexico’s central highlands, is known for its baroque Spanish architecture, thriving arts scene and cultural festivals. In the city’s historic, cobblestoned center lies the neo-Gothic church Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel, whose dramatic pink towers rise above the main plaza, El Jardín. The Templo de San Francisco church nearby has an 18th-century churrigueresque facade.

Guanajuato is a city in central Mexico. It’s known for its silver mining history and colonial architecture. Its network of narrow streets, alleyways and tunnels is typified by the Callejón del Beso (Alley of the Kiss), so named because the balconies are close enough for a couple to reach across and kiss. In a former granary, the Alhóndiga de Granaditas is an art and local history museum with pre-Columbian exhibits.

Island Home Tours: ‘Villa Violetta’, Porto Rotondo On Sardinia, Italy

The property sits on a peninsula with direct access to the beach in Porto Rotondo. The villa is gated and located in Punta Volpe, one of the most exclusive spots of Porto Rotondo always highly patrolled due to the importance of its residents. It has generous spaces both inside and outside, perfect for families.


Its five comfortable rooms are distributed around the house, providing lots of privacy for the guests. The house has a beautifully kept garden, a terrace on the rocks with 270° view on the Mediterranean and a private access to white sandy beach. A new swimming pool and a guest house have been recently added.

Tropical Home Tours: Hanalei Bay, North Shore Of Kauai In Hawaii (Video)

Enjoy the relaxed lifestyle at Hale Haena on the North Shore of Kauai. With quaint one-lane bridges and just steps across the deeded beach access to the crystal blue South Pacific ocean, life slows down here. This meticulously maintained home offers wonderful floor plan with living area and primary bedroom upstairs, private from two guest suites downstairs.

Hanalei is a small town on the north shore of Kauai, in Hawaii. Its crescent-shaped beach on Hanalei Bay features the Pine Trees surf area at Waioli Beach Park. Forested hills back nearby Lumahai Beach, a location in the movie “South Pacific.” East of town, the Hanalei Valley Lookout offers views of mountains and taro fields. Within the valley, Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge is a haven for rare water birds. 

2021 Books: ‘Radical Architecture Of The Future’ – (Phaidon)

This remarkable book features projects — surprising, beautiful, outrageous, and sometimes even frightening — that break rules and shatter boundaries. In this timely book, the work of award-winning architects, designers, artists, photographers, writers, filmmakers, and researchers — all of whom synthesize and reflect our spatial environments — comes together for the first time.

An important and fascinating collection of original projects by unique thinkers in the world of architecture and spatial design

Architectural practice today goes far beyond the design and construction of buildings — the most exciting, forward-thinking architecture is also found in digital landscapes, art, apps, films, installations, and virtual reality.

About The Author:

How does tomrrow look from your doorstep? For the author, curator, critic and cultural consultant Beatrice Galilee tomorrow’s buildings, building plans, or ways of thinking about our built environment, are already out there.

In her new book, Radical Architecture of the Future, she quotes the American scholar Donna Haraway who asserted, way back in 1985, that “The boundary between science fiction and social reality is an optical illusion.”

Galilee patrols that boundary within the pages of her new book, in which she details works by 79 architects, designers, artists, photographers, writers, filmmakers, and researchers, each of whom are working at the most radical edges of architecture and spatial design today.

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Remote Work: ‘Ori Pocket Office’ – Vanishes At The Touch Of Button (Video)

Make room for the work day with Ori Pocket Office — a flexible home office setup that appears when it’s needed and makes room for living space when it’s not.

With the Pocket Office, everything work-related is hidden away, so you can relax at the end of the day.

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Home Technology: ‘Top TV’s Of CES 2021’ (Video)

CNET’s David Katzmaier gives us his top TV picks from CES 2021: LG, Samsung, TCL and more! These are the craziest concept TVs, the fanciest TVs money can buy, and the overall best TVs that just might even come to you soon.