Category Archives: Homes

Italian Villa Tour: ’18th C. Tuscan Estate, Pisa’ (Video)

Video October 2, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

The first historical evidence related to this wonderful Tuscan estate with over three hundred hectares of grounds for sale are in a document dated 8 November 1044, found in Pisa’s State Archives.

Since then, this villa has seen a number of prestigious owners, including noble families such as the Counts Mastiani-Brunacci and Della Gherardesca, who gave their contribution into maintaining this property’s splendour throughout the centuries. The villa we see today dates back to the 17th century and includes a Renaissance garden that was carefully renovated and brought back to utmost splendour, framing what is currently a wonderful luxury resort equipped with all comforts.

The property is in the middle of a vast fauna and game reserve measuring 320 hectares and featuring unsoiled forests and stunning expanses of olive trees, besides being home to a big number of buildings that measure 18,000 sqm overall, part of which have beed restored and fit for residential use, while others are currently into disuse but may be rebuilt or renovated. The resort has been completely renovated and is home to two suites with jacuzzi and to ten bedrooms that have been carefully furnished in a Tuscan style with unique pieces.

Each room offers a wonderful view of its surroundings, the Italian-style garden, the villages nearby and leafy hills. The main body includes several warehouses, apartments of the agritourism resort and garages, but there are also a wonderful swimming pool measuring 140 sqm, a tennis court, an Italian-style garden and a park. Some extraordinary features of this Tuscan estate for sale are its private grass airport, with a hangar to store plane, a hangar for helicopters and a pad, a lake used for fishing and watering fields, and a private hunting reserve measuring over 300 hectares.

Home Design, Homes, Videos

Prefab Modular Homes: ‘Boxabl Houseboat’ (Video)

Video October 1, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

Boxabl Houseboat – Prefabribated modular home on pontoons.

Architecture, Books, Design, Home Design, Homes

Interior Design: ‘Inside Marrakesh – Enchanting Homes And Gardens’ (2020)

September 29, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

Contemporary design meets Marrakesh’s splendid artistic heritage in a fresh burst of color, form, and texture through a panoply of sensual houses and gardens. Noted designer Meryanne Loum-Martin provides entrée into the extraordinary residences of this fabled city’s leading tastemakers.

This exquisite book showcases the stunning properties of the world’s leading design connoisseurs, including Jasper Conran, Lynn Guinness, Vanessa Branson, and Helen and Brice Marden, who have transformed Marrakesh’s exotic style into unexpected but elegant expressions.

The story of design in Marrakesh begins with the contributions of Bill Willis, Yves Saint Laurent, and Pierre Bergé, who fearlessly fused Moroccan elements–zellige tilework, rugs, pottery, fountains, woodwork, metalwork, and tadelakt wall treatments–with a luxuriant mix of furnishings from around the world. We are invited into such lush private places as the gardens of the Villa Oasis, designed by Madison Cox, and the Bulgaris’ tranquil riad.

Full of personal insights, Loum-Martin explores how international design-savvy individuals continue to incorporate such exuberant designs in their work.

Today’s Marrakesh style appeals to a wide variety of tastes–from formal to quirky, from rustic to refined–and is suitable for diverse settings. Eco-friendly materials, including earthenware and natural fibers, contribute to these appealing interiors and gardens. Superbly photographed, Inside Marrakesh abounds with a wealth of unique design ideas.

About The Author

International tastemaker Meryanne Loum-Martin is the proprietor of the award-winning Jnane Tamsna boutique hotel in Marrakesh’s Palmeraie district. Lauded in publications such as Town & Country and Architectural Digest, she has designed porcelain dinnerware for Meissen and an outdoor furniture collection. Award-winning lifestyle and food photographer Jean Cazals‘s work has been published in numerous magazines and cookbooks.

Arts & Literature, Homes

English Country Homes: ‘Ponden Hall’ – Inspiration For “WUTHERING HEIGHTS” By Emily Brontë In 1847

September 26, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

In the early 19th century the house kept an extensive library, and the Brontës were regular visitors; many details of the house, particularly the interior, suggest fairly clearly that it was the inspiration for the Lintons’ home, Thrushcross Grange. Anne Brontë was just as inspired as Emily, incidentally: Ponden is also the model for the titular house in The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.

Ponden Hall is in the village of Stanbury and is even accessed via a lane with a suitably Gothic name: Scar Top Road. It’s huge: there are eight bedrooms, a paddock, four acres of land and a further two-bedroom annexe — ideal for the Nelly who looks after your family, or for use as a potential holiday let to Brontë-mad tourists.

The oldest parts of the hall date to 1541, but most of the house as it stands today goes back to 1634 — and the evidence of its great age is plain to see.

The beams, walls, floors, ceilings, fireplaces and windows are gloriously authentic — and the owners have doubled-down on the effect with some wonderfully inspired furniture choices, especially with the beds. Don’t fret about the fact that you’d struggle to find similar pieces yourself: the vendors are apparently happy sell it on via separate negotiation.

Homes, Travel, Videos

Italian Estate Tour Video: ‘Villa Padronale Arezzo’

Video September 24, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

Just outside Arezzo, in a panoramic position with direct view over the historic center, beautiful manor villa with Italian garden and gatehouse. The villa and the gatehouse have been finely restored and offer a total of 11 bedrooms and 982 sqm of livable surface. The garden, elegant and well-maintained, is the ideal background for events, thanks to the beautiful view over Arezzo.

Architecture, Books, Home Design, Homes

American Architecture: Evolution Of Indiana Houses In Photographs

September 21, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

In the early nineteenth century, Indiana was at the intersection of ideas from the East and the frontier – resulting in a unique opportunity to express creative adaptions of residential architectural styles in America.

Industrialization later in the century created a new wealth to build extraordinary houses outside of cities; by the early twentieth century, Americans had created their own distinctive residential architecture with the Prairie Style.

This 288 page compendium includes over ninety houses in Indiana which are representative of the finest American residential architecture, from the Federal and Classical Revival style to Modern. The fascinating story of the evolution of residential architecture elaborates on the character defining features of each period, including the exterior form, massing, details as well as interiors – all beautifully illustrated in large format black and white photographs.

Authors: Craig Kuhner and Alan Ward

American Residential Architecture
Oscar Riera Ojeda Publications
Photographs of the Evolution of Indiana Houses

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Travel, Videos

Italian Estate Video Tours: “Castello Torrito”, Umbria

Video September 15, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

In a very panoramic position in the municipality of Foligno, in the heart of Umbria, we find this beautiful medieval castle. The property, spanning over 500 sqm, currently offers a total of 5 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms. A beautiful garden enclosed by the original walls is ideal for events and weddings and also features a finely restored private chapel. All around, 4.0 hectares of land complete the property.

Homes, Travel, Videos

New Design Books: “The Most Beautiful Rooms In The World” (AD/Rizzoli)

September 13, 2020 Intellicurious Leave a comment

An unrivaled survey of the most exciting contemporary interior design across the globe, curated by the editors of ten international editions of Architectural Digest.

Since 1920, Architectural Digest has celebrated design talents, innovative homes, and products–providing endless decoration, lifestyle, and travel inspiration. With ten global editions, the magazine is an authority renowned all over the world for publishing only the very best of today’s interior design.

In this new volume–spearheaded by AD France‘s editor in chief, Marie Kalt–the editors of Architectural Digest‘s international editions have teamed up to thoughtfully curate a collection of today’s most exceptional interiors around the globe. These diverse residential spaces span from the United States and China, to France, Italy, Germany, Russia, Spain, India, Mexico, and the Middle East, presenting each country’s unique “AD style manifesto” and the work of design luminaries such as Peter Marino, Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Jacques Grange, Joseph Dirand, and Bijoy Jain, to name a few. The featured projects range from Marc Jacobs’s New York townhouse to Tommy Hilfiger’s Connecticut abode and Seth Meyers’s Manhattan duplex; a sumptuous eighteenth-century Italian villa and a Moroccan palace; Pierre Bergé’s apartment and a hôtel particulier in Paris; a Majorca summer home; and a country house in Russia. Brimming with stunning images and rich international inspirations, this unparalleled compendium of global interiors is a must for every library of interior design.

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