UPDATE: You voted and the results are in! In a closely contested race, “A Resurrection in New Orleans: Restored Bungalows of the 9th Ward” emerged as YOUR favorite article of 2013. Thank you to everyone who voted!
As I did last year, I thought it would be fun to countdown our Top 5 most popular articles from 2013. Last year, I determined the most popular article by simply looking at the total number of hits that each article got, but that method is flawed because articles that were posted earlier in the year had more time to accumulate hits than articles that were posted later in the year. So this year, I’ve added a new wrinkle to help even the playing field: I will leave it up to YOU the reader to decide which article was your favorite!
I had to start somewhere, so only the articles with the top 5 most hits for the year will be in the running. Please vote for your favorite in the poll above and I will announce the final results on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2014. Once you’ve entered your vote, you will see the most up-to-date results of the poll, so you can follow the progress, but you can only vote once, so make it count!
2013 was a banner year for The Craftsman Bungalow, and I was fortunate to have the opportunity to tour a number of very memorable homes and neighborhoods. Below is a summary of the articles with the five highest hit counts for the year (in no particular order) for your reference.
A Resurrection in New Orleans: Restored Bungalows of the 9th Ward
In March, while on a trip to New Orleans, I spent an afternoon in the hurricane-ravaged neighborhoods of the 9th Ward and Holy Cross. Everyone remembers the heart-wrenching and tragic photos of Hurricane Katrina’s cataclysmic effect on New Orleans in 2005. In the eight years since that calamitous storm, you may have moved on with your life and forgotten just how devastating the damage was, but the people of New Orleans, and especially those who live in the 9th Ward will never forget. It was a moving experience, and I came away with a deeper appreciation for what that city – and its people – have been through, and how far they’ve all come.
An Evolving Aesthetic: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home & Studio in Oak Park, Illinois
In July, I spent some time in Chicago, and took a tour of The Frank Lloyd Wright Home & Studio in Oak Park, Illinois. The home is a microcosm of the prolific designer’s ever-evolving architectural aesthetic. It’s an expression of his early formative years, and through a series of additions, it embodies the changes that his philosophy and style underwent during the twenty year span (1889-1909) that he lived and worked in the home.
Another Greene & Greene Masterwork The Duncan-Irwin House, Part II: The Interior
Charles & Henry Greene were prolific architects who were pioneers of the Arts & Crafts architectural movement in California at the turn of the 20th century. My wife and I traveled down to Los Angeles and took part in a rare tour of six privately-owned Greene & Greene homes in Pasadena’s Park Place neighborhood, just around the corner from one of the Greenes’ “ultimate bungalows”, The Gamble House. Without question, the highlight of the weekend was getting to tour the amazing Duncan-Irwin House…
The Brick House Beautiful: A Unique and Timeless Portland Landmark
The “Brick House Beautiful” was built in 1923 in the Laurelhurst neighborhood of Portland, Oregon as a showcase home for the Standard Brick & Tile Company. My neighbors Sue Carter and Bob Low welcomed me into their home this past summer and gave me a wonderful tour of their charming brick cottage. If you think the outside is beautiful, just wait till you see the inside…
The Architectural Heritage Center’s 15th Annual Portland Kitchen Revival Tour 2013
In April, I took part in the Architectural Heritage Center’s 15th Annual Portland Kitchen Revival Tour. The tour showcased the efforts of Portland homeowners who have restored their home’s kitchens to back its original glory. The homes featured were professionally restored by local contractors who specialize in period-appropriate architecture and construction. In addition to the kitchens, all of the owners were generous enough to open their entire first floor to the tour, so everyone could gain some stylistic context of the house and appreciate the kitchen even more.
So there you have it. This year’s been a lot of fun and I’m happy that so many of you have come along for the ride. I’m looking forward to bringing you more great content in 2014, and I’ve got a lot of great articles in the pipeline for the coming year.
Voting will be open from December 26 through December 31, and the results will be announced on January 1, 2014, so get your vote in today!
…and Have a Safe, Happy and Healthy New Year!!
