Knuckle & Claw :: A New England-Style Sandwich Spot in Silver Lake

Knuckle & Claw :: Photography by Wonho Frank Lee 

Knuckle & Claw, founded by Chloe Dahl and Nikki Booth, is Silver Lake’s newest sandwich shop specializing in New England-style lobster rolls. Designed by Office 42, the store uses subway tile, butcher’s block counters, and white marble slabs as accents. Here’s a look inside.

Silver Lake Hills Architectural :: Barbara Bestor, AIA

Built in 2006 by Barbara Bestor, AIA this stunning home offers sweeping views, privacy and dramatic living spaces. Well poised in the Silver Lake hills above the reservoir featuring over 7,256 sq. ft. of engaging materials & design you will enjoy efficient and modern living at its finest. A large formal living room, spacious dining room, library, enormous state of the art kitchen, family room, game room, gym, office and complete guest suite this is one of the largest homes in Silver Lake. With 6 bedrooms and 7 baths including maids quarters with separate entrance, tons of great storage and an abundance of natural light, grassy lawns, swimming pool, spa and multiple outdoor entertaining areas this is truly a showcase home for the most discerning client. Direct access garage, roof top deck, solar power, and views from Downtown L.A. to the Hollywood Sign. Close proximity to Silver Lake Meadow, the Greek Theatre and less than a mile from the Whole Foods scheduled to open in 2015. Easy access to Staples Center, L.A. Live, Dodger Stadium, Burbank Airport and Hollywood & Highland. 

2312 Baxter Street, Silver Lake
for sale - $4,250,000
contact us to request a showing :: 310.275.1000

Presented by Brian Ades :: Sotheby's International Realty

Silver Lake Chronicles: Exploring an Urban Oasis in Los Angeles :: A New Book by deasy/penner Partner, Michael Locke

We are pleased to announce the forthcoming book by deasy/penner Partner, Michael Locke exploring the lives of "Mansion builders and movie stars, bohemians, visionaries and just plain folk with colorful anecdotes about early movie magnates William Selig and Mack Sennett and silent screen idols Mabel Normand, Antonio Moreno and Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle in new and surprising ways. Other lesser know, but richly deserving, stories are shared perhaps for the first time. Authors Michael Locke and Vincent Brook present a rich tapestry of the unique urban oasis whose appeal only seems to grow." Now available for pre-order on Amazon and on the shelves of local bookstores shortly.

Partner Spotlight: Steve Clark

It was almost five years ago that Steve Clark joined deasy/penner as a partner. After an illustrious real estate career, Steve says, “It was the best decision I could make.” No small praise, considering that Steve is not only a Los Angeles native, but also a former rock-and-roll drummer who toured around the globe. We had the opportunity to catch up with this L.A. tastemaker about architecture, tips for buyers and sellers, and his favorite neighborhood.

Do you have a favorite architectural style?

Spanish. I've owned and reinvented two different 1930 Spanish homes, and I love the character and history associated with that time… the colorful tile, the arches throughout, the Magnesite staircases, and of course those gorgeous lath and plaster walls. Really, they don't build houses like that anymore. I look forward to getting home at the end of a long day.

Do you have a favorite house you've sold or bought for a client? 

Tough question! Every client has a unique story, and their homes have stories as well. My favorite part of my career is helping a client make the right match -- whether it's finding the perfect house to buy or finding the right buyer for a listing. My favorite house is the one I'm currently listing. I get emotionally attached. After all, if you don't love it, you're not really representing it, right?

What is your best piece of advice to someone house hunting in the Los Angeles area? 

My clients and I talk extensively about their work, their career, and their lifestyle before even starting to look at homes. Where they work and play is critical. This city can eat you up if you work on one side and live on the other.

What’s something that sellers need to do better?

The internet has changed the way we buy and sell homes. A seller has the opportunity to reach more people than ever before. However, the house has to look its best. Great photos are more important than ever. Make your house look better than it has ever looked before. Stress to your realtor: DO NOT skimp on photos.

What is your favorite LA neighborhood and why?

That's easy… Silver Lake. I’m born and raised here. I've had the opportunity to sell homes from the ocean to the San Gabriel Valley, but I always come back to the epicenter of cool. Each community definitely has its thing, but for me it's Silver Lake, hands down. They're my people.

Avenel Homes :: Gregory Ain Architect, 1947

First time on the market: The aesthetic is modernist, the guiding precepts social as well as architectural. Architect Gregory Ain's innovative design for ten attached homes balanced his collective clients' brief for community and privacy, economy and flexibility. Outdoor areas vary from interactive to intimate. Inside, sliding walls separate or unify spaces to the occupants' requirements offering one, two or three bedroom configurations. This last of the Avenel Homes is an end unit with a southwest exposure, private yard and patio, views and one-car garage plus surface parking. Having evolved over sixty-six years with its original residents, it awaits the restorative imprint of its next generation. 

2843 Avenel Street, Silverlake

for sale $650,000
contact us to request a showing :: 310.275.1000

Meet the Architect of the Butterfly House, John Southern of Urban Operations

Architect John Southern will be on hand during a public open house at the Butterfly House to discuss his design philosophy and answer questions.

2636 Corralitas Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90039
Sunday, June 30th
2-5pm

John Southern is the founding principal of Urban Operations. He holds a Bachelors of Architectural Design from the University of Florida, and a Masters of Architecture from the Southern California Institute of Architecture in Los Angeles. John teaches at Woodbury University’s School of Architecture and participates in community outreach and education through his involvement in the Los Angeles Forum for Architecture and Urban Design. He has lectured widely and participated in panel discussions thematically related to design culture in both the U.S. and Europe. As a journalist John has written pieces for DOMUS, Loudpaper, MONU, Junkjet, and Form Magazine- publications specializing in the field of urban culture and design. 

Property exclusively represented by deasy/penner&partners. For Sale: $898,000

2840 Angus Street : : Silverlake

Home As Art pick :: 2840 Angus Street 

Designed in 1957 by USC architecture student Edward C. Malone for his friends Donald and Ruby Moreland in the "modern" post-and-beam-style. Influenced by the USC School of architecture, the recognized progenitor of this style of architecture, Mr. Malone included open beamed ceilings, Douglas Fir paneling, clerestory and floor to ceiling windows in his vision. Meticulously maintained and restored by its current owners, this is a gem. Superb Kitchen has vintage Hotpoint "Customline" oven and cooktop , cork flooring and "flying coffin" overhead cabinetry. Vintage bath features original tile and fixtures with separate tub and stall shower. Very private rear yard and patio has stepping stone and pebble surfaces with bamboo shrubbery. An expansive deck skirting the front of the structure offers tree-top views of the mountains. Ivanhoe Elementary.

for sale $799,000

contact us to schedule a showing 310.275.1000

listing courtesy of Paul Kellog : : Coldwell Banker

photos and text courtesy of the listing agent

2147 Avenel St. #1/2 : : Gregory Ain, Architect

Home As Art pick :: 2147 Avenel Street, Silverlake

The Avenel Cooperative Housing Project, designed in 1947 by architect Gregory Ain, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Sited on a gentle downslope, the 10-unit architectural complex is a unique example of mid-century modernist design.This unit, happily occupied for 20 years by its architect/owner, has been restored with meticulous care, reflecting the original design and detail. A flexible interior, with sliding partition walls, can be configured into 1, 2 or 3 bedrooms with open living, dining and kitchen areas. California indoor/outdoor living is enabled by a wall of glass leading to the spacious patio facing serene hillside views and enhanced by a private walled garden. Each room opens to a garden/patio. Units have privacy, each with separate outdoor entry. Laundry room, single garage, additional parking space, short walk to shops and the Lake.

for sale $700,000

contact us for more information : : 310.275.1000

listing courtesy of Eric Scott : : Keller Williams

Bestor Architecture

If you've ever been to Intelligentsia in Silverlake and were delighted by the blue & white moroccan tile floor, you already know Barbara Bestor's work.  Or perhaps you've been to Pitfire Pizza in Culver City and marveled at the two-tiered bright red steel pizza ovens. 

Best known for her private residential work in and around Los Angeles, both her residential and commercial projects are inspired by her motto: "Everyone should experience strange beauty everyday." 

Barry Gray and Crystal Heatherly, two of our Partners at deasy/penner&partners, recently sold a "Modern Farmhouse" in Silverlake designed by Bestor.  The pitched roofline and cement board siding evoke an east coast farmhouse, but simple interior volumes, sustainable materials & industrial materials are classic California modern.

Modern Farmhouse - 2300 Baxter Street, Los Angeles, CA. - SOLD

photos by Jim Simmons

For photographer Dewey Nicks and his family, Bestor designed a casual, kid-friendly beach house. You can see more photos HERE at Martha Stewart Living.

photos by Matthew Hranek

Bestor's "Floating Bungalow" in Venice is a "modernist contemplation on (and reinterpretation of) the working-class bungalows that have long defined the area.  The house appears dreamlike, an abstracted bungalow dipped in white and lifted in the air.."


Read more about the Floating Bungalow at HERE.

photos via Bestor Architecture

Barbara Bestor's, Bohemian Modern: Living in Silverlake can be purchased HERE