7510 Trevanion Avenue: The Hellmund House -- Treasure Trove of Photos!

I have a real treat for you today! Paul, the present owner of the Hellmund House at 7510 Trevanion Avenue, generously gave me a tour of his home. It is unbelievable. It is also for sale. You can check out the listing here.

Paul and his wife have done an amazing job restoring and updating the house, paying great respect to Frederick Scheibler's work. I could post a hundred photos from my visit, but I narrowed it down to my 30-some favorites. 

I first wrote about this house in 2013. Here's what I wrote:

"I love the surprising shape of this house. The front door isn't stuck on the front of the house; it's tucked into a little cutaway. There are arches, geometric shapes, stone mosaics, leaded and art glass, stone walkways, French doors leading onto a balcony, surprising angles, a chimney and a patio.

In The Progressive Architecture of Frederick G. Scheibler, Martin Aurand says that the house has an "obsession with corners," since the main entry opens at a corner of the house and every room is entered at a corner.

He also writes that "The rooms abound with built-in cabinets, fireplaces with inset tiles, and an array of custom-designed lamps ranging from a bejeweled urn to a futuristic recessed ceiling fixture. This abundance of inventive detail turns the house into a jewel box."

According to Aurand, the Hellmunds chose Scheibler as their architect because they lived in the  Meado'cots. Rudolph E. Hellmund was a prestigious engineer and inventor who spent his leisure time gardening. He and his wife had a love affair with their house, calling it by the affectionate German diminutive, their Hausen."

From Martin Aurand's "The Progressive Architecture of Frederick G. Scheibler, Jr."

Amazing outdoor space to the side and rear of the home

So many original light fixtures remain!

Let's go inside! There's a treat immediately inside the front door -- a treasure trove of stained glass!

As you can see in the next picture, these panels of irises sit immediately inside the front entry.

Right around the corner from the front door comes the "ladies' parlor."

Look at the poppies in this amazing stained glass piece!

The stairway pops you into a spread of 5 rooms. Check out the closet on the left!

This is the room Mr. Hellmund used as his office.

The bedroom has a surprise powder room! Paul slid back what looked like a closet door to reveal this little space. It used to be a single-stall shower, which they converted into a powder room.

Paul told me that the original blueprint shows a fireplace instead of this set of built-in shelves.

Paul and his wife updated this amazing kitchen.

Here you can see one of the built-in china cabinets.

Paul and his wife created this amazing basement space.

I'm so grateful to Paul for showing me around his home ... and I'm jealous of the lucky person or family that gets to live here. I hope they love all the amazing details! I hope you enjoyed it too!

P.S. Here's a link to a Post-Gazette article with more photos and info.

The Johnston House, 6349 Jackson Street

I have a treat for you! I get to share absolutely stunning photos tonight!

Earlier this year, when 6349 Jackson Street was listed for sale, I started a post about it here. This weekend, I was fortunate to meet the new owner, Fred. He has been doing amazing work on the house and generously sent me pictures to share with you.

First, let's learn a little bit about the house, courtesy of Martin Aurand's The Progressive Architecture Of Frederick G. Scheibler, Jr.

Scheibler designed it in 1921 - 1922 for William D. and Clara E. Johnston, who commissioned three Scheibler designs in Highland Park. Aurand describes the Johnston House's "simple cubelike massing, self-effacing stucco, and crisp detailing." It is set on a slight hilltop, which was built, and sits back further from the street than its neighbors. Aurand writes that the house "masquerades as a pint-size Palladian villa on a Mediterranean hilltop."

As you approach, the home has an open porch on the right and and enclosed sun porch on the left. Aurand writes, "It functions like a sundial as the sun tracks daily across the southern sky, giving growth to vines in the art-glass windows."

Inside, you'll find rooms of all different sizes, arched windows, mahogany cabinets, room dividers with art-glass panels, built-in light fixtures, and a fireplace focal point with Moravian tiles in the living room. Aurand describes the "fine details [that] demonstrate Scheibler's growing penchant for rich interior treatments, completing the house's multi-faceted personality."

Scheibler designed the house with 3 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, a maid's room, sun porch, living room, dining room, kitchen, sleeping porch, and a garage with living quarters.

Scheibler designed a near twin of this house for Frank and Eva Harter in Ventor City, New Jersey, adding a side entry and bay window to face the ocean. (Ocean views were later blocked by the construction of another house.)

Okay, let's get to Fred's beautiful photos! He's done incredible work. (Don't forget that you can still see old photos here. Check out the "before" picture of the fireplace to appreciate all the work Fred has done!)

Look at that amazing fireplace! 

Fred tells me, "A previous owner had removed several of the art glass panels and mahogany room divider panels. Fortunately, they stored them in the garage so I was able to hire a furniture maker who was able to restore and replace missing components and reinstall them.  Most of the mahogany trim work had also been painted over and I spent the winter removing and refinishing the mahogany.  It now looks like Schelibler meant it to look.  I was fortunate enough to have copies of the original blueprints which had elevation sketches of the interior so we could see how it was supposed to look."

Fred is in the midst of having the exterior painted. He said I could come see it and take more photos when it's complete! As Fred says, "These Schelibler houses are real treasures and should be shared and enjoyed by everyone."

I agree! Thank you Fred, and thank you, reader!

So long from Abigail.