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Henrybuilt Launches Luxe Closet Design

Filed under: Decor


Henrybuilt, the American high-design company known for its sleek, hand crafted lines, has just launched a series of closet designs that will be custom to each client and built to order in the company's Seattle workshop.

Weaving together its trademark modern design with unsurpassed functionality, these "closets" (it seems they should get a new, much fancier name with all the included bells and whistles) feature wooden valet trays, leather-lined storage compartments, hand crafted leather pulls and an integrated lighting system -- so you'll be sure to look as good in whatever's in your closet as the closet itself.

Prices available upon request from Henrybuilt, which has a New York studio in addition to its Seattle shop.

Mercer Island, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


Today's listing takes us to a 1932 brick home in the pricey Mercer Island area of East Seattle, Washington. This home is on 1.37 acres and has a beach, a dock with boat lifts, a two-bedroom guest house and a carriage house that has three office spaces. The main home has been completely rebuilt and expanded. It has lost some of its vintage charm but does retain some details like beamed ceilings and leaded glass windows combined with a more modern open floor plan. Rocks surround an indoor pool which has a waterslide and spa. The home also has a game room, sports court and home theater. it is listed at $29.95 million.

Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

Gallery: Mercer Island

WholeFoods Donates $30K to Farm Aid

Filed under: Big Givers

Whole Foods stores in Portland and Seattle recently participated in Community Giving Day, agreeing to donate 5% of the day's sales to Farm Aid, a non-profit org that supports local farmers.

The total came to $30,000, money which will help farmers produce and market their food.

"We appreciate [Whole Foods] customers who value family farmers and the food that only they can grow," said Carolyn Mugar , Farm Aid's executive director, in a press release.

The Homes of America's Billionaires

Filed under: Estates, Wealth


As an adjunct to their just-released annual list of the 400 richest Americans, Forbes has included a special report on the homes of some of the billionaires who made the cut. Capping the account is of course Bill Gates, who tops the 400 with his $57 billion fortune. It's hard to say exactly how much his high-tech 66,000-sq.-ft. house on Lake Washington near Seattle is worth. The property includes a 60-foot swimming pool with an underwater music system, a domed library with two "secret" bookcase doors and a 1,000-square-foot dining room, the mag notes.

Also featured: the historic seven-story Duke-Semans mansion (above) in Manhattan owned by cab driver-turned-mogul Tamir Sapir (net worth $1.9 billion), who bought it from Doris Duke's relatives for $40 million after a single walk-through. He's now said to be spending $10 million on renovations. And then there's Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison's (net worth $27 billion) 23-acre estate in Woodside, Calif., "reminiscent of a 16th-century imperial Japanese palace" which reportedly cost over $100 million to build. You can see a slideshow of these megamansions and more here.

HenryBuilt Launches Whole House Line

Filed under: Decor


HenryBuilt -- the design team long favored by discerning architects and their customers -- has recently launched its Whole House Line, essentially sleek-ifying every niche of your home from the library to the laundry room. The custom line is all rift-cut oak, walnut, stainless steel, teak: rich woods in a classic modern style.

The pieces aptly synthesize engineering and craft, meaning they can live in your home for a lifetime. Feelgood bonus: HenryBuilt uses a wide range of renewable or recycled materials.

A New York fixture since 2001, HenryBuilt has just opened a new showroom in Seattle, where the company first began. If you're Pacific Northwest bound, check out the goods at their opening party on September 18. 997 Western Ave., Seattle. Their NYC shop is at 79 Grand Street.

SeaPort Air, Small But Green

Filed under: Wings

Arrive just 15 minutes before your flight is scheduled to depart. Take off from a private terminal. Avoid TSA shenanigans altogether. Protect conservation land in the Pacific Northwest. The four previous statements more or less define the mission of Portland-based SeaPort Air, a new airline that's trying to bring the jetset experience to the masses (at least if they're flying between Portland and Seattle). To mitigate its fuel consumption (the new "carbon offset"), it has as of yesterday announced its partnership with the Columbia Land Trust, noting the company is determined to give back locally to an environmental organization that will have a lasting impact on the Pacific Northwest. With any luck, SeaPort will initiate flight service near the rest of us.

Seattle Luxury Chocolate Salon

Filed under: Dining, Events


Deliciousness comes to Seattle on July 13th in the form of the Seattle Luxury Chocolate Salon. The show takes place at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center, 2211 Alaskan Way, Pier 66 from 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. The show will include a variety of chocolatiers and confectioners include Amano Artisan Chocolate, Kekau Chocolatier, Cocoa Chai Chocolates, Petit Noirs, Guittard Chocolate, Theo Chocolate,Alma Chocolate, Lula's Chocolates, Dilettante Chocolates, Posh Chocolat and more. The event will also include chocolate demos by local talent. The salon will also hold the Luxury Chocolate Salon Awards and members of the tasting panel include Seattle food and city journalists Molly Wizenberg (Orangette, Bon Appetit), Eric Scigliano (Seattle Metropolitan Magazine), Viv (Seattle Bon Vivant), Ritzy Ryciak (Conscious Choice Magazine) and Dana Cree (TastingMenu.com, Pastry Chef - Veil Restaurant). Tickets are $20 for adults at the door or $17.50 in advance.

Seattle Aquarium Society, Charity of the Day

Filed under: Charity, Charity of the Day

The Seattle Aquarium Society is about not only supporting the Seattle Aquarium but also educating people about and preserving the Puget Sound and other marine habitats. Money donated goes towards researching marine species like the six gill shark and the giant Pacific Octopus, training "Beach Naturalists" who volunteer to teach beach visitors how to enjoy themselves without hurting the environment, or even simply helps feed the otters. High level memberships of $300-$5000/year get you additional goodies like behind-the-scenes tours and invites to special wine tastings, Presidential dinners, and the Splash! Reception that happens each year.

Luxury Green Homes Become An Arson Target


The world of luxury eco-friendly housing was shattered this week by the news of the arson fires at the Street of Dreams homes in Snohomish County, Washington. The five homes were part of what's called a "rural cluster development" and were built "five star BuiltGreen" standards. The homes were all unoccupied and listed for sale at prices from approximately $1.6 to $.19 million. The Seattle Times reports that federal investigators are trying to determine whether a group of radical environmentalists known as the Earth Liberation Front, are responsible for the fires. A spraypainted message from the ELF was left at the scene. It said: Built Green? Nope black! McMansions in RCDs r not green. ELF." Law-enforcement officials wonder if the fires were timed to coincide with jury deliberations in the trial of an alleged ELF member accused of a previous fire.

Monday's fires did $7 million total in damages. The homes had a variety of "green" features such as energy-efficient appliances, native-plant landscaping, high-efficiency insulation and the use of recycled materials. The homes had video-surveillance systems and alarms but they were turned off because they weren't consider to be needed and the homes were for sale and real estate agents were concerned about setting off the alarms.

Olive 8 Condo Project Offers Sales Guarantee

Filed under: Real Estate Developments

The declining real estate market has been particularly tough on the condo market with many people afraid to buy a condo for fear that six months or a year later someone else will buy the same size condo in their building for a lot less money. At the Olive 8 hotel condo/hotel project in Seattle, the developer is seeking to allay that fear by offering prospective buyers the type of guarantee that we usually see electronics and furniture stores offer. The developer has said that If someone buys an Olive 8 condo now and later someone else buys a unit in the building with the same floor plan for less, the developer will reduce the first buyer's price down to the lower amount at closing.

Olive 8 is currently under construction at Eighth Avenue and Olive Way and will have 230 luxury condos on 22 floors above a 17-story Hyatt hotel. The hotel is slated to open in December and condo owners will move in after that. The sales are a testimony to the dramatic shift the real estate market has taken. About a year ago the developer had sold 175 of the 230 units but since then they've sold less than 10 more. Remaining condos in the building start at $750,000.

Queen Anne, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


This striking home in the Queen Anne neighborhood in Seattle is perched on a hill so you get fantastic views of the Seattle skyline including the Space Needle. And it has a roof terrace to enjoy those views. Although it is 4500 square feet there are only two bedrooms making it more of a home for empty nesters than families. The kitchen has beautiful countertops and the home had an open floor plan that puts the emphasis on the big windows facing the view. There is also a home theater and a 100 1000-bottle wine cellar. This home is listed at $2.488 million.

Broadmoor, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


Today's estate is located in Broadmoor, a gated community in Seattle which is bounded on one side by the Washington Park Arboretum. Broadmoor was developed in the 1920s on land that had been logged by the Puget Mill Company. The parcel of land was split in two, one half went to the city, which created Washington Park and the other side of the was developed into Broadmoor and its golf course. This home was built in 1930 and is a grand vintage home. Details include a large stairhall with vintage tiles and a cozy office with a castle-like dream of a fireplace. Beamed ceilings, leaded glass details, vintage fireplaces and built-in bookshelves add to the appeal. The kitchen has an Aga range that looks out onto a family room with a window seat. The brick exterior includes carved stone arches, copper downspouts and gutters. It is listed at $5.8 million.

Gallery: Broadmoor

North Capitol Hill, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


Lovely, that seems the perfect word to describe this 1906 home in Seattle's North Capitol Hill neighborhood. The home is full of beautiful vintage details such as coffered ceilings, stained glass windows, French doors and in the living room, a giant fireplace surrounded by prized Batchelder tiles. The six-bedroom three-bedroom home has beautiful hardwood floors, a private deck and a beautiful wine room. Absolutely gorgeous, this home has been lovingly maintained and is full of all sorts of swoonworthy details right down to the volute curves of the columns on the porch. It is listed at $3.75 million. Pictures are both after the jump and in the gallery below.

1 Hotel and Residences In Seattle

Filed under: Estates, Luxury Travel & Hotels

The latest big condo project in Seattle has broken ground. 1 Hotel and Residences is a 23-story, mixed-use development at Second Avenue and Pine Street in downtown Seattle. The hotel will have 110 city suites and 98 condominiums most of which are already under reservation for priority presales (the public sales debut is scheduled for September 2007). The $200 million project will have ten floors of condominium residences ranging in size from 800 square feet to more than 6,800 square feet. The 1 Hotel will be an eco-friendly, luxury hotel, part of Starwood Hotels new eco-friendly hotel chain. There will also be a 40,000 square foot full-service athletic club, a 8,000 square foot day spa, a restaurant and a specialty grocer with local and organic food. The project is expected to be completed in 2009.

Other condo projects we've covered in the Seattle area include:
Escala
1521 Second Avenue

Bainbridge Island, Estate of the Day

Filed under: Estates


Today's home on Bainbridge Island in Washington is a Puget Sound beauty with gorgeous views of Mount Rainier and downtown Seattle. The four-bedroom home was built in 2004 and has over 7700 square feet \of space. The home includes a formal living room, a charming open kitchen, billiard room, his and hers offices and a media room with equipment. The estate's 1.5 acres are home to 200 feet of waterfront, a sandy beach, a detached guest house with a kitchen, and grounds with a firepit at the water's edge. It is listed at $7.995 million. After the jump. gold record not included with purchase.

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