Check out this insane kitchen -- Flinstones House

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

There is an unusual house where I grew up that is on a hill and visible from an adjacent freeway. I saw this every day on my way to school:

Here it is closer up:

Back then, it was painted white, and we called it "the mashed potatoes house". Now it's painted orange and people are calling it "the Flinstones house". It was such an unusual structure (generally, but also for the area, which is otherwise filled with traditional mansions) that everybody knew of it. And obviously for me and my classmates at that age, the home inspired a fair amount of interest and wonder.

(My mom was a lawyer for the town this is in and apparently the construction of this house immediately inspired the people of Hillsborough to pass new town laws so that nothing this weird could ever be built there again.)

One of my elementary school classmates posted on Facebook today that the home is up for sale and linked to the realtor's website. Here is the site with pictures of the whole house and a virtual tour: http://www.flintstonehouse280.com/

I'd never seen inside the home, so that was interesting by itself, but the kitchen is completely unlike anything I've ever seen before. I thought you'd all enjoy seeing it.

The craziest thing to me is that it actually has perfect fridge --> sink --> prep counter --> cooktop flow, and (paging funkycamper!) the dishwasher is not under the prep counter.

And I am surprised at how much I like the rest of the house. It seems kind of soft and cool and peaceful.

And the little amorphous stained glass windows are charming.

Featured Answer

Texas_Gem

9 years ago

I guess I'll be the outlier and say that I think it is really cool!!

I imagine the people who wanted to pass new town laws were the type who invisioned this

As the perfect neighborhood.

I LOVE creativity and ingenuity!! As long as the property is properly maintained and doesn't cause my property values to fall, I'm all for weird quirky homes!

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Comments (35)

eam44
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Yikes. This just goes to show you that "different" isn't always good. Thanks for posting it!
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Carolyn
9 years ago
That's crazy. Now I'm curious to learn about the owner. Must be an eccentric one of a kind person to live there... and here I am thinking I'm unusual for picking blue cabinets lol.

Ps: thats a lovely town you grew up in. Do you still live there?
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Lass, you gave great advice about her not buying the property with her boyfriend. I've seen friends split and leave the other holding the bag so to speak. Can you imagine what that house and property must have been like way back when? She will need alot of money and free labor I'm afraid to make it liveable again.
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Glad you enjoyed looking at the house. I took some pics of the exteriors of other houses on the same street (see below). I love driving down this street! The house that's for sale is on a 12,000 ft. lot (which is large for the city). It is not uncommon to find houses in Providence where the square footage of the house is larger than the square footage of the land. This street is located on the East Side of Providence (not to be confused with the separate city of East Providence). The East Side is where you will find the better homes of Providence, Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design, and several private prep schools. Property taxes in Providence are very high; the house for sale has annual taxes of $10,000. Also, if you have kids, you had better be able to afford to send them to one of the private schools. Trust me, you wouldn't want to send your kids to the Providence public schools. Amysrq - where in New England are you thinking of moving to? I used to live in Mass., so I could give you some info. on RI and MA. I know there's others on this forum from N.E. that could probably provide you with info. BTW, one of the photos below looks like there's bodies on the steps (they're just Halloween decorations!).
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Finished kitchen - check out the pantry
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Comments (43)
rtwilliams - Yes, we added the great room, kitchen, a master bedroom with his and her baths, and a large garage. We also remodled some of the rest of the house. I plan to post some bath and laundry room pictures. fouramblues - you made me laugh. labbie - my husband bought the commercial grinder and coffee pot several years ago, and installed them in my itty bitty kitchen where they took up very valuable real estate. They are a dream to have to make coffee, as the water is plumbed in and everything is automatic, but they are large. It was those two pieces though that inspired me to create the whole beverage/butler pantry idea. Ginny20, ppbenn - hey maybe I will start a whole new trend on double refrigerators. walking chick - I am so glad you delurked to comment. You will get great advice and ideas here. Oldbat2be - thanks so much. I am so glad you noticed that picture. My pantry will have a little memorial space for my grandmother. Her picture has been in my kitchen since she passed away. She is the one who taught me to cook and garden. I have her old kitchen dishes in the top shelf of the pantry, and I use her old measuring cups every day. aliris19 - I love the stools, too, and I actually built the island to go with the stools ( I bought them before I built the kitchen), but they may not stay, as they block the view. We will keep them for now, but I don't know that they will make it for the long haul. They are really comfortable and they swivel. Oh, and I do have one more, lol. I decided 4 was too many. camphappy - materials were a real issue here. I just could not get some things I wanted - like soapstone. The granite I originally wanted would come in and get shipped to everywhere but here. I finally went to St. Louis and picked out an in stock granite and the fabricator had to go pick it up. Our fabricator was an hour and a half from us. The internet was my friend for a lot of things. Plumbing and light fixtures were mostly all ordered from the internet. As were many of the appliances. biochem101 - yes, it does feel like heaven. For I while I was rather embarrassed that it turned out so large and grand, but I got over that and now I just enjoy it. gr8day - I am so glad you saw this. I probably would not have posted this kitchen if you hadn't asked about it in another post. Thanks to everyone for all the nice compliments. In regards to being so organized - it is truly easy to be organized when you have a place for everything. The things that tend to create clutter are those that you don't know where they go, or don't have room for them.
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kitchen layout- check it out
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Comments (5)
In the second layout, you don't have enough room for the seat b/w the "island" and the wall...you need 32" to 36" to have room to pull out the stool and move your body b/w the stool and counter as you sit (despite the "swivel"). Seating will also be a little tight with the two corner stools, there's room, but it will be tight, especially with the narrow aisle (30") and the counter on two sides for the "inside" stool. In both layouts, if that's just a window on the "top" wall and there are no doors, cabinets, etc., you can get away with a few inches less behind the stools...assuming your seating overhang is at least 16" (15" clear overhang + 1" for the decorative door or panel on the back of the peninsula/island cabinets. Which, now that I look at it, it's not... Your peninsula is 38" deep, but 25.5" will be taken up by cabinets (assuming standard-depth, 24" deep cabs and 1.5" standard counter overhang on the front) PLUS another 1" by the decorative panel/door...that leaves you with only a 11.5" overhang. That will not be comfortable sitting for very long...if this is just for a few minutes of "perching" it might be OK, but not for more than a few minutes at a time. I suggest you increase the depth of your peninsula/island to 41.5". That will be 3.5" off the aisle, reducing it to 43.5"...still plenty of room if it's a "dead-end" and there is only a wall behind the seats. You said the windows will be changing but they're staying in the same location on the wall...correct? Do they have to? I'm asking b/c right now the only useful counterspace you have for prepping is b/w the sink and range. That's where you will end up prepping...b/c it's next to a water source and next to the range. You might use the peninsula if no cooking/roasting/baking is involved and no one is using the sink or DW for cleanup or other tasks, but not otherwise. Another issue I see is that you have the range (and oven) close to the door where your pet(s) will be coming in & out as well as "people" traffic...that means the potential of tripping over a pet while cooking or prepping when going to/from the refrigerator. (Or running into someone coming in/going out the slider.) Personally, I'd like to see the range more protected, like next to the peninsula, but that would mean moving the window (or switching the peninsula to the other side of the room...but that presents seating & TV location issues. What do you plan do do with the almost 6' of counterspace on the other side of the room? Does the cleanup sink have to be in front of the window? Would you consider: Moving the Cleanup Zone to other side (the "bottom" wall) Moving the pantry to the "top" wall Moving the range down closer to the window and farther from the slider (every inch helps!) Adding a prep sink on the "top" wall under the window (either in the corner or just before the corner) It would give you a lot of counter space for prepping & cooking as well as plenty in the Cleanup Zone, perhaps even enough for a Snack Center... It would also make it easy to watch TV while cleaning up! You still have the window for prep work (70% of the work/time spent in the kitchen). The DW could be switched to the other side of the sink in the above layout to get it out of the general entrance to the kitchen (b/w the peninsula and "bottom" wall of cabinets), but I was trying to keep it out of the Snack Center. The downside I see here is that the not only is the DW in the way of the Snack Center, but the trash pullout is on the other side of the sink now. Of course, it does make the trash pullout in the Cleanup Zone more accessible for others inside the house...
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Jillius
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
@Carolyn

Ha, yes, it definitely goes to show just how safe most of our "risky" kitchen choices are in the grand scheme of things.

I actually never lived in Hillsborough -- we lived about 25 minutes away. Because my mom worked for the city, I was allowed to go to their schools. She preferred that I was in school near where she worked so she could be on hand if I got sick or broke my arm or something.
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rebunky
9 years ago
Oh I think I remember driving passed this crazy house a couple times as a kid. Thanks for bringing back a memory. Cool to see the inside. That kitchen is insane!
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cawaps
9 years ago
The outside is studiously ugly, but I quite like the interior for the most part. The kitchen has issues. The peninsula supports create a barrier between the prep space and cooktop, the cooktop is at the end of a peninsula without enough buffer space, and it has downdraft ventilation. And where the heck do you store stuff? Is there a pantry behind that ornate door?

And it has a converation pit!
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sheloveslayouts
9 years ago
What an interesting place! I think it's kind of a cool interior. There are so many details to look at. The exterior paint is a bit unfortunate. I imagine it's neat for you to get a glimpse inside after all these years, J.
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Jillius
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
@Texas_Gem

I also love weird, quirky homes.

These are more typical for Hillsborough homes:

https://www.google.com/search?q=hillsborough+california+home&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAWoVChMIv_25vp7uxwIVxTiICh2o1wR5&biw=1333&bih=658#imgrc=_

VERY wealthy people. So it's not so much that they want everything to look the same -- more the same level of luxury, I guess.

ETA: While I love weird, quirky homes, I am perpetually torn between:

a) always preferring cheerful,
colorful, flamboyant, unusual fun things in basically every aspect of my life, and

b) wanting my home to make my life easier and more calm.

The latter means a home that is sunny,
easy to clean (preferably one that looks clean almost no matter what I do), and designed so as to make my life as unfussy and organized as possible (smart storage, good flow, everything I need and nothing else). It doesn't rule out color and art, but it does rule out a lot
of the more interesting architectural flourishes you could put in a home.
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funkycamper
9 years ago
You're not alone, Texas Gem, I'm with you!

I can't stand planned communities with limited architecture. Houzz recently posted a story about the restoration of Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock House in LA. It was reviled by a bunch of posters and was controversial when built in 1919-21 to the present day. And I think it's amazing. Of course, Flintstone House isn't in the same league as Hollyhock but I love, and I do mean LOVE, controversial architecture.

We have a beach community near us that was developed in the 60's with an anything-goes philosophy. Oh, I used to love to drive those strange, curlicue streets....you can get lost there pretty easy...and look for the unique shapes and materials used in these homes. Now the town has grown up and most of those homes are being torn down or the uniqueness is being remodeled out of them and it makes me sad. The place has lost its artistic, bohemian soul.

I have a feeling many of you would be aghast at the homes I sometimes sketch out and design in my head that I would love to build if I had more energy and funds. It's not as out-there as the Flintstone but it would definitely make people look thrice or more. If they could see it that is. My dream lot would be too private for lookie-loos.

However, while my dream kitchen isn't conventional it's certainly a lot more normal than this one. I wouldn't work in that kitchen but I love the imagination that thought it up. And, yeah, the DW placement is fine, lol.
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funkycamper
9 years ago
x-posting with Jillius: And I would live in Flintstone House before I'd live in any of those other homes you posted. Lovely but so bland in comparison. I would, however, have to do some kitchen remodeling. :)
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amg765
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
OMG that kitchen is crazy! When I was a kid we called that house the hobbit house or the Star Wars house and looked for it every time we drove to San Francisco. I had no idea what the interior looked like until now.

After seeing the inside I'm still going with Star Wars house over Flintstones house - it has a definite Tatooine vibe ;)

I don't like the orange at all - it was much better white.
Jillius
Original Author
9 years ago
SO agree about the white. I tried to find a picture of that and couldn't!
amg765
9 years ago
Here is a blog post with an old picture of it white - and according to the post it was painted silver in 2010, but I guess they went back to orange :/

http://thehandcraftedlife.blogspot.com/2010/10/if-youre-gonna-live-in-house-that-looks.html?m=1
Jillius
Original Author
9 years ago
Ha! I love that the author is so morally outraged.
withoutanh
9 years ago
We called it the Beehive House. I think it was a sort of a brownish- beige-tan color when first built, then the bright white, and now the orange. It was listed sometime around 1980 for about half any other house in the area and I would have considered it (worked at Stanford at the time) but needed a co-owner. For some reason my parents weren't interested! I do wish I had toured it. I love that it has attitude and turns its back on its extremely conventional neighbors.
Carolyn
9 years ago
I agree with you guys, I'd absolutely live in this house. I'd live anywhere that is that close to San Francisco if someone were to gift me a 4 million dollar house lol. I too hate cookie cutter, which is why our last two homes have been unique for our locations (90 year old red roofed English cottage surrounded by mid century homes in Washington & an 80 year old simple colonial with white Hardie plank surrounded by brand new brick homes with massive roof lines in Texas).

My in laws are in Danville, CA and we love the area. However, I think the kitchen is ugly. I would not like glass countertops or those ceiling supports to the range. I am fine with the rest of the house, except the color. White looks much better.
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sjhockeyfan325
9 years ago
Julius, we lived in Burlingame for many years! We always called that the Flintstones house. Too weird for me to live in, but I never thought of it as an eyesore, just an "oddball". For those of you who said you like the quirkiness, especially if you have young children or grandchildren, check out the book titled "The Big Orange Splot".
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nancyjwb
9 years ago
The kitchen gives me a very creepy feeling. The rest of the rooms don't look too bad, but that kitchen... I don't think I could be comfortable there.
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amg765
9 years ago
The kitchen is obviously fairly new, so I wonder what it looked like before. Probably much more sedate...
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mark_rachel
9 years ago
I think it's pretty cool. It seems like it needs more windows though. It would make an awesome vacation house in the right location.
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weaver2
9 years ago
Wow! That is very cool. Thanks for sharing it, Jillius. I also think the interiors are appealing. They remind me of the insides of strawbale or earth homes. All soft curves and feminine lines. Really lovely. But, the kitchen...I would think you could improve the function wuite a bit and still retain the charm and eccentricity.
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riosamba
9 years ago
I used to live in the Bay Area and am delighted to see the inside of this local landmark! It's not my style (although I love the conversation pit), but I am glad to live in a world with creativity and individuality. I love that they put a Wilma mask in the dining room and inflatable dinosaurs in the cave bath. I'd invite these sellers for dinner, I think they would be a hoot.
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hattysue
9 years ago
Be still my heart.

I think the interior of the house is bloody perfect. The only "home improvement" change I would make is to give the rock shower a larger shower head extended out a bit further. Other than that, I would just store some of the tchotckes somewhere safe in the house, on the grounds that the spaces and light in the house are gorgeous and need no frippery. Also because I would not want anyone to have to keep them dusted.

The outside could made a bit more organic-looking by switching the Minion shape of the towers for something more subtle/asymmetrical/knobbly. My choice for the sheathing would be maybe a rougher stucco in colors of toasted whole wheat pita bread.

I think it would be a fabulous house to live in, so long as the traffic noise does not reach the terrace areas.
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sjhockeyfan325
9 years ago
so long as the traffic noise does not reach the terrace areas.

Not to worry, it isn't often nice enough weather up there to sit outside LOL
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Brady
9 years ago
I really wish I had that much creativity to be able to design a house like that! It's so unique and weird yet oddly comfortable.
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ginny20
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I think it's cool. I kind of like it, although it isn't my style. I like how it sits in the landscape. We have a similarly unusual house here - the Mushroom House, which was actually patterned after a Queen Anne's Lace flower. It sold this summer for something like $629,000. It's in one of the best school districts in the area (if not the country), in the middle of a county park. Its kitchen is positively pedestrian compared to the one in the Flintstone House.

Mushroom House
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funkycamper
9 years ago
Wow, where's the caterpillar smoking hash with his hookah? Seriously, that is one drug-induced design and some of those corridors look like the path of the White Rabbit to me.

I think I've found my west coast and east coast abodes. :)
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User
9 years ago
Some people's reality is just different than yours.
Shelley Graham
9 years ago
We lived in Burlingame and Hillsborough for 32 years before moving across the bay to warmer weather...my husband grew up there. Can't wait to see what price this house actually gets! When it was painted white, people called it the Mushroom House, and later Flintstones. I don't think I knew anyone who knew the owners, but it was always certainly a landmark!

Jillius and sjhockey - wonder if we ever bumped into each other in town? My daughters are 37 and 32...went to Hillsborough schools and BHS.
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Jillius
Original Author
9 years ago
We might have! I am 29, so your 32-year-old and I undoubtedly crossed paths. I went to Hillsborough schools and SMHS and played several sports, which meant meeting a lot of people at other schools. Did your older daughter go to Crocker? She may have known my sister, who is 38.

It's surprising how many people lived in the area or were already familiar with the Flinstones House. I wasn't expecting so many people to share in my nostalgia, but it's nice! I like hearing everybody's different childhood names for it.
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Shelley Graham
9 years ago
Ha! My girls (KC and Dana) were both at Crocker. Small world indeed! Jillius, pm me for more info.
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amg765
9 years ago
If you want Flintstones, check out this house in Malibu:

http://m.la.curbed.com/archives/2014/12/why_dick_clark_built_a_spoton_flintstones_house_in_malibu.php

And here's another house with crazy organic lines but a sleeker look:

http://m.la.curbed.com/archives/2014/01/breathtaking_joshua_tree_supervillain_lair_for_sale_for_first_time_1.php
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sjhockeyfan325
9 years ago
SSG and Jillius, my kids are 30 and 28, they went to BIS and BHS. We lived not far from Crocker (off Ralston).
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Jillius
Original Author
9 years ago
Too funny! Is "sjhockey" referring to the Sharks, then?
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sjhockeyfan325
9 years ago
It most certainly is. I actually live in San Francisco (moved to the city several years ago).
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Check out this insane kitchen -- Flinstones House

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