The Way We Weren’t
We love to walk down Main Street and comment to friends on what used to be, what local shop occupied a space for years before some aggressively upscale store took over. And now we are experiencing some of the same historical memory with modest houses in the estate areas being replaced by much grander ones.
Architecture: A very handsome and dignified new house. The screened porch and stone chimneys refer to older estates and lend a certain authenticity, distinguishing the house from the myriad of shingle-style adaptations.
Site: An “L” shaped lot in Georgica. Instead of being a problem the shape lends some interest to the house and pool locations.
The inside word: There used to be a modest 1950s house here with a small pool, originally built by a next-door neighbor to get away (but not too far away) from home. Those were the days when real estate was not expensive and people were not as resolute about it. This new, very well constructed home for $5.350 million does not have quite the whimsical aspect of the original, but is much more suited to the neighborhood and the market.
Freestyle Swimming
Logic tells you that flag lots ought to be in evidence, obvious, showy, and recognizable with streamers flying; in short, the spirit of a waving flag. But the truth is quite the opposite. Flag lots are hidden at the end of a long driveway, generally unseen from the road, and the name refers to the shape of a flagpole with a flying flag at the top.
Architecture: It is reproduction architecture, ambiguity included, but done tastefully and stylishly. We found enough complexity to be interesting but well short of unpleasant extremes.
Site: Slightly over an acre on East Hollow Road, a good street in Georgica. A flag lot provides seclusion and privacy.
The inside word: The house is nicely detailed and the grounds are very special with fish ponds, gazebo, fine landscaping, and an unusual 75 foot lap pool incorporating an unexpected a very attractive free form deep pool along the way. Offered at $2.7 million.
Club Med
The word “charming” as been so overused in real estate ads and communication that many of the truly engaging and delightful and unusual properties we know, once they are offered for sale, get subsumed in this catchall description. If they are not mammoth, not modern, not soaring, and don’t come with extra chromosomes, they are, in the narrow lexicon of real estate brokerage terms “charming.”
Architecture: It’s not something you see every day in the Hamptons. It’s a 1920s Mediterranean style home with a stucco exterior and tile roof.
Site: A very Village kind of lot: quite small, but well utilized with a plunge pool, separate guesthouse and garage, all an easy stroll to Southampton shops.
The inside word: Here is one case where brokers would be entitled to call it charming. The preservation of the original architecture and detailing is admirable, and the small lot is fine for this location. This kind of perfection is not inexpensive however: $2.1 million.
Beach Party
There was time when houses by the sea were designed for big views, low maintenance, good times, and to be sand and sea-friendly. But that was also a time of gentle real estate prices and little sociological importance to your vacation house.
Architecture: This design might look silly in other places, but for many reasons (and a little critical forgiveness) it works here. We’d like to think there is a nod to the old-time beach houses in the area in its multiform elements.
Site: Amagansett oceanfront, with the house situated in the surrounding dunes. Splendid views but mainly from the second floor deck.
The inside word: We like this house for what it is not. It is not pretentious, not straining for our attention. It looks as if it would be immense fun to spend the summer there and not worry about bringing in the sandy towels and wet bathing suits. Offered at $2.5 million.
Words of Wisdom
We’re sure that when Mae West said, “Too much of a good thing is wonderful,” it was loaded with a lot of sexual nuance. Who could have known that a generation or two later the expression would still have meaning—but in a very tangible and material sense when you look around at the way we live in the Hamptons?