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Located in the East Hollywood Hills, this 1923 Beaux Arts Estate takes you back to the glamour days of a bygone era. The local residents refer to this luxury vacation rental home as the Valentino Estate because of the prominent Rudolph Valentino style. Upon entering the gated and very private estate, looking up to the chic-white palace of this 3 bedroom, 4 bath home will delight any discerning guest.

A-cero Architects have designed this stunning reinforced concrete house design of La Finca 4 House located in Somosaguas, a suburb of Madrid. Thiese 1.200 m2 compact single-family house floor plan has the form of a greek cross, and is delimited by the access pathway and the other properties on both of its sides.

The la finca 4 house is guided by 2 main concepts: a great functionality in the distribution of the interior spaces and their openness to the exterior to make the most of the views. Both ideas are also present in the interior design and in the selection of the construction materials.

The design follows a functional structure evolving around the hall stairs, an central design element that provokes a surprising visual and spatial effect. Another breathtaking space is the double height volume that contains the living room.

The building is divided in three levels according to the program’s needs. The access is on the ground floor, where all the more public spaces are located: hall, living and dining rooms, office, TV room and kitchen. The living room occupies a double height space open to the exterior views through great glass panes. All the objects that could interfere with the contemplation of the views, like railings or walls, have been suppressed or replaced by transparent elements. The main entrance door is made of a 6 m high glass pane, letting the visitor perceive the interior of the house.

On a lower level are located the technical installation rooms, laundry, indoor swimming pool, games room, wine cellar, garage and a leisure area with a reading space, dining room and TV.

A staircase with glass railings and a glass corridor that goes through the double height space takes to a studio on the upper level overlooking the living room. Next to this area are the master bedroom, equipped with a walk-in closet and bathroom, and four more bedrooms with bathrooms, organized around a corridor covered with shelves.

The richness of this spatial composition is also apparent in the exterior, and organizes the connection between the house and its surroundings. This dynamical and rich design is also translated to a structural system made only of reinforced concrete walls, avoiding intermediate columns that could alter the space’s scale and cleanliness.

At some point, the structure pierces the façade to form a porch that finishes its composition, protects from the sunlight and creates an interesting play of light and shadow. The house is covered with white travertine, creating a clean and smooth finishing, the porch’s floor and the deck surrounding the pool and jacuzzi are made of ipê wood . The garden on the front of the house is organized in terraces and parterres, forming a decorative outline surrounded by a surface covered with white gravel. Three sculptures are carefully placed in this place, marking the entrance.

Thiago Bernardes and Paulo Jacobsen have designed this ultra modern CF residence for their client, Carlos Firme. The house features 4 bedroom layout with en-suite bathrooms and the entire ground floor dedicated to the pool, dining and entertaining. As you enter the residence through its large dark wood doors, the bedrooms act as blinkers, focusing the view out to the water beyond. The thin steel structure and stretched horizontal roofline give it the appearance of a lightweight marque or stretched canvas roof. This modern and luxurious CF Residence will provide a great weekend spot for years to come.

Located on a plot in the picturesque condominium Portogalo in Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro, Paulo Jacobsen and Thiago Bernardes wanted to accommodate a large family retreat taking full advantage of the plot and its location. The challenge was how to minimise the buildings impact from roadside - difficult with such a large house.