Lily Collins' House/Case Study House#10, Pasadena, California
I first wrote about this house -- one of the architecturally famous Case Study houses -- when we visited actress Kristen Wiig's house just down the street. Before she bought that one, Kristen owned this one from 2017 until 2021, when she sold it to actress Lily Collins.
The Case Study houses were built in Southern California right after World War II. They were commissioned by Arts and Architecture magazine to showcase innovative, yet practical and economical ideas for the modern homeowner.
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Their announcement in their January, 1945 issue was very practical and economical, too:
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There were 36 different designs, but only 25 homes were built, concentrated in Southern California. Case Study #10 was built in 1947 by the father-son architecture team of Kemper Nomland, Sr. and Kemper Nomland, Jr.
The house was sited to save and showcase the eucalyptus trees already on the lot.
They were there for a few decades, while the house was red(!).
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Today there are fewer of the trees, at least in the front:
Apparently they had to do some plumbing re-trenching before they put the house on the market, as the 2017 street view shows.
In 2017, the entrance looked like this:
Today it looks like this:
The hardwood floors are gone, replaced by polished concrete, which was there originally...I told you they were supposed to be economical designs.
You can also see that Lily added a webbed chair (I think it's by Hans Wegner) much like in the original design.
Lily and her husband Charlie McDowell worked with designer Emily Farnham to bring it back to its mid-century modern roots and add a little Scandinavian flair.
It does feel more true to the original version of the house. (And not just because of the filter the Vogue photographer used.) Compare the living room to how it looked in 2017, below:
which is a little more streamlined than how it looked originally:
It looks like Lily tried to return it more to its roots, with a wooden vent hood and simpler backsplash tile:
The same approach was used in the bathrooms:
2017, 2024
2017, 2024
There isn't a photo of the originals, but I imagine they were as spartan and utilitarian as they come.
It was built as a two bedroom, two bath house with a little over 1,600 square feet. One of the original architects, Norman Kemper, Jr., created an addition in 1968. You can see where it was added coming off from the original kitchen windows.
Now it has 3,425 square feet with four bedrooms and four bathrooms (but there aren't a lot of pictures of them.) Here is how the master bedroom looked in 2017:
Today the headboard's divider wall has wooden slats:
It looks like they restored the concrete floors throughout the house.
So, which room would I decorate, if it were mine? Obviously I wouldn't pick any of the recently redecorated ones from the Vogue photo shoot, so I'm going with this one from the 2017 listing:
I'd make it look a little more grounded and nature-inspired, like the other rooms, like this:
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Meanwhile, the patio area just outside, looks just as inviting now...
as it always has...
although apparently the guest room/den has always needed a little help:
Before Lily bought Case Study #10 in 2021, she used to live here:
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This 1954 mid-century modern house is in Beverly Hills. It has a green copper roof and was designed by architect John Elgin Woolf.
It's interesting to see how her taste has evolved, but still shows her affinity for modern and organic design. By the way, did you know that she's Phil Collins' daughter? I had no idea. I'm just curious if Case Study #10 will go back on the market soon, since that often happens when celebrities have those photo shoots. If it does, I'll be all set to do Case Study #10, House Updates #13.
My YouTube video for this week is actress Kristen Wiig's Pasadena house, the link is here.
and here's the first video in the All Creatures Great and Small dollhouse series.
Thanks for reading and watching!
