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Friday, January 13, 2012

What makes an Eichler "An Eichler"?

Most MCM devotees are familiar with the term "an Eichler," but many who live outside California may never have seen one or know exactly what gives a house that distinction. Averaging 2,000 square feet, Eichler homes feel much larger because of their open design, glass walls, floor-to-ceiling windows and atriums. Other characteristics are post-and-beam structure, low-pitched roofs, simple front elevations and beside-the-front-door carports or garages.

Post-and-beam construction:  Post-and-beam is the simplest form of load and support construction, consisting of two or more vertical posts supporting a horizontal rafter or beam. This feature can be found in most Eichler homes.


Post-and-beam construction
eichlersocal.com

Atrium
:  Early Eichler homes did not include these interior open spaces. When architect Robert Anshen introduced the idea, Joe Eichler was skeptical. According to Eichler's son Ned, the atriums had no practical use, yet they were then, and continue to be today, a high-impact feature that buyers love.


Eichler atrium
purecontemporary.com

Glass:  Eichler homes incorporate glass walls...and lots of them. In many of the homes, it is possible to stand in the front yard and see straight through to the back fence. The use of glass walls brought the outside in and gave the relatively small Eichler homes a feel of openness.


A view from front door to back yard, used in Eichler Homes sales brochures
totheweb.com

Open design:  Whether there were no walls separating room, walls made of glass or partial walls that did not reach the ceilings, the minimal use of walls in Eichler homes also added to their feeling of spaciousness.


Open feeling created by few interior walls
eichlereichler.com

Simple front exterior:  The low-pitched roofs and unadorned fronts of most Eichler homes (some with no windows at all), as well as a beside-the-door carports or garages, make them easy to spot. Such an unassuming front exterior added to the delighful surprise when a potential homebuyer opened the door and found an atrium and glass-filled modern interior.


Typical Eichler front exterior
eichlersocal.com
From cityoforange.org

Not all of the 11,000 Eichler homes were designed by Robert Anshen. Other notable architects who designed for the company were Claude Oakland, A. Quincy Jones and Raphael Soriano.

To view a number of Eichler Homes floor plans, see
Eichler Homes of Southern California and the site of real estate team Nil and Pelin Erdal.

Tomorrow's post will be about the Eichler X-100 Experimental House. Interesting stuff. Don't miss it!

12 comments:

  1. I can kiss you for this post :*...i have been collating information on eichler homes and couldnt find a better write up till date :)...looking forward to more on this series

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    1. So glad you found this post helpful. I really enjoyed learning more about Eichler and the homes. Living in Texas, they're not a part of everyday life for me like they are for our West Coast friends.

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  2. Love the exterior of houses like that. My house looks like a cookie cutter house. bleh.

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    1. Too bad for us that Eichler didn't do much building outside California (only 3 in NY, I think). 11,000 of those babies, and none for us! ::sigh::

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  3. I would bet these Eichler homes inspired many of the MCM homes around the country. Love the open floor plans. Makes other homes seem claustrophobic.

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    1. I have a feeling you're right. I'm sure many architects have been inspired by these homes. I'd give anything for that kind of open feel in my home. I have floor-to-ceiling windows in almost every room, so I get a lot of light, but there are no glass or partial walls.

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  4. I'm thankful for the post too. I've often wondered what an Eichler *WAS* exactly. I SO want a home like this - none of these around in England either! :(

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    1. The term is bandied about so much that I think it's assumed everyone knows exactly what it means, yet outside of California, many people have never laid eyes on one. It would be wonderful to own one though, wouldn't it?

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  5. Nice post, sound just like an architect! The closest Eichler type houses near Richmond Va. would be in Hollin Hills and Pine Spring outside of Washington D.C. always admired them.

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    1. There are a number of Cliff May homes in Dallas that are lovely, but I believe I like the homes designed by Anshen and Jones more.

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  6. Great post and pictures. Love the open floor plans.

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed the post. It's always nice to know what you're writing is resonating with readers!

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