May 22, 2010

Fairy Tale Cottages of Hugh Comstock

click on photo for original link
I am fascinated by the works of Hugh Comstock, the builder of "Fairy Tale Cottages" in Carmel, California, during the 1920's. With no formal education in engineering and architecture, his fairy tale style shaped the landscape of Carmel. Originally cost hundred dollars to build, these cottages still stand strong carrying a value worth millions of dollars (average home sale about $4 million).
Comstock started with the "Hansel Cottage," (shown above) in response to a shortage of space of his wife's doll making business. This led to other cottages being built not only by Comstock but by other business owners who remodeled their storefronts in the fairy tale style. Today, their beauty and charm give visitors great enjoyment and offer inspiration to artists and designers. You can view more of Hugh Comstock's cottages via Linda Hartong photography. For information on walking tour, click here.
You would all agree that Hansel will not be complete without Gretel. Appropriately so, Comstcock named this house (above), "Gretel."

65 comments:

Robin@DecoratingTennisGirl said...

How wonderful and these!!! So charming. Thanks for positng.
Robin

FRAMBOISINE said...

Beaucoup de charme se dégage des ces adorables maisons ... On dirait même des maisons de poupées !!!!
Elles sont vraiment très belles et merci infiniment pour les liens.
Belle soirée et à tout bientôt.

its simple love said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog! I too love inspired design blog. Adorable. These images are fantastic! I would live in a little fairy-tale cottage like this if I could. I would want it to be in the middle of the woods though. With seven dwarfs.

rachael

the gardener's cottage said...

hi mary ann,

charming, charming & charming!

~janet

ps ~ i did a post a while back about a little street here in redlands called normandy court with 17 fairy tale cottages.

Anonymous said...

Love, love, love this post! I would give anything to see these in person! It's like stepping right into a fairy tale. Hmmm... I have always wanted to see Carmel. xo

Living It At Home said...

I am head over heals in love with Carmel and the storybook cottages! When we lived in San Francisco we would take vacations there. I loved walking around the side streets to see all those adorable homes. I hated to leave! I would live in one of those in a heart beat! Great post and it brought back wonderful memories for me!

It's me said...

Amazing.................!!

I enjoy your post !! thanks !!! hugs from me...........

the gardener's cottage said...

hi mary ann,

you can find the post under the label "redlands" on my sidebar.

~janet

Vanessa Greenway said...

Beautiful blog!!! Lot's of great pictures!! Very pretty!! Have a nice week! Vanessa

Tina said...

Mary Ann, these cottages are so gorgeous! I love the Hansel:) Wishing you a wonderful week ~ Tina xx

Ann @ makethebestofthings said...

I would love to go there and spend a dreamy afternoon. Almost like another country and so charming! Thanks for stopping by my blog post about jazzing up glass vases. I appreciate your kind comments.

Splendid Willow said...

I have spent a lot of time in Carmel (used to live in Santa Cruz, CA) and of course I have stopped in front of each and everyone of these quaint and charming homes! Did not know that they fetched $4 million each though! Maybe I should have taken more pictures (or better, invited myself in for tea)!

Thank you for the fun post. And happy new week to you!

0x, Mon

Jennifer said...

Wow! These are magical photos. They make me wish I was tucked away in one of these gems. I'm so glad I've discovered your beautiful blog!!

Deepali Kalia Interior Design Blog Filling Spaces said...

Great pics so delighted to check your blog ...always luv DEepali,Hey i just got my button,please put on your blog,(it will mean a lot to me) and let me know if you have one i will love to return the favor....

Unknown said...

beautiful houses these very cool i love them i like these houses
nice post

have a great Monday

~*~ saskia ~*~ said...

Mary Ann, Mary Ann, now I must visit Comstock. The sweet little houses are divine! Off to visit your links...
That first image of Hansel won my heart.

Wishing you a great new week. xoxo

Paris Pastry said...

That is so amazing! Reminds me of Hansel and Gretel. I can just imagine cozying up by the fireplace!

♥ Daniëlle

Razmataz said...

They are so charming. Wouldn't that be fun to decorate one of those!

Lee said...

Hi Mary Ann, they're beautiful....and sure reminds me of all those fairy tale stories I read when young.
He sure is one creative, artistic person.
Have a great week and keep a song in your heart, Lee.

Unknown said...

They're adorable! I love these! Can I just tell you that I have a secret "thing" for Thomas Kinkaide? I don't actually have any of his paintings or anything, but I love to look at his pictures of little fairy-tale cottages and it's my dream to live in a little cottage like that someday! Now here they are, and all I need is $4 million?! Hooray! ;)

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

I love those storybook looking cottages. Such cute curb appeal. We went to Carmel many years ago. Such a beautiful place with perfect weather.

Unknown said...

Dear Mary Ann,
These houses are marveillous!!!
Have a nice day <3
Daniela "Dream Shabby Chic" Milano

Petit Coterie said...

Love Comstcock's work! The cottages are right out of the fairy tale books. Wonderful post!
Thank you for stopping by my blog.

Have a wonderful week! Michelle

Unknown said...

Love these charming cottages so much. The town of Carmel is one of my all time favorites!

WickedThrifty said...

wow, they are just beautiful! stunning execution of a fantastic idea.

Anonymous said...

Oh, my, those are so beautiful. I wish I had a spare 4 million bucks. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

Tak tohle mě úplně fascinuje.Prostě nádhera.Krásný blog.Moc ráda se sem budu vracet.Krásný podvečer.
Marťa

The Shiny Pebble said...

I wasn't aware of their existence. See, one doenst have to go all the way to china to see something just as captivating.

Poppies and Sunshine said...

How cute these are!! I would just love to live in one of these. Thanks for sharing this! I know Carmel so well, but did not know about this.

Thanks for stopping by. I will be following :) And I know Clovis very well! We're practically neighbors.

My Life And Loves said...

LOVE this post! These cottages really are like something out of a magical fairy tale! I recognize the name Carmel... maybe we drove through it en route from LA to San Fransisco? If only I'd have known about these - I'd love to see them!!

Thank you for visiting my blog & for your comment! So glad you found me as now I have discovered your lovely blog too!

I'm your newest follower!

Catherine xo

Punctuation Mark said...

such beautiful images... have a nice week!

Kendall said...

Oh my goodness! Too cute. Would love to see these in person.

Jen said...

Oh my gosh, this guy has some major talent!! I wonder how much I'd have to pay him to make me a little cottage in my backyard so that I can escape from the Mr. every once in awhile ;-)

Bring Pretty Back said...

These little houses are so cute I can"t stand it! Love them! Thank you so much for stopping by my blog ,leaving me such a wonderful comment and following me! THANK YOU!!!!!! I'm following you!
Kristin

Cornflakes and Honey said...

Absolutely glorious, so magical! x

Gwen Driscoll said...

Can you believe those tiny little cottages have such a grand view just across the street? I absolutely love them. I've done several projects in Carmel so have visited often. Oh, to return. Hope soon. Thanks for stopping by RHS. You're the best

jeanette from everton terrace said...

I've made several trips to Carmel and have a friend who lives there and I've never seen (or even heard of these). Must check it out next time we're there. How fun!

BonjourRomance said...

Bonjour Mary ANn,
These homes are indeed stright out of a fairy tale. I can only imagine how cozy it would be to curl up in front of the fireplace with a good book and a cup of tea.
Thank you for coming by to visit, I'm a new follower and will be back soon!
Mimi

PASSIONEDECO FRANCESCA said...

My dear, dearest friend.
This is FAIRYTALE! Can you imagine living in one of those wonderful and i mean really WONDERFUL cottages! You can't help but doing apple pies and all sort of sweets!!
This is life!
We're blessed to be able to appreciate this "magic".
Kisses
Fra

OneCraftyFox said...

Oh wow, what a fantastic community!!

Hope you had a terrific weekend, I just got back home from a weekend away :)

Gorgeous Glam said...

Like a fairytale! Great blog my dear! xoxo

this free bird said...

I cannot believe I missed out on that chair giveaway!! Mary am I blind?? I visit you daily and didn't see that once. OH MAN!! Congrats to the lucky winner!! xo

Erica @ Decorica said...

Those homes are so lovely!

Hazel from Hazel Loves Design said...

My goodness! These homes are so precious, they look too fairytale like, I can't believe people actually live in them!

Hope your having a wonderful day... Happy Blogging!

:) Hazel

Absolutely Ladylike said...

Oh you are right...it's really like a fairytale...love it!

Many thanks for the birthday message dear Mary Ann! Means a lot...

Cheers: Evi

Pemberley said...

I've been to Carmel and think these houses and buildings are so unique and interesting. It's worth a trip for the architecture alone!

charmaine said...

These houses are so charming! I love Carmel! Thanks for stopping by my blog. I am your newest follower.

Room Service ~ Decorating 101 said...

These are my dream houses. Love them ! Thanks for your kind words and for visiting my humble blog. I am afraid you caught me at a slow time, but maybe soon I will get back into the hang of things.

Kerri - Driftwood Interiors said...

How amazing are these houses - just like those in the fairytales! Thanks for this post, I definitely learnt something new today! K xx

Unknown said...

these are so cute! i can't believe the going rate though! i hope you're having a lovely week :)

Acanthus and Acorn said...

I loved seeing all this fairytale houses! How fun would it be to get a tour of all the interiors!

Shane Pollard said...

How adorable are these cottages with the $4 million price tags!

Wonderful that they have been preserved.
Are they considered historic houses and afforded protection by the state???

Lovely post and
Thank you for sharing!

Miss Janice said...

I could just kick myself for never visiting Carmel when I lived in California! Those cottages are just precious!!!

petals and vintage said...

I have just stumbled upon your blog and I am glad I did. Oh my goodness. I have never seen anything like these fairytale cottages. I am now off to check out the post on Charming Garden Sheds!
Pam

Content in a Cottage said...

I've been to Carmel several times but somehow missed these wonderful fairytale cottages. Boo Hoo. Wish I could teleport myself there right now. Thanks for a great post.
Rosemary

Bardot in Blue said...

these are just the cutest things ever....

Hamptontoes said...

Those homes are absolutely adorable!

A Perfect Gray said...

those are absolutely breathtaking, aren't they?

holiday cottages said...

Fascinating... My cousin was searching this kind of info. He will be very happy when I give him your url. Thanks!
Ana

Jim@ shed plans said...

Wow, perfect! so gorgeous, I'm loving it.

cottages said...

I love the cottages, too. I have been looking for pictures, about it and how I can capture some of Cottages for my own space.
Thanks for this post!

Eliza Freitas said...

Olá!!! Amei este post, que lugar mágico e encantador... há como eu queria morar aí!!!
Querida, todo seu blog é um encanto, estava procurando algo sobre 'casa de fadas' pois estou fazendo uma para minha fadinha, porém casinha pequena... rsrs... irei comentar sobre o seu blog no meu post, para que lhe visitem e se encantem também com a beleza de seu blog!!!

Beijooo

Anonymous said...

Keep working ,splendid job!
Milwaukee 48-30-3045 #8 Decking Screw 2-Inch Stainless Steel

Laurel said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Laurel said...

I love Comstock! Planned for years to build a playhouse inspired by him!

http://parcelandfrock.blogspot.com/2014/10/playhouse.html

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