The main living-room from the studio. There is great window space in the opposite wall providing for much 
sunlight, but the room is so spacious and the ventilation so good that it does not become hot 
A Seaside House that Fits Its Site 
HI-LE-RO, A MAN’S CONCEPTION OF A VACATION HOME—HOW HE ACHIEVED WARM 
WEATHER COMFORT AND WHAT ORIGINAL IDEAS HE HAD IN FITTING THE HOUSE 
TO THE LANDSCAPE—SOME VALUABLE HINTS FOR FURNISHING 
by Eloise Roorbach 
Photographs by the Author 
A DEEPLY rooted theory of mine (deduced from much expe¬ 
rience) is that every house needs the help of a woman in 
its designing. M e n 
are prone to overlook 
the matter of closets, 
to put hinges on the 
wrong side of doors, 
drop the electric-light 
lamps just out of 
reach of anyone not 
on stilts, to put the 
pantry and cool clos¬ 
ets on the sunny side 
of the house, to leave 
no wall space for the 
beds; in fact, to over¬ 
look cosiness, con¬ 
venience and beauty, 
while focusing a 11 
their attention upon 
driving i n enough 
nails to make it with¬ 
stand the tumbling 
about of earthquakes. 
I have always feared 
the result of man’s 
unrestrained use of 
color — it is commonly so weirdly original. I would never dream 
of permitting mere man to construct the face of any stone chimney 
of mine, for, though they have a skill in making them draw well, 
they generally make the face of it so large that the room seems to 
be but a fungus 
growth upon it! 
I have recently seen 
a house designed, 
built, furnished and 
cared for bv a man, 
a self-sufficient man 
scorning the advice or 
counsel of mere 
woman. Since it is 
well to admit one’s 
limitations and errors, 
I herewith declare 
that the house is both 
original and beauti¬ 
ful, a rare combina¬ 
tion of virtues in 
these days of freak 
houses. It foices an 
apology from me. 
With the admission 
of underrating man’s 
ability in home mak¬ 
ing, I agree to de¬ 
scribe it in full, for it 
has several features that it would be well for women to know 
about. 
A bare, rugged promontory is the site for Hi-le-ro. Its owner has built it of stucco so treated that the 
house appears to have sprung from the cliffs. The planting, too, is restricted to the appropriately colored 
shrubs native to the point 
(453) 
