Architecture Wednesday: Casona 59

Although a home in Merida, Mexico, the renovation reflects the Belle Époque for French art in its balustrades, irregular wall finishes, and arches throughout. The idea of the renovation of Casona59 was to preserve the spirit and memory of the building, restoring the cedar wood doors and windows, removing several layers of paint from the walls revealing old times and colors, and remodeling the bathrooms so that the “new” elements were placed in such a way that they did not touch the original walls of the house to maintain a respect for the old building. While the existing spaces changed their functions, the kitchen was restored in the original space and new areas such as swimming pool, terraces, garage and bathrooms were added.

There are two ensuite bedrooms, the primary with a walk-through closet, as well as a living area, central sitting room, dining room, and kitchen with large pantry. Outside is a covered terrace and a small pool in the central courtyard … a whole design to enjoy the benefits of the sky, the sun, the light, the shadow and the visuals.

And it’s in Merida, one of the most beautiful spots on Earth.

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Amazing Architecture

Architecture Wednesday: Casa Dos Sueños

The House of Two Dreams, in Merida, Mexico, consists of three main blocks. The first block consists of the three original bays; the first being the foyer and the carport. The second bay consists of a TV room, laundry, a full bathroom, an outdoor shower and a small interior patio. In the third bay is another sitting area as well as a bedroom.

Between the first and second blocks is a central courtyard with a glass ceiling and concrete curved stairway with iron railings that lead to the second-floor office and primary suite. In the next block, you’ll find the kitchen, dining room, and guest bathroom. There is also access to the covered patio and outdoor kitchen and dining area.

Between the second and third block is an enclosed garden with pool area and a small garden, before you arrive at the last block featuring  two more en suite bedrooms. Upstairs, over the main house, the primary bedroom has access to a balcony with a small tub, a full bathroom as well as a home office connected to the main room by a bridge through the central courtyard.

I adore Merida, and could easily live there in a house like this, perhaps a bit smaller?

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Amazing Architecture

Architecture Wednesday: Casa Huolpoch

I am all about retiring to Merida, Mexico when the time comes, though I still need to convince Carlos, and when I do I want something like Casa Huolpoch.

Casa Huolpoch is an old Yucatecan house from the end of the 1900s that gets its name from a snake that regularly “visited” the property's ruins—this snake reference might make Carlos refuse this home outright. Behind its colonial facade, the house has four bedrooms and a studio apartment in 3400 square feet—this also might be a bit too large for Carlos.

In the entry hall, living area, you find an old cast iron lamp hanging from the original metal beams that together with the white wooden beams embellish the high ceilings of the residence. The living room aso features a gray pasta tile “carpet”—pasta tiles are made in molds into which bits of colored cement paste are poured after which a solid-colored cement is poured as backing—surrounded by an antique white floor border that joins the kitchen and dining room through three old colonial doors that were found on-site and reused, preserving their character and its historical value.

Next up is the kitchen and dining area, with pasta tile and white quartz, has a reinterpretation of the old Yucatecan hoods above the stove. The dining room is connected to the terrace through a sliding glass door, generating a feeling of indoor-outdoor living, with a pool just beyond the covered terrace.

The chukum pool—chukum is a resin obtained from the bark of the chukum tree that is blended with fine cement creating a salmon colored for the pool—sits in a central courtyard surrounded by the stone remains of an old colonial structure, where you find an outdoor eating area and outdoor kitchen. Follow the meandering stairs from the pool deck to the second floor and the guest bedrooms, while the primary suite is located on the first floor, with views from the bed through the yard and cross the pool.

Casa Huolpoch is that perfect blend of historical Yucatecan colonial architecture and modern design.

If it just wasn’t named after a snake …

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Dwell