Thursday, August 7, 2008

Jay Griffith Garden Gorgeousness

SELLER: Jay Griffith
LOCATION: Clover Heights Avenue, Malibu, CA
PRICE: $3,900,000
SIZE: 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Enjoy panoramic views from this approx. 2.5 acre property which includes an existing 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom mid-century house, studio, and a vintage barn...includes an outdoor entertaining area complete with an ocean view gazebo. The entire acreage is beautifully landscaped with drought-resistant native plants.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Listen my little chickadees, Your Mama and the Dr. Cooter are on the move today...literally. We're surrounded by boxes and there are half a dozen burly men in blue outfits racing around the house and loading our precious things onto a giant truck bound for a far away land.

So as you might imagine we don't have much time to dilly-dally and discuss ad nauseum as we generally do. But we didn't want to leave y'all high and dry and desperate for a little real estate porn so we decided to offer a little garden gorgeousness out in Malee-boo.

We recognize that many of the children won't know who this Jay Griffith person is. Suffice to say he's an enormously talented, well respected and very expensive landscape designer who works his landscaping magic all over Southern California.

According to prop records, the (approx.) 2.5 acre property shown here belongs to Mister Griffith himself. Your Mama thinks it's a wonderland of native plants, sitting areas with stellar views of the Pacific Ocean and a "gazebo" and entertaining area that makes Your Mama weep with envy.

According to listing information, all this outdoor dee-lishu-ness also comes with a vintage barn and a 3 bedroom and 3 bathroom mid-century style home which is all being offered with an asking price of $3,900,000.

We'll take it.

P.S. Records reflect that in addition to this slice of coastal pulchritude lucky Mister Griffith owns a fair amount of other property around Los Angeles including a couple of properties in Venice, an additional house in Pacific Palisades, two more adjacent lots in Malibu (that are actually contiguous with this for sale acreage) and a small apartment house. Looks like Mister Griffith knows how to parlay his landscaping dollars into a mini real estate empire. Bravo!

44 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes Jay Griffith of the Griffith park family right ?

Anonymous said...

Boring and bland. What good are native plants if the whole thing looks washed out and utilitarian? Is the hideous shag carpet organic?

Anonymous said...

Is this to be your new left coast abode? Does this have somethin to do with a teevee show? Don't tease us mama.

Alessandra said...

This home exemplifies what is brilliant about California design. I'd need to see more before I could be certain, but it certainly appeals to me.

Anonymous said...

I'm with you Alessandra, looks good on the surface to me. But, is it just me, or does it seem like the ocean views are rather distant and barely visible? If that is indeed the case, I'd have to pass on this one, regretably.

Good luck with your move today Mama, and after you get settled, please do share a few details, thanks :)

Anonymous said...

A far away land? Is Mama moving back to SoCal?

I could not picture Mama anywhere else in america than NY or California. Europe would be great but highly unlikely since Mama's got a nice thing going in the US...

I iz curious.

TonyV said...

I agree, must be California. And only SoCal. I couldn't imagine up in cold and foggy S.F.

Anonymous said...

Mama, you're so mysterious. I love it. Be safe.

These pics were not taken with forethought to marketing. The compositions are great, but time of day, shadows and bla dank sky don't do this work justice. Oh camera person, reshoot please. :)

Seriously would enjoy seeing better visuals.

Anonymous said...

I'm perplexed. I always thought Mama was living in California now and blogging out of the LA area. Regardless, best of luck, Mama.
I'd love to see pics of Mama's new home. I'm curious about her taste, as much as she bashes other homes. I'm sure there's nary a pot rack to be found.

Anonymous said...

"a far away land"?? Is Mama coming home to So Cal?

Anonymous said...

This garden doesn't do it for me. Too deserty and conventional in a not-fun old-fashioned way. It is all too brown and lawn. Nope. It does not sell me on this place.

TwentyFiveFifty said...

Far away land could be Mama speak for "moving from 14th to the UES".

:)

pch said...

This looks like editorial from an issue of Sunset magazine, circa 1969. Sort of a snooze. Then again, I'm not a gardener and might be missing the point.

Anonymous said...

Mamas movin?

The children would love to see where she lays her head.


As for this...I confess that my knowledge of landscaping extends no further than the phone number for the service that comes to tidy my beds and kill the pesky weeds that creep beneath my fence...but this just looks like a sort of overgrown mess to me. But again, what do I know?

Anonymous said...

I think it's beautiful and understated. You can't expect to see a lush, English garden in So Cal, so what do you expect?

so_chic_darling said...

Looks like an old hippie's place to me.

Anonymous said...

Good luck with the move, Mama. Keep a sharp eye on the long bodied bitches and Sugar; moving is traumatic for the babies.

I'm sure your brood is flying and not driving. However, if driving, watch out for the tumbleweeds in Southwestern Kansas, they're tough.

Change is good, congrats!

Mike Cook said...

I'll take it. What's his number?

Usually not my style of house at all, but I'm getting great vibes from these pics.

If you can afford a Malibu retreat off the ocean, a little spread on the ocean somewhere probably isn't too much of a financial stretch.

Happy landings, Mama.

Anonymous said...

A far away land in NYC terms could mean something as simple as a move from Brooklyn to Manhattan, or Manhattan to - dare I say it - Jersey!

As for the house.. ick! No thanks!

Anonymous said...

So Chic, Aunt Mary doesn't live there, lol.

:-)

Anonymous said...

Sorry but if you see Griffith's properties in person they all have one thing in common: overpriced, underdeveloped and the same dusty succulents. Plus this one has so much noise from the High School. Ugh!

Anonymous said...

Am I missing something? Is no one else noticing the Godzilla Vs Gang of Yellow Toy Trucks 'tablescape'?

My guess is definitely from lower Manhattan to upper Manhattan. Or Brooklyn.

so_chic_darling said...

Dusty succulents, I love that one!

Parker said...

I'm just not feeling this one.

Mama, we'd be so thrilled if you shared some tidbits about your new whereabouts. Just a substantial hint or a photo would do :)

Anonymous said...

"Godzilla Vs Gang of Yellow Toy Trucks 'tablescape'?"

Haha, that is hilarious. I hadn't noticed it but it looks so out of place and extremely random. I just can't stop laughing.

StPaulSnowman said...

Since Manhattan is an island, I am guessing that the far away land is the Jennifer Connelly masterpiece in Brooklyn. You go girl!

Kenny said...

great views, but nothing spectacular.

visit my website at: http://www.homesoftherich.net

Alessandra said...

Dusty Succulents is a perfect name for a stripper.

Still like the landscaping, speaking as someone who has to nurse her plants year round because we live in a drought zone.

Anonymous said...

villa Leopold is sold for 500 million Euro or 750 million Dollars. Next month we will know the owner but it itn't abramovitsj

Anonymous said...

Looks like a great property for someone who enjoys having a secluded garden. The school playing fields and riding ring to the south would ensure some quiet and privacy... I just hope they aren't lit up at night. No pool. I'd love to see pics of the interior space as well.

Public beach access is 5 minutes away. I'd much rather have a quiet and expansive property like this than live jammed up with my neighbors right on the shore.

Good wishes for a smooth transition to your new home, Mama.

Anonymous said...

Can you believe this guy Kenny above? His website plugging is hilarious. You must visit the site just to see the Persian Palace Freak Out sessions. Yikes.

Unknown said...

Maybe Mama bought the Gyllenhaal family place she loves so much that was for sale...... rumors rumors.....

Anonymous said...

Love you Mama and the fine Dr. Cooter,
This one's for you. Be safe and enjoy the journey.

StPaulSnowman said...

Maybe Mama and the good Dr. are not moving at all. Maybe they just had moving men and boxes everywhere because some nice gay decorator said they had too much clutter and had to shift some of their ceramic lighthouse collection to storage. Oh no! Mamaminimalist!

lil' gay boy said...

Mama is moving; caught her in mid-pack, as it were.

This property is what makes sense to this New Yorker when y'all go gaga over Malibu; love the distant oceanview, that gazebo, and the landscaping can always be redone if having you garden named after a stripper is not your first choice…

…the Godzilla Vs Gang of Tonka Toys road show notwithstanding.

Anonymous said...

ocean views are a little too distant for me..

Anonymous said...

9:16,

I refuse to waste the bandwidth until he BUYS AN AD.

Anonymous said...

I agree, Kenny is an a-hole yet keeps slithering back in. I purposely avoid his link. Leech.

Anonymous said...

Nobody ever said they missed me......schmucks!

Anonymous said...

Who is up for a road trip?

Staging Lady can get behind the wheel of the Prius, Aunt Mary can fire up a joint, So Chic can..be so chic, Girl At The Bar can mix up some roadies, PCH can read the maps, and all the rest of us can play nice as we head over to visit Kenny and show him our collective wit and wisdom. Give Old Hag a pitcher of G&T with a straw and leave her home. She'd just slow us down. Besides, I hear the restraining order on the b*tch of a daughter of hers expired on the first so she needs to sit with the shotgun across her lap to protect her house.

Anonymous said...

Love the photo of the kids & the sign..
Malibu listing: Ocean is not too far away, that is just the wider angle lens. Yes school just behind, some noise, but if you're buying, you are already gone by school hours. Jay Griffith is a highly respected artist in these parts. I had appraised a home across the street from the Venice property, a little triangle of land, mostly used as an office/showroom for landscaping, I believe.

Anonymous said...

The Anonymous blogger just sounds like a bitter old queen who can't afford anything and is probably living beyond his means in some tacky and lonely downtown apartment.

Anonymous said...

To see Jay's work in person is to love his work. I have known Jay for over thirty years, though now we would be called nothing more than acquaintances. He is brilliant, nothing short of brilliant and his work is always original in his use of materials, colors and plantings. Trust me, a tour of his works is a jaw dropping experience.

Anonymous said...

To all people posting here;

I am lucky to be able to call Jay Griffith my uncle-in-law and to all of you who do not know him in person, I cannot say but this; Shut your mouth!

Jay Griffith is the most generous and genuine person I have met in my life. He has been the founder of the Annual Venice Garden Tour, a charitable organization that pumps millions of dollars into the Venice community every year. He donates his time and work to elementary and grade schools in the area and he has the biggest heart of all persons. Don't judge a book by its cover!!