Déjà Vu Vintage Finery will celebrate its grand opening by hosting a fashion show on February 16, 2012 to kick off The Palm Springs Modernism Week. The theme is “Jet Set Style-Mid Century Fashion,” with looks inspired by early historic Palm Springs hotspots such as the Racquet Club, The Chi Chi Club and other haunts of Palm Springs illustrious star-studded past. The evening features a silent auction of vintage clothing, purses, and accessories .  A pop-up store at The Ace Hotel will make many of our fabulous designer fashions available throughout the weekend. Proceeds from the event will benefit The Palm Springs Preservation Foundation.

The event will take place at The Ace Hotel & Swim Club at 701 East Palm Canyon Drive Palm Springs 2/16/2011 at 7:00PM.
Tickets are $20.00 and available for purchase on the website www.dejavuroom.com or by calling Déjà Vu Vintage Finery 760.699.5365

Mid-century Modern Fans:  Here’s a new event being offered this year at the annual Palm Springs Modernism Week celebration, coming up in February:

The Marriage of Commerce and Creativity:
Modernism in Banking
Palm Springs Historical Society Walking Tour

February 16.

This walking tour departs at 10 a.m. from the Union Bank Palm Springs at 500 S. Indian Canyon Drive Palm Springs, and lasts approximately 1 hour. Covers the area south of Baristo Rd bordered by Indian Canyon Drive and S. Palm Canyon Drive and examines the history of the development and design of the area, including banks designed by E. Stewart Williams and Gruen & Associates.

Enjoy refreshments provided by Espresso Cielo and free admission to the McCallum Adobe and Cornelia White House.

For tickets, go to www.ModernismWeek.com

Modernism Week is an exciting 11-day celebration of mid-century modern design, real estate,  architecture, and culture in Palm Springs, California.  February 6-16, 2012

 This design aesthetic originated in the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, and was typified by clean, simple lines which came to define desert modernism.

Modernism Week is filled with a variety of events including architectural tours, films, lectures, an architectural symposium, educational events, and chic, fun parties in cool mid-century modern homes and boutique hotels.

The Paul Kaplan Group has been an active sponsor and participant of Modernism Week over the years.  This year, we’ll be hosting our Mid-Century Real Estate  information booth again at the Modernism Show at the Palm Springs Convention Center:

$15

10 AM-6 PM, Saturday, February 18 & 19th

We had a great turnout Saturday night for our One Year Anniversary Party.  It was wonderful seeing so many of our friends and past clients.

After running my own real estate biz since 2002, I decided to form The Paul Kaplan Group in 2010.  All of our Buyer’s Specialists were chosen to join our team, because of their expert customer service, knowledge of Palm Springs real estate, and extensive experience.  Since forming our team, we have sold more homes in Palm Springs in 2011, then any other real estate group in town!  Thank you to all of our wonderful clients as well as our team, for a very successful and fun year.

We were fortunate to be able to host this year’s event  at our latest listing, at 1910 Berne Drive, a spectacular updated mid-century home located in the Racquet Club Estates neighborhood of Palm Springs.  We’re currently scheduling private viewings of the home for anyone that’s interested in seeing it. Just call me at 760-285-8559.

To see more party pictures, please click here.

Special thanks to architect, James R. Harlan who donated a copy of his 2011 Alexander Tribute journal, which high-lights the work of  The Alexander Construction Company in Palm Springs.  (Click here to purchase a copy from the Palm Springs Preservation Foundation).

Other gifts that were raffled off, included gift certificates from Wil Stiles, Trio and Koffi, and items from Not Nuetral, all located in the Uptown Design District.

Thanks to everyone that attended to join us in our first year’s celebration!

Palm Springs is the mecca for mid-century architecture, featuring unique designs from the 1950′s and 1960s.  One of the first Palm Springs condominimum resort projects, built in 1960, was the Park Imperial South.

Just listed, is one of the best examples of a unit at Park Imperial South with most of the original detail intact, updated and modified with modern comforts.  Listed at $339,000, here’s the agent’s description:

“If you have ever heard the statement Modernism lives” while in Palm Springs, one of the first developments that would come to mind is Park Imperial South. This Mid-Century gem stands out with its folded-plate rooflines and amazing Mid-Century architecture by celebrated architect, Barry A Berkus AIA. He created this stunning accomplished community in 1960 where the design still thrives and remains untouched. This unit has been enhanced by its current owners, featuring newly renovated flooring, kitchen countertops, stainless appliances and fresh paint all while keeping the Mid-Century look and feel and charm of the development. If you are seeking the sixties look and feel the vibe is here. If you are looking for that perfect weekend get-a-way or fulltime residence with tranquility and easy access to downtown, look no further. This amazing unit has it all.”

 Architect Barry Berkus, was quoted, saying “Park Imperial South marked a pivotal point for me,” said Berkus. “It opened up a way of looking at living space that still informs my designs. It inspired a preference for light, flexible room definitions and a fluid connection with the outdoors–seeing home not as a container, but as a backdrop for particular tastes and lifestyles.”

Berkus said he took Modernism to heart as an intern in 1956 for one of Palm Springs’ prominent architects, the late William F. Cody. “I learned a lot working for Bill, and was extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to apprentice with him, to convert classroom study into a new level of design knowledge.”

After forming his own practice, Berkus returned to Palm Springs to design Park Imperial South for

Living Room with folded plate roof

 Trudy Richards, a Southern California homebuilding company that specialized in desert resort homes. His career has since included virtually every type of new home design, and his body of work accounts for myriad homes and communities throughout the U.S. and abroad.

For more information on this property, please contact Paul @ 760-285-8559

Click here for more information on Park Imperial South.

Listing information provided by Desert Area MLS

In Palm Springs, we’re fortunate to have one of the greatest collections of mid-century modern architecture in the world.  Modern architects continue to explore Palm Springs and the desert with new ideas and innovations-  thus is the case of Desert One, built by Jim Jennings, AIA.  At The Paul Kaplan Group, we specialize in Mid-Century and Modern Architectural Real Estate in Palm Springs, and share unique listings with our clients.  Listed at $725,000, this is truly one of the architectual gems of Palm Springs.  Here’s info from the listing from the Desert Area MLS:

Desert One, Jim Jennings, AIA 2005: Architectural Digest, September 2009. Rarely, dating back to ‘Case Study’ houses of the midcentury, do we find a new but timeless expression of architectural art that truly captures the essence of the era, one that is sure to be appreciated well into the next century. At first look, a sculpted monolith rising from the desert floor, perfectly sited and firmly rooted into 2/3 acres of untouched natural desert terrain. Private, protected behind tall walls, ‘Desert One’ is a 2,800 sq ft compound of seamless indoor-outdoor living and entertaining space, executed in concrete, steel and glass, constructed with exacting fit and finish. Once inside the wide front door that automatically clicks shut with precision, you’re in another world. Here, Jim Jennings created a tranquil modern sanctuary, ideally suited for one or two, that is Palm Springs: Open and Exciting!

Photography courtesy of Joe Fletcher Photography via the Desert Area MLS

Jim Jennings has been twice honored by Architectural Digest as one of the “AD 100″ [the top international architects and interior designers]. ‘Desert One’ was featured in the USA edition of Architectural Digest, September 2009, and here in an international edition in October 2009 was the cover

For more information on this stunning property, please call or text Paul at 760-285-8559.

Listed by Architecture Properties.

From one of our agents at The Paul Kaplan Group in Palm Springs, Kris Rain:

 Meet Craig and Diane, our new homeowners in Racquet Club Estates, Palm Springs- this cool mid-century home built by the  Alexander Construction Company, is their first home purchase! They did their final walk thru today and brought their dog Winston who walked right in and sat in the pool. Welcome to Palm Springs!

Coachella Valley Water District is gearing up for its annual Landscape Workshop for Home Gardeners. The workshop will feature presentations by experts on converting lawn to desert landscaping, plant selection, efficient irrigation practices There are three different times that the workshop will be offered- November 18 at 8 am or at 1PM; or November 19 at 8am. The $20 registration fee includes a landscaping book, a 3-inch potted plant, and refreshments. For more information, visit www.cvwd.org

Midcentury Modern aficionados get ready! The untouched living room of design legends Ray and Charles Eames wil soon be available for public viewing at the Los Angeles County Museum as part of an upcoming exhibition- California Design, 1930-1965: “Living in a Modern Way.” The exhibition will showcase California’s role in shaping home and interior design in the US. The show will open October 1, and will be available through April. While the living room contents are on display, a complete renovation of the home will take place under the direction of the Eames family, the first renovation since the home’s construction in 1949. More information can be found at LACMA’s website: http://lacma.wordpress.com/