The Hollywood Home Tour is the Hottest Ticket in Town and You Can Win a Pair!

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Hollywood Home Tour 2017 photos courtesy of Kim Leeson

Home Tour season is upon us. From my vantage point, nobody does it better than Hollywood, and I don’t mean Los Angeles.

I’m a bit biased as I’ve lived in Hollywood Heights since the beginning of the tour’s 26-year history. Having been involved, I can attest to the fact that organizing a home tour is a daunting operation. It takes patience, persistence, and problem solving and you have to love your neighborhood. Fortunately, you can’t find a tighter-knit group of neighbors than those in Hollywood Heights.

This year, five unique historic homes are on tour — from a two-story Tudor, complete with original blueprints to the remarkable renovation we’re sharing today at 1014 Clermont.


Shortly after the home was built in 1936, the Bert family moved in. If you know anything about the State Fair of Texas, you’ll have heard the name. Samuel Bert, or “King Sammie,” as he was known throughout his life, worked at the fair for 65 years. He’s best remembered for inventing the snow cone machine. He and the family ran multiple rides including the Merry-Go-Round and owned the Cotton Bowl Roller Rink and Restaurant. The fourth generation of Bert’s family is still actively involved with the fair.

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1014 Clermont sat vacant, in the middle of a triple, lot for years.

They were well known, so it is not surprising to find they were a target. A 1948 Dallas Morning News article details an armed robbery at the house.

DMN_02.08.1948_Samuel Bert copyIt’s hard to believe in this quiet leafy neighborhood that “yeggmen” could have ever tied kids up with Venetian blind cords and blown open a safe!

The home sat unoccupied for years. When it finally went up for sale, the entire neighborhood worried it would be split up, and ugly new faux Tudors erected. I raced over and took a few photos of the original home, in preparation for a blog post. We all thought it would take ages to sell, and be an eyesore for years due to the necessity of rezoning it as three separate properties. However, no sooner had I loaded photos of the knotty pine attic, the clown portraits, and the vintage kitchen than I got the good news. ReNewell Design had purchased the lots and the existing 1936 Tudor home. A collective neighborhood sigh of relief was almost audible. We all knew David Kennedy and Ashley Holbrook, the father-daughter team behind ReNewell, have a passion for restoration. They always do the right thing.

This house was quite a challenge as you can see from the before photos, but the results are nothing less than spectacular. ReNewell hit a home run. The house is now 2,867 square feet with three bedrooms. The present owners, Kerri and Colin Watson, added a third bathroom in the fantastic attic space and put in glass panels to let more light flow up the stairs — brilliant touch. It’s gorgeous.

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The living room after ReNewell renovated it in 2016.

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The living room of 1014 Clermont in 2015

 

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Original fireplace details were kept intact during the renovation.

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The main living area after the 2015 renovation.

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The dining and kitchen areas ready for the home tour.

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ReNewell’s kitchen renovation.

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The kitchen in 2015 when ReNewell purchased the property for renovation.

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Everyone needs a clown portrait…or two.

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Knotty pine was big in the 1930’s. I snapped this just before renovations began.

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What a difference!

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The 26th Annual Hollywood Home Tour runs next weekend, April 28-30. This is one of the best collection of homes I’ve seen in years so, to encourage you to get out and see them we’re giving away tickets!

The auction party at the Dallas Arboretum is a highlight on Friday night, along with a candlelight tour of the homes. On both Saturday and Sunday, Hollywood Art in the Park will offer activities for kids and an arts and crafts market for adults.

Hollywood Home Tour 2017 from Ebby Halliday, Realtors on Vimeo.


To win a pair of tickets comment below and let us know what you love most about Hollywood Heights or if you know the definition of “yeggmen”!

Email your full name and daytime phone number to [email protected] with the subject line “Hollywood Home Tour Ticket Giveaway.”

The contest closes at 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 18. Good luck!

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Karen Eubank is the owner of Eubank Staging and Design. She has been an award-winning professional home stager for more than 25 years. She’s been a professional writer for 20 years. Karen is the mother of a son who’s studying music at The University of Miami. An ardent animal lover, she doesn’t mind one bit if your fur baby jumps right into her lap. Find Karen at www.eubankstaging.com and the preview party Friday night!

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Karen is a senior columnist at Candy’s Media and has been writing stories since she could hold a crayon. She is a globe-trotting, history-loving eternal optimist who would find it impossible to live well without dogs, Tex-Mex, and dark chocolate. She covers luxury properties and historic preservation for Candys Dirt.

8 Comments

  1. lucinda Cummins on April 14, 2017 at 12:39 pm

    The Hollywood Heights neighborhood is one of my favorites! It’s resisted the McMansion trend. So much charm!

    • Karen Eubank on April 17, 2017 at 5:46 pm

      Lucinda,
      We are a Conservation District, no McMansions allowed : )

      • lucinda Cummins on April 18, 2017 at 11:04 am

        This is what makes it such a great neighborhood! The charm is here to stay!

  2. Charles Ray Chavez on April 14, 2017 at 7:36 pm

    Always an enjoyable home tour!

  3. Caren Richard on April 15, 2017 at 9:54 am

    Wow, learn something new everyday, I had to look up yeggman. And the Hollywood Heights home have craftsmanship that grace the homes.

  4. Jim Cannon on April 17, 2017 at 10:51 am

    My parents moved to Monte Vista in 1950. I sold it in 1991. The new owners remodeled it and I look forward to it being on the tour one day. Wonderful memories of the neighborhood growing up in the 50s and 60s. Yeggmen are burglers…..

    • Karen Eubank on April 17, 2017 at 5:51 pm

      Jim,
      Preservation Dallas dug up an ad from the sale in the 1940’s. You won’t believe the list price! I hope you can make it to the tour and the party at the Arboretum!

  5. Sally Powell Schall on April 17, 2017 at 12:21 pm

    Hollywood Heights is so charming – and I’ve wanted to go on this home tour for years. Will definitely make it happen this year. Interesting article – enjoyed learning about this home’s history and yeggmen. 8)

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