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House Beautiful has revisited its 1979 Design House of the Year, a Las Vegas home planned around a central courtyard pool. The archived project combined builder-standard materials with custom architectural details, Marimekko patterns and fabric-covered spaces to create a sheltered desert retreat.
House Beautiful has revisited its 1979 Design House of the Year, a Las Vegas home organized around a central courtyard pool and designed as a sheltered retreat from the desert climate. The archive feature recalls how architect William Turnbull Jr., interior designer Ristomatti Ratia and the magazine’s editors combined builder-standard materials with custom details, patterned textiles and trellises to shape the home.
The house, presented in the magazine’s May 1979 issue, was built on a sandy, treeless site in Las Vegas. Its plan placed a palm and swimming pool at the center, with rooms oriented toward the courtyard. House Beautiful’s report said the water, fabric and trellis were intended to soften the effect of intense sunlight and make the enclosed spaces feel more verdant.
Turnbull, a San Francisco-based architect, used materials described by the original report as standard for builders, then adapted them with features including battens, latticework and exposed beams. The home’s design team also included House Beautiful editors and Ratia, then the creative vice-president of Marimekko. Designer Michael Haskins also collaborated on the project; the American Wood Council was its co-sponsor.
The interior and outdoor spaces were linked through the kitchen, which the original article described as a connection between the other rooms and the courtyard. Ratia designed custom furniture, while Marimekko floral patterns and grid motifs appeared alongside canvas canopies, tent-like dining and seating areas, and a mural depicting indoor greenery. The original report also identified the builders as Connie Sommers, Duane Daum and Ernest Becker of Rancho Bel Air, Nevada.
A Desert Plan Built Around Water
The project’s organizing idea remains clear in the archive account: turn the house inward toward a pool and planted courtyard rather than rely on an exposed, treeless site for comfort or visual interest. That approach connected the rooms to a shared outdoor center while trellises and fabric helped filter sunlight. The article presents this as a design response to Las Vegas conditions, not as a measured claim about energy performance or cooling.
The home also had a practical audience beyond its original occupants. House Beautiful said the project was intended to inspire builders, and described the use of standard materials as part of the design strategy. Looking back at the project offers readers a specific historical example of a magazine-led design house combining architectural planning, interior design and product choices in one demonstration home.
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Inside the May 1979 Project
The archive feature is part of House Beautiful’s “Archive Dive” series, which editor in chief Jo Saltz introduced as a recurring look at stories from the magazine’s archives. Saltz describes the series as a way to revisit past projects and discuss why they continue to resonate. The current feature returns to the 1979 Design House of the Year, rather than reporting a new construction or renovation project.
The original story, by Susan Grant Lewin, documented a range of spaces within the house. The master bedroom had spiraling windows and connected to a trellis-covered hot tub; the master bath included a tub and open shower. A children’s room featured a platform bed with storage and Palaset cubes. Outside the main rooms, the masonry walls enclosed private decks, a “mirador” and a swimming grotto. A garage set between the house and street also acted as a buffer, according to the report.
The interiors paired repeated grid patterns with bright Marimekko flowers. The original article named materials and products including Formica, American Olean tile, Flamingo bathroom tile, PPG glass and Simpson Timber redwood. These details place the house within the design language and product landscape of its period, while the archive feature frames the overall plan as a deliberate response to the desert setting.
““Here food is prepared among family and friends.””
— House Beautiful’s 1979 report, describing Ristomatti Ratia
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What the Archive Does Not Establish
The current feature revisits the original magazine coverage, but it does not provide an update on the house’s present condition, ownership or accessibility. It also does not say whether the home’s original materials and furnishings remain in place, or whether the property has since been altered. The 1979 article describes the design and its intentions, but the available account supplies no performance data on how well the pool, trellises or fabric features affected indoor temperatures.
The feature does not identify a new project milestone or announce plans to restore the home. Its focus is the archive story and the design choices recorded there; claims about the house’s current status would require information beyond the material provided.
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Further Archive Features Ahead
House Beautiful introduced “Archive Dive” as a monthly series, with the 1979 home as one installment. The magazine says future features will revisit stories from its archives, including room makeovers and past design approaches. No publication date or subject for the next installment is specified in the material provided.
For readers following this house itself, the next useful development would be independently sourced information about its present-day condition or history since 1979. The current feature does not announce such reporting or a visit to the property.
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Key Questions
What is the news about the 1979 Design House of the Year?
House Beautiful has revisited the home in an archive feature, drawing attention to its design and the original May 1979 magazine report.
Where was the house?
The Design House of the Year was located in Las Vegas, Nevada, on a sandy, treeless desert site, according to the original report.
Who designed the house?
Architect William Turnbull Jr. worked with interior designer Ristomatti Ratia, House Beautiful editors and designer Michael Haskins. The American Wood Council co-sponsored the project.
What was the main design feature?
A central courtyard pool and palm formed the organizing center. The rooms faced the court, while trellises and fabric were used to filter sunlight and add sheltered spaces.
Is the house still intact or open to visitors?
The archive feature does not report on the home’s current condition, ownership or public access, so those details remain unknown from the available material.
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