Alas, Spring Is in the Air

Just as the sun peeks out and the fresh scent of spring is in the air, the Eichler Network is pleased to announce that the new spring '23 issue of CA-Modern magazine has arrived.

With a focus on art and décor, plus a neighborly feature on the Eichlers of the Big City, we hope that readers will find a special subject that piques their interest.

Making a stop at San Francisco's Diamond Heights, our own 'CA-Modernist' features editor Dave Weinstein introduces readers to a special place, a 'Suburbia in the Sky' where "charm, drama, and the most unique Eichlers of all" abound.

"When we first walked into this house in 1993, it just spoke to us," says longtime Diamond Heights resident Jack Bernstine. "We didn't know what an Eichler was, but we did everything we could to get it."

According to Weinstein's article, there's not another Eichler neighborhood like Diamond Heights. "None of its half-dozen or so models can be found in any other tract," Weinstein points out, "as they were designed by Claude Oakland & Associates for this specific series of steep hillsides."

Bernstine, who lives in a split-level model, confirms that the architects' and site planners' time was well spent. "One of the most wonderful things about this particular house is how it's situated facing west. We get these 'Gone with the Wind' sunsets with big, orange skies…and you can see the moon, and the fog approaching too."

A lively topic "that's making a comeback with a big stir" is 'Swizzles with Sizzle.' Guest writer Carol Sveilich invites us on a pop culture trip to the days of "decorative drink stirrers…that served as a crowning touch for cocktails."

Today, swizzle sticks are the shimmering stars at many a retro cocktail soiree, thanks to the TV series Mad Men, "a recent cultural phenomenon that managed to spark renewed interest in these slim stir sticks," she writes.

There's also a Swizzle Stick Collectors Club, headed by Pam Ashlund, who became enamored with souvenir stirrers "because they are often the last trace of restaurants, hotels, and bars." As with matchbook covers, souvenir swizzle sticks tell a unique story all their own.