In 1918, when American Soldiers returned from World War1, the men brought with them a new-found fondness for the English Cottage Style. The style was popular in America from 1920 to 1940. This wonderful example has added rooms that look original -- right down to such details as reproduction push-button light switches. The owner has also created an art studio in the attic. The garden in back is wonderful and includes a guest house designed for entertaining, a hand-built swing, a vegetable garden and egg-laying hens. The homeowner is Jack Vosney.

This is the living room of the English Cottage style house with its original plaster fireplace that features a pair of Arts & Crafts tiles. The owner is an amateur osteologist (bone collector).

Though the glass-front kitchen cabinets are new, the owner applied 4 layers of paint and stain so they appear 90 years old. The counters are traditional wood (butcher block) and are easily maintained with an annual coat of oil. If necessary, they can easily be re-sanded, re-sealed and will last forever.

This home was originally a 1-story structure with an attic under the tall roof which is characteristic of the English Cottage home style. This new master bedroom was placed in the former attic. Notice the bedside tables. Such matching pairs from the 1920s are very rare, so the owner created them by separating the two sides of a lady's vanity from the same period.

Like the master bedroom, the master bath was newly constructed in the attic of the English Cottage style house. The shower utilizes marble subway tiles, a Victorian innovation, which became popular in the early 1900s with the opening of the New York subway system. The shower is very practical with a bench, natural light, and tile covering the floor, walls and even the ceiling.

This is the bungalow that the owner built in the garden behind the English Cottage house. Used mainly for entertaining, the "green" bungalow is largely constructed of recycled materials -- including arched windows from a century-old church.

Inside the entertainment bungalow is a restored 1895 wood stove from Iowa. The bar is on the right with a glass insulator collection in the window behind. In the upper left is a chandelier in the Machine Age style manufactured by the owner that utilizes the glass insulators for shades used by PG&E before the company switched over to porcelain.

The house was built on the largely natural contours of a hillside instead of a pad that was graded to be flat.. This was commonplace during the 1920s. An antique car was parked in front of the basement garage during the Tour.

When you pass through a vine-covered arbor and enter the doorway of this house, which is shielded from the view of passersby, you will find the home is a jewel inside. And the views from the house are spectacular. The homeowners are John and Marcia Hetzler.

As you enter this charming home, you feel as if you are entering a 200 year old Swiss chalet. The couple who own this 1927 house are retired opera singers. They are well-traveled and the house has a European feel inside.

The European opulence of the 1927 home was a big hit with tour goers. In this photo, a beam in the elegant dining room has been stenciled by the owners with lines from the operetta Candide.

The small but efficient 1920s kitchen features an eye-catching sink of hammered copper.

A recessed niche is a pleasing addition on the stairway to the converted attic.

The third floor of the 1927 house is a converted attic. The minimal head room only added to its charm. The space now functions as a guest suite, and is very popular with the homeowner's visitors. Tour goers also found the niches, nooks and dormers of the room to be very appealing.

The sleeping nook in the converted attic. When the owners' children come to visit, they compete to see who gets to sleep here.

The house is full of delightful, creative touches. Pictured here is a chest of drawers which has been plumbed to create a unique bathroom vanity for a guest room.

In this photo, the homeowners (Marcia and John Hetzler) pose for the home tour photographer, Carter Wilson.

These were the sponsors of the 2014 Home Tour. Please support them -- as they support the non-profits in our community.

This is the Main Lodge Room in the four-level building. The alter in the center of the room is set up for an Eastern Star meeting. The Eastern Star is a separate organization in the Family of Freemasonry. The five points of the Eastern Star represent character-building lessons exemplified by significant female biblical figures.

The beautiful beams on the ceiling of the Main Lodge Room are painted to depict the Instruments of Freemasonry. Though the compass and the square are the best known instruments, there are hundreds more which symbolize some aspect of Freemasonry.

Cheryll Grover poses next to an open bible in the Small Lodge Room. A square and a compass are used as paper weights. The room is filled with interesting historical memorabilia.

This celestial globe sits on a pillar symbolizing the Jachin, one of the two pillars which stood in front of the original Temple of Solomon, the first Temple of Jerusalem.

This beautiful Art Deco chandelier dates to 1930, the year the Masonic Temple was constructed.

The spiral stairs connect the four levels of the Masonic Lodge. The winding staircase represents the ascension into the light which accompanies moral and intellectual development.

This is the large dining room on the first floor of the Masonic Lodge. The dining room and kitchen can be rented by other groups needing a spacious area for a meeting, dinner or other event by contacting the Lodge.

This classic automobile was parked at the curb in front of the Lodge on the day of the Tour. When the Lodge was constructed in 1930, the building was located on Thompson Street. But in 1984, the name was changed to Masonic Street.

The Shell Clubhouse looks today much as it did when built in 1937. Inside it retains its beautiful Craftsman interior. It is outfitted with restrooms and was the starting and ending point for the Tour. There is a kitchen in the building where complementary beverages and refreshments were served during the Tour. Parking was plentiful.

The next stop on the Tour was the 1890 Borland House which houses the Martinez Museum, the Local History Library and the Martinez Archives -- all operated by the volunteers at the Martinez Historical Society. You can now visit the Society on Facebook:

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