07/14/09 3:50pm

Let’s see if someone can win that one-year individual membership in the Rice Design Alliance this time! That’s the prize for this week’s winner — and it’s sponsored by the RDA. Are you ready to play?

You play the Neighborhood Guessing Game by . . . guessing the neighborhood of the pictured home. If you guess correctly, you win! If more than one person guesses the right neighborhood, the player who gave the best explanation for the guess wins.

If you know this home already, or if you come across it or its listing while we’re playing the game, please don’t post the answer — you’ll just ruin the game for everyone. Instead, send Swamplot a link to the listing — so we know what you’re doing. Then post an incorrect guess, but make it sound real plausible, to throw the other players off track. If you do this well, you’ll get special recognition when the answer is announced. And if nobody guesses the correct neighborhood, you could win the prize!

Let’s have a peek at the rest of this place, then:

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

07/09/09 6:51pm

Do we have a prizewinner for this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game? Who wouldn’t want to win a membership in the Rice Design Alliance?

Your guesses were almost all over the place: Pearland (3), Friendswood, Webster, League City (2), Kingwood, Richmond, Champion Forest (2), “along Briar Forest and Dairy Ashford,” Meyerland (2), Meyerland “near Westbury High School,” Braeswood (3), Bear Creek, Clear Lake (2), Deer Park (2), near MacGregor Way, Pasadena (2), “the ritzy part of Pasadena over around Fairmont Parkway and Young St.,” Lake Olympia, Missouri City, Sharpstown, Sugar Land, Alvin, Katy, Humble, Spring Branch north of Long Point (2), “East Side,” “some more rural area of Fort Bend County,” Baytown (2), LaPorte, Lake Jackson, Inwood Forest, near Jersey Village, “the Champions/Spring area” (2), Fondren Southwest, Alief, “the area around South Post Oak, way down past 610 south,” Sagemont, Atascocita, “between Hwy 6, 1464, and Bissonnet, . . . south of George Bush Park,” Stafford, “Kempwood and Gessner,” “near Knob Hill Park near Gessner and Hammerly,” southeast Tomball, Tanglewood, and Marilyn Estates.

Lots of great guesses . . . but none of them right. What made this one so difficult? Finness tried to put a . . . finger on it:

From the pink Texas door mat to the empty bathroom plant hooks and the ovewrwhelming scent of litter pan – I just look and look again and the mind boggles. I will forever be haunted by the kitty eyes on the toss pillows on the pink leather sofas. Even writing that gives me an out of body sensation. Senses overwhelmed.

Where is this place?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

07/07/09 4:38pm

The property featured in this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game was sent in by a reader. Think you’ve got a chance this time? The winner of this round will get a free one-year individual membership in the Rice Design Alliance, courtesy of the RDA!

Y’all remember how to play this game, right? Just guess where the home is located. If you guess correctly, you win the prize! But if more than one of you guesses the correct neighborhood, the prize will go to the player who provided the best explanation for the guess.

If you already know this property, or if you come across it (or the listing for it) while we’re playing, don’t ruin the game for everyone else by giving the correct answer. Instead, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing — to clue us in — then enter an incorrect guess carefully calibrated to throw the other players off. If you do this well, you’ll get special recognition for your efforts. And if nobody guesses the right location, you could win the prize for yourself!

That’s all you need to know to play the game. . . . Well, that and what the rest of the place looks like:

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

07/02/09 11:49pm

Now who won that box of Crave Cupcakes?

Someone who played this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game — and made one of these guesses: The Woodlands (there were 5), Kingwood (also 5), Tanglewood (3), “somewhere along Buffalo Bayou” (3), Tomball (3), Champion Forest (2), Conroe (2), Magnolia (2), Cypress (2), near Kingwood Country Club (2), Spring, Sherwood Forest, Hunter’s Creek Village, “the area around Briar Forest and Gessner somewhere along Buffalo Bayou,” near Memorial and Voss, “the Wirt/Westview area,” “north of The Woodlands, maybe on the east side of I-45 near the Crighton Ridge neighborhood off Crighton Road, south of Conroe,” Bayou Woods, Memorial “just off one of those small streets east of Gessner,” “between Kirby where it veers east into Allen Parkway and Shepherd,” near the Raveneaux Country Club, near Lake Houston, near Briar Forest and the Beltway, “inside the Beltway along Memorial Dr. between Voss and Gessner,” Lakeside Forest, Ponderosa Forest, “somewhere off Cypress Creek,” Clear Lake, Brook Forest, Lakewood, Friendswood, Broad Oaks, Briar Manor, Crestwood, Glen Cove, “around a bayou,” “on Saddlebrook, right off Memorial east of Chimney Rock,” “Waller/Tomball somewhere nestled along Spring Creek,” “the Hudson area off Memorial,” Lake Livingston, Panorama Village, Hunterwood, Splendora, “in them thar hills to the north and west of Tomball proper,” “in the Hirsch-Little York-Homestead-Tidwell box near Tidwell Park,” Saddlewood, Sandalwood, “down Baytownish,” “in the back of The Woodlands,” Spring Branch, Hilshire Village, near Memorial and Piney Point, Rivercrest north of Briar Forest, Briargrove Park, near the Lakeside Country Club, off Briar Drive next to Tanglewood.

Whew! That’s a lot of househunting. This week’s winner is the mysterious IHeartSwampLot — for this entry:

This sucker is on a MONSTROUS lot with tons of pine trees. That could be just about anywhere in the northern fringes of the metro area. How we gonna narrow this down? Well, the furniture and kitchen just SCREAM 80s and the windows, they lead me to believe there’s quite a sight to behold out in the backyard, such as a lake but the trees are too close for that. Creek? Big hill? It also would appear that it is either a two story or the back of the house is raised. Maybe it is just a hill. Can’t be the Woodlands…the setting feels to secluded. Magnolia probably was still waaaaay too far out back in the 80s. Conroe area is kinda trashy, and this is a nice house. Could be non-lakefront property near Lake Conroe, but again, the seclusion would indicate otherwise. Tomball doesn’t seem right either, flat as a pancake out there. Time for the maps…where do we have hills and pine trees, and possibly a water feature on the fringes of 1980s Houston civlization? Kingwood comes to mind, but it isn’t terribly hilly. Further up the road we have Splendora but that seems kinda far out. Panning back to the west it would appear that there’s creeks in them thar hills to the north and west of Tomball proper.

Congratulations! A dozen cupcakes from Crave Cupcakes in Uptown Park will soon be on their way to you! (Thanks to Crave Cupcakes for sponsoring the prize this week.)

Also in the neighborhood: runners-up elnina, CK, and Jessica1. Great work!

A special commendation goes to Cynthia, who knew the home, wrote in with the listing, and then posted this deceptive guess:

Oh, I love it! It reminds me of my grandparents’ patio home built in the 80s out near Briar Forest and the Beltway…all that modernism mixed with wood and stone but more traditional, yet stylish, furniture.

BUT this is what they dreamed of owning. It’s definitely bigger than a townhome, with more greenery, and requires much more $$$.

I’m guessing my grandparents’ dream house is more inside the beltway along Memorial Dr between Voss and Gessner.

Did that knock you off track?

And where is this place?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/30/09 1:34pm

Sweet! The winner of this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game will receive a dozen cupcakes from Crave Cupcakes in Uptown Park, a $36 value. Never been to Uptown Park? Don’t think you can find 1151-06 Uptown Park Blvd.? No problem: The prize comes with free delivery (which normally costs $10-$45, depending on your Zip Code). If you just know you’re gonna win this week, you can pick from Crave Cupcakes’ PDF menu online.

All you’ve gotta do to win, of course, is guess the location of the pictured home. If more than one of you guesses the correct neighborhood, the prize will go to the player who gave the best explanation for the guess.

If you already know this home, or if you come across it or the listing while we’re playing the game, don’t ruin the fun for everyone else by blurting out the answer. Instead, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing. Then enter your own super crafty and deceptive incorrect guess, just to throw the other players off. If you do this well, you’ll earn special recognition when we announce the winner. And if no one guesses the actual neighborhood, you could win the prize!

Ready to poke around the place?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/25/09 9:39pm

Who won that membership in the Rice Design Alliance?

Someone who made one of these guesses in this week’s game: Meyerland (there were 2 of them), Oak Forest, Garden Oaks (2 as well), Spring Branch, “somewhere along Brays Bayou near the Loop,” “the south side of Braeswood between Stella Link and Kirby,” Highland Village, Linkwood, Westbury, Spring Oaks, Timbergrove Manor, Lazybrook, Glenbrook Valley (2), Conroe, on Lake Conroe, “out Westpark/Richmond in the Dairy Ashford area,” Bellaire, “somewhere within a quarter mile of Westview from Gessner to Antoine,” Willow Meadows (2), Afton Oaks, Memorial Plaza, Rustling Oaks, Braes Heights, Quail Valley, Westbury, “Old Kingwood/Porter area,” “somewhere south of Bellaire Blvd. very close to Pershing Middle School,” Southside Place, Memorial Bend (2), Pearland, Alvin, Lake Jackson, “Memorial Spring Branch side, right outside of Beltway 8,” Spring Valley, Westbury, “adjacent to Pirates Beach and Galveston Country Club, on Lake Como, on Christmas Point,” or Maplewood.

Vincent, Em, and marmer all had guesses in the neighborhood. But our judges said this entry came with the best explanation:

No one’s said Memorial Bend yet? Really? Gotta go with that because of the interior brick and the triangular bedroom clerestory. Also the big picture window and the high window in the dining area, and the open floor plan. They’re trying to fight the good fight against the McMansions.

Vincent and Em are the runners-up. And marmer wins a one-year individual membership in the RDA. Congratulations!

Now where are we?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/23/09 4:20pm

What are we playing for this week? A one-year individual membership in the Rice Design Alliance! Do you want to win?

All you need to do is guess the location of this home. If you guess correctly, you win the prize! If more than one person guesses the location correctly, the player who gave the best explanation for the guess wins.

If you know this home already — or if you come across it or its listing while we’re playing the game — please don’t blurt out the answer and ruin the fun for everyone. Instead, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing, so it’s clear what you’re doing. Then, enter an incorrect guess, but give a convincing argument for it. If you do this well, you’ll earn special recognition when the answer is revealed. And if nobody guesses the right answer, you could win the prize!

What does the rest of the house look like?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/18/09 6:33pm

Guess it didn’t really matter too much that there’s no prize to give out to the winner of this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game. None of you would have won it anyway.

Weren’t there enough guesses? There were 2 of you who guessed Meyerland, 2 who guessed Willowbend, 2 for Bellaire, 2 for Clear Lake, and 2 for Oak Forest. Not to mention Wilchester, “somewhere between Wirt and Blalock,” “around Timmons Lane,” River Oaks, Garden Oaks, Southgate, Gulf Freeway Oaks, Pearland, Alief, Braeburn Valley West, “the Pasadena Arts & Crafts fair, booths 1-30,” “off Briar Forest, west of Beltway 8, east of Dairy Ashford,” “between Westheimer, Briar Forest, Dairy Ashford, and Kirkwood,” Glenbrook Valley, Linkwood, “Hunter’s Valley/Hunter’s Wood or Prestonwood or Lakewood or Heatherwood or something with the word wood in it,” “in smelling distance of Bellaire/Beltway 8 Chinatown,” on Fountainview, north of Memorial between Wilcrest and Kirkwood, Greenwood Forest, Hunter’s Creek Village, Timbergrove Manor, Lazybrook, “close to Traders Village or Old Towne Spring,” Spring, Maplewood, Oakbrook subdivision in Clear Lake, Briarmeadow, Copperfield, “the Kempwood/Gessner area,” Flower Mound, Garden Villas, Inwood Forest, “somewhere west of Oak Forest in the Antoine/Pinemont area,” Tanglewood, “that area below the old Rosewood Hospital,” Spring Branch, and “Augusta/Bering Drive area just north of San Felipe.”

Plenty of highly entertaining comments this week. But . . . no dice?

How about we roll with this one — since really, it’s the best we got:

i would guess this is actually an 80’s build somewhere in nw houston, maybe in hunter’s valley/hunter’s wood or preston wood or lakewood or heatherwood or something with the word wood in it.

Congratulations, brandy c, you’re this week’s winner!

But really, where is this place?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/16/09 2:56pm

What have we here? Another Neighborhood Guessing Game! You in?

You know the rules: Just guess the location of the pictured home. If you guess correctly, you win. If more than one person guesses the correct neighborhood, the player whose guess came with the best explanation wins.

If you know this house already, or if you come across it or its listing while we’re playing, don’t ruin the game for everyone else by posting the answer. Instead, have some fun with it! First, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing. Then post an incorrect guess just to throw the other players off. If you do a good job with it, you’ll get special recognition when the winner is announced. And if nobody gets the answer, you could be declared the winner!

What are we playing for this time? Glory. Prizes will be back next week. (Sponsorship slots are still available!)

This week’s property was suggested by a Swamplot reader. Want to see the rest of the photos? You know you do.

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/11/09 2:03pm

Who won that Rice Design Alliance membership?

Four of you guessed the Champions area in this week’s game. We also had 2 votes each for Quail Valley, Kingwood, and Sweetwater. The rest of your guesses? Atascocita, Huntwick Forest, Champion Forest, Meyerland, one of the Kickerillo neighborhoods off I-10, The Woodlands, Northgate, Sugar Creek, “Conroe-ish,” Sugar Land, Pearland, Green Tee Terrace, Newport in Crosby, Friendswood, near the Hearthstone Country Club, Deerwood Country Club, and Clear Lake Country Club, near Terry Hershey Park, Plano, Hilton Head, and Ashford Forest.

The winner is Beth, for catching . . .

The place has a Woodlandsesque sort of feel to it, spaciousness, pine trees, golf course, large cement pond….

Congratulations, Beth! You’ve won a one-year individual membership in the RDA!

Special shout-outs this week to skillful deceivers Cynthia and Porchman, both of whom wrote in with the actual listing, then helped lead other players astray. Cynthia’s entry:

Totally 70s redo (but kept the wood accents in a lot of rooms for dead give away). Big house and lot with pool in an older suburb near or on golf course…Sugar Land! Let’s say Sweetwater!

and Porchman’s:

Well, if you’re going to do the whole earth tone thang in updating your 70’s home, why not throw in a bit of camouflage, too? To complete, they should string mosquito netting off the beams in the family room. I’m going to say Champions area either near a golf course or maybe adjacent to one of those creeks in that area.

Come home to The Woodlands, everyone!

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/09/09 7:19pm

If it’s Tuesday, this must be the Neighborhood Guessing Game! Can you figure out where this home is?

Here’s the prize we’re playing for this week: a one-year individual membership in the Rice Design Alliance, sponsored by . . . the Rice Design Alliance!

And here’s how you can win: Enter your guess of the home’s location in the comments below. If you guess correctly, you win! Unless someone else has the same guess, in which case whichever player gave the best explanation for the guess wins. Got it?

If you already know this home, or if you come across it or its listing while we’re playing the game, there are special rules for you. First of all, don’t spill the beans and mess up the game for everyone else. Instead, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing, so it’s clear what you’re up to. Then enter an incorrect guess, but make it sound convincing — just to throw the other players off track. If you do this well, you’ll get special recognition for your efforts. And if nobody guesses the actual neighborhood, you could win the prize!

Ready to play? On your marks . . . get set . . . look at these pics!

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/04/09 4:53pm

Who’s the winner of that steak dinner at the new Fleming’s in Town & Country Village?

This week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game sparked quite a few guesses. We had “on the south side of Memorial Drive, west of Westcott… whatever that subdivision is named,” Memorial Park, West University (2 guesses), Southside Place, Crestwood, Glencove, Afton Oaks between Banbury Place and Vossdale, the northern half of Afton Oaks, “the denser part of River Oaks around Shepherd and San Felipe,” Southampton (3), Memorial, Camp Logan (2), River Oaks, River Oaks just north of Westheimer near River Oaks Park, “the 77019 zip around Dunlavy, Waugh and West Gray area,” North Braeswood, “this weird little dense pocket west of north of the Museum of Fine Arts, south of 59 and west of Montrose,” Warwick Square, West River Oaks near San Felipe, “the area just south of the River Oaks Shopping Center — something like Haddon or Welch or Vermont Street,” “on Tiel/Troon on the east edge of River Oaks,” “between 610, N. Post Oak, Memorial, & I-10,” Braes Heights, Ayrshire, Bellaire, “Memorial / Eldridge / Highway 6 area,” Bryker Woods, Meyerland, “West U/Rice Village area,” Hudson Oaks, “somewhere near the Houston Country Club, say around the San Felipe-Potomac-Bering area,” “Briargrove or an adjacent ‘hood, maybe around Nantucket or Potomac,” “Briargrove in between Briargrove and Potomac south of San Felipe and north of Westheimer,” Tanglewood, Tanglewilde, north of Rice, “that strange little pocket east of 610 & above Post Oak,” “Briar Hollow Lane-ish,” Southgate, Westhaven Estates, West Lane Place, around Sage near Buffalo Bayou, “River Oaks – south of Ella and north of Westheimer – perhaps near Rebecca Meyer Park,” “inside Beltway 8, west of downtown, north of Hwy. 90 and not in any of Houston’s original wards,” “north of Stude Park, east of Studemont,” Mid Lane, Hunters Creek Village, Tealwood, Sandalwood, The Woodlands, near Voss and Beinhorn.

The prize goes to the commenter who submitted this entry:

I agree with the river oaks guesses.
This house is huge, and everything in there says they have money to burn.
BUT, Big but though, it does appear to be on a small lot, so probably south of San Felipe and far away from ostentatious Kirby.
And its obvious they have several young kids, so I’m gonna say the area of River Oaks just north of westheimer, near River Oaks Park.

And later added:

The kitchen bay window appears to mirror the master bedroom bay window…which appear to be on either side of the living room window with the huge columns. So i no longer think this is a small lot… i think its a wide lot and this house uses up every available bit of it. And eventhough it looks from the exposed aggregate walk in the back that they might have swimming pool, the back yard doesnt appear very deep at all.

That’s close enough. Congratulations, Mike M! You just won dinner for 4 at Fleming’s Prime Steak House and Wine Bar in Town & Country Village! You’ll be receiving a gift certificate worth $200, sponsored by the restaurant.

Mike M just barely beat out mstark, who gets our (entirely steak-free) runner-up award for this guess:

Wow, the staging of this home is amazing! I especially love the screeching sculpture next to the toilet… I’d throw my hands up at that decor too. Vessel sinks seem like an early attempt at the trend. Lot’s of tacky art, huge slightly dated house, I’m going to WAG West River Oaks, near San Felipe.

What about all those other River Oaks guesses? They were close, but not quite close enough . . .

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

06/02/09 11:02am

The sponsor of the prize for this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game is the recently opened Fleming’s Prime Steak House and Wine Bar in Town & Country Village. The winner of this week’s game will receive a dinner for 4 at the restaurant, in the form of a gift certificate worth $200!

Now that you know what’s at stake, are you ready to play? The rules are the same as ever: Just tell us where the pictured home is located. If you guess correctly, you win! If more than one person guesses the correct neighborhood, the player who gave the best explanation for the guess wins the prize.

Of course, your guess must be a guess. If you already know this home, or if you happen upon the home or listing while the game is being played, do not post the answer and ruin the game for all the other steak-hungry players. Instead, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing, so we know that you know what you know. Then, enter an incorrect guess, but make it sound extremely plausible. If you do this well enough to trick other players, you’ll get special recognition when the winner is announced. And if nobody guesses the correct neighborhood, you could win the prize!

Let’s see how this place lays out, then . . .

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

05/28/09 11:51pm

Time to award another Rice Design Alliance membership!

Your guesses for this week’s game: the Memorial Park area, Crestwood, Camp Logan, “just south of Rice off of Greenbriar,” “somewhere off Briar Forest,” Sugar Land (3 guesses), off Gessner, off Gessner north of Westheimer, the Gessner and Westheimer area, Copperfield, “north of Memorial, on Crestwood or Arnot,” Sugar Creek (2 guesses), Venetian Estates, Kingwood, Champions, Champion Forest, Bellaire, Hudson Oaks, Hudson Bend, “near U of H around MacGregor and Cullen,” “the Stella Link and Braeswood area,” Stonehenge, Memorial just inside the Beltway, Greatwood, Alief, the Fondren and Braeswood area south of Bissonnet but north of Bellfort, south Fondren, Fondren Southwest, Northampton, West University, League City, Country Village, Lakeside Place, off Memorial between Eldridge and Highway 6, Clear Lake, Fort Bend County, Riverstone, Piney Point Village, Estates of Highland Creek, “Spring Branch area south of I-10,” “near the intersection of Dairy Ashford and Memorial, north of Briar Forest,” Bellaire, Meyerland, Friendswood, “west side,” Boulevard Oaks, Walden on Lake Conroe, and Afton Oaks.

This week’s home was suggested independently for the contest by two Swamplot readers. And the winner is . . . elnina, for this sharp entry:

Bit to big entrance for a townhouse, the lay out, the kitchen and nice parquet flooring make me think about a mid 70’s two story house somewhere north of Houston. Good size back yard with nice swimming pool.
No rugs or carpet – is the owner allergic to it or just prefer bare floors? Not sure about the flooring upstairs. Is that concrete? I will behave and not comment the lady of the house shoe fetish room…
I agree with “marmer”, there must be interesting view from the second floor: a park, golf course or perhaps a lake? I guess north, northwest – maybe Champions?

Congratulations, elnina! You’ve won a one-year individual membership in the Rice Design Alliance — and earned extra credit for identifying the owner’s allergies.

A very close second place finish goes to recent NGG champion David W, for this guess:

This one is from the super 70’s – parquet floor abounds, flagstone fireplace, I bet all those windows facing the pool had vertical blinds back in the day. Stained cabinets in the kitchen painted white, dramatic entry with stairwell and upstairs hallway open to the to the living room with vaulted ceiling. Is that a beam I see coming down to the left of the fireplace? That was stained dark when this place was built and recently painted along with the kitchen. The laugh room doesn’t match – converted garage maybe? Tile downstairs says near water or maybe a golf course? Doesn’t seem too big, inexpensive range in the kitchen. Hmm. My first guess would be Sugar Creek or maybe Venetian Estates but it seems like they would have spent more on the updates if it was in Sugar Creek and it seems too new for Venetian Estates. I am going with the north side of town instead. Lots of 70’s construction in Kingwood and Champions Forest – given the modest updates and contempo style I bet this one is in one of those neighborhoods. . . .

Now about those shoes . . . Do they look a little familiar?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

05/26/09 6:36pm

In this week’s round, we’re playing for a one-year individual membership in the Rice Design Alliance. Yep, the same prize nobody won last week. Will somebody walk away with it this time?

You should know the rules by now: Guess the location of the pictured home by studying the photos. If you name the right neighborhood, you win! If more than one person names the neighborhood, the player who provided the best explanation for the guess wins that RDA membership.

And you should know the special conditions too: If you already know this property — or if you come across it while we’re playing — please don’t ruin the game for everyone else by posting the answer. Instead, send an email to Swamplot with a link to the listing. Then post an incorrect guess, but make it sound reasonable with some sweet-sounding explanation. If you do this well, you’ll win special recognition when we announce the answer — and if nobody guesses the actual neighborhood, you could win the prize!

Time to push open the trick bookcase . . . and have a look around:

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY