Eighteen months ago, Jim and Janice Hall were at a crossroads. Life had thrown some obstacles into their paths, and they were trying to figure out their next move. They were frequent visitors to New Orleans, where Jim Hall’s son lives and Janice Hall’s mother had honeymooned not once but twice.
“Something about that left me feeling I had a symbiosis for the place. Like we had some kind of destiny,” said Janice Hall, a native of Chicago.
Just inside the front door, Janice Hall, an interior designer, created a vertical focal point of natural wooden beadboard inset with a vertical infrared fireplace.
PHOTO BY Jeff StroutIn 2015, the couple had moved to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, from Palm Springs, California, where Janice Hall, an author, photographer, interior designer and competitive tennis player, had owned a series of art galleries. They continued to maintain a second home in Southern California.
One afternoon in 2023, they were headed back to the coast after a visit to New Orleans.
“We always took I-610 and Highway 90 back to the coast,” Janice Hall said, “but one day Jim said, ‘Let’s take Lakeshore Drive back, and see where it leads.’”
As Janice Hall was traveling down Fleur de Lis Drive toward Allen Toussaint Drive, she turned a couple of streets too soon.
“And there it was, the cutest little, teeny, tiny house ever! Something about it just spoke to me,” she said.
She immediately called the listing agent, who came right over.
Janice Hall and her beloved miniature Labradoodle Pete relax on their rear patio.
PHOTO BY Jeff StroutThough tidy and well-maintained, the circa 1963, 1,300-square-foot ranch house was entirely too small for Jim Hall’s tastes. “He sat in the car while I went to check it out,” said Janice Hall.
"I fell in love with the original terrazzo floors and natural wood trim in the house,” she added.
Janice Hall enticed her husband to take a look, to consider the possibilities given the property’s sprawling rear yard and the al fresco lifestyle he enjoyed.
Her instincts were right. Jim Hall — a retired environmental executive and former NASCAR driver — was sold on the yard. The couple made a contingent offer on the house, based on their ability to sell their house on the Gulf Coast, which was not even on the market.
The previous homeowner carefully restored the home’s kitchen after post-Hurricane Katrina flooding nearly destroyed the home.
PHOTO BY Jeff Strout“The Realtor told me the house had been in the same family since it had been built. It was located just a couple of blocks from where the 17th Street Canal had breached the levee following Hurricane Katrina," Janice Hall said. "The house had been nearly destroyed, but instead of demolishing it, the family had lovingly rebuilt it, preserving the floors in the process.
"It was the niece of the original owner who was selling the house, and they were being very particular about who they would sell the house to. I wrote her a letter accompanying our offer, telling her how the house would perfectly serve us and inviting her to come visit anytime, should she be willing to sell us the house.”
Their Gulf Coast home sold in three weeks. The house in Southern California was soon to follow. They planned to make the little house in Lakeview their only home.
“When I went to the closing, (the owner) was late," Janice Hall said. "When she arrived, she told me she had stopped at the cemetery on her way to tell her aunt, ‘We have found the right buyer.'
Janice Hall’s living room features a trio of Mark Rothko posters, a reflection of her enthusiasm for all things associated with the mid-century aesthetic.
PHOTO BY Jeff Strout“And with that, that wrong turn I made turned out to be the right one.”
New life for an old house
Since the Halls have owned the blond brick, midcentury house, they have imposed a Southern California sensibility upon it. Porch furniture in a midcentury style, as well as a collection of tropical plants, frame a flat panel door with a trio of horizontal glass panes for a breezy feel.
The art in the Hall home is a collection of New Orleans-centric pieces from local artists and those reflective of mid-century style.
PHOTO BY Jeff StroutWithin, the pale terrazzo floors are topped with soft, sand-colored, low-pile shag rugs. Janice Hall’s passions for midcentury art and design are evident. A trio of Mark Rothko art prints hangs on the wall behind a contemporary, sand-colored sofa, with a turntable and a collection of LPs within arm’s reach. The space is illuminated by an atomic-style floor lamp on one side and a woven rattan floor lamp on the other.
Before the sofa sits a glass and chrome cocktail table topped with 1960s art books and a truly groovy ceramic ashtray.
“I don’t smoke,” said Janice Hall, “but I love arty ashtrays. And this table is the only piece I have carried everywhere throughout my life. We had to get all new furniture to fit the house."
The outdoor dining table is illuminated by an Atomic Sputnik-style lamp.
PHOTO BY Jeff StroutA small room, located just inside the front of the covered carport, was once a mudroom; now it is “The Museum.” It holds an Illinois license plate that was refashioned into a guitar. Music posters feature notable artists such as Jimi Hendrix and Billie Holiday, and there's a framed album cover of "The Final Tour" by Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Holding a place of honor are a trio of treasured, framed Dinah Washington albums that once belonged to Hall’s mother and were played to Hall when she was a child.
There are more stacks of LPs, audio equipment, art ashtrays and collectible snow globes picked up on travels.
California living
Today, the back of the house has been opened up for easy access to the rear yard. A paver patio serves as a conversation area at the rear of the home’s large, deep yard, where Adirondack chairs are grouped around a propane-burning fire pit.
Just outside of the back door leading from the house is a paved and covered porch outfitted with midcentury-style outdoor furnishings, colorful art, tropical plants and a sleek black rattan dining set illuminated by an atomic “sputnik” style chandelier.
Mid-century era atomic-style stars adore the wall behind a petite bar in the Halls’ kitchen.
PHOTO BY Jeff StroutLife in the neighborhood
“I would not live anywhere else,” said Hall. “We have the best neighbors ever. It only takes 10 to 15 minutes to get anywhere from here. I get to walk to the Lakefront with my dog for sunsets. I love the liveliness of Harrison Avenue. I love Hibernia Park, which is dedicated to the Irish who lost their lives digging the New Basin Canal. I am 100% Irish. And I love this little house.
“It was a total accident that we found it. We took a wrong turn and everything just fell together.”
