Sometimes, we want to make our own places to live that are just as individual as our professional careers.  Artist/entrepreneur John Holmes did just that at his compound in Penngrove, in Sonoma County, but he hasn't had much luck selling it.

The basics: four bedrooms, four baths, plus one half-bath and a studio in a compound of structures on 43 acres, asking $5,300,000. Not so basic: The main house has one bedroom and one and one-half baths while the others (also with baths) are arranged independently around the property, all of which is on a hillside covered in old oaks and coastal meadow. The interior spaces are big, recalling loft and urban industrial spaces built in the 20th Century; cement floors, industrial metal windows and trussed ceilings, while other details are artisanal, like the cast-bronze branch across the door and the immense chimney. And the kitchen looks ready for some serious cooking. Read more...