The House That Walt Built
*Disclosure: I received an all expenses paid trip to Los Angeles for the coverage of several press events for Disney. All opinions are 100% my own.
Touring Walt Disney’s house in Los Angeles was something that I never in a million years thought I would be doing. But it was a magical night in Los Angeles when we were allowed into the Woking Way House that the Walt Disney Family lived in. Once we stepped onto the cobblestone drive that lead up to the house the Disney magic began, it was a breathtaking view as well as a step back into time. The house is nestled into the Los Feliz neighborhood and was the perfect home for the Disney’s while in Los Angeles.
The front door as you see here was our entryway to get a glimpse into the amazing home of a Russian film maker who understands the importance of preserving this architectural masterpiece. Ms. Paula Sigman Lowery, who is a Disney Historian gave us a glimpse of amazing Disney history, family moments as well as cherished photos of Walt Disney himself as well as his family. Being in the same house that Walt Disney once stood in was nothing short of miraculous. Words can’t explain the magic, feeling and fairy tale design and wonderful atmosphere of this magical night. The front door reminded me of the doorway into the Snow White and Seven Dwarfs cabin in the woods, which even made it more magical that in a way he did bring part of his home with him.
Once we walked into the entry way we were greeted with even more grandeur and beauty from the architectural elements from Medieval France, the Mediterranean, England Tudor and of course fairy tale design from Walt Disney himself. The house feels as if you are back in the 1930’s and is simply gorgeous from the entryway to the back yard area. We were whisked through the house and shown lots of great photos of Walt Disney himself in various parts of the house. All of the above pictures are original artwork, stained glass of the Disney home that was built in 1932. It only cost the Disney family $50,000 to build this amazing 5 bedroom house and he employed hundreds each day during the Great Depression as his way to help those in need.
Walking up the stairs was just as magical as walking in the front door! Walt enjoyed being a Dad in this house and he was involved in everything from driving them to school, to music and dance lessons. They as parents decided they wanted their children to have a normal childhood growing up. One of my favorite stories that we were told was the following story.
“Diane was one day at school and she came back to her dad that night and she said, dad, are you Walt Disney? They had, they had a very quiet, private life.” I thought it was very magical that they didn’t realize he was the man behind Walt Disney the company. In the lower right hand picture you can see Walt reading to his girls which is something he loved to do.
The House That Walt Built served as a home to his family but as well as a storyboard to some of the great classics. For example, the hat box in Lady and The Tramp was a Christmas present to Lillian And Lilly’s not real happy at Walt with this because she wants to pick out her own hats, right? But, you know, she takes the lid off and there is this beautiful dog. Now, where have you seen that before? Lady and the Tramp. Comes right out of Walt Disney’s life. So, again, they live in the house for many, many years. So, like every family, you change the environment to suit the style.
As we walked up the stairs we saw Christmas Tree Pointe as the girls called it, but Walt called it the Juliet Balcony. Because their rooms were down the hall, it was the first thing they saw on Christmas morning. It was an absolutely beautiful view of the living room, and you could feel the excitement of years gone by of the girls enjoying Christmas in this magical house.
After viewing the bedrooms we were lead to Walt’s exercise room which later was converted to a toy room for the girls. But when we arrived we saw a special treat that was just for us. We saw the costumes from Maleficent that Elle Fanning and Angelina Jolie wore and they were just as amazing as the entire house was. The reason they were here was because even though the Disney’s moved out of this house in the 1950’s, Sleeping Beauty and Maleficent both were brought to “life” in this house. There were so many of the unique things in the films that reminded me of the house, Walt Disney was truly a genius.
After all of this, it really couldn’t get much better right? Wrong, we were lead downstairs and out to the back yard to enjoy cocktails and of course the beauty of the LA skyline and the adorable playhouse Walt had built for his girls on Christmas morning. The playhouse of course is of course a Snow White play house that Walt had built for his girls. Walt had it built for the girls over Christmas. He had his studio carpenters come out and it is lit, it is electrical, it is plumbed and it has a telephone in it.
The story goes like this, so the next morning, the girls are out there and the phone rings. And it’s Santa asking them how they liked the house. Of course, Santa kind of sounded like dad, but. When they lived here that was,the pool was not there. It was a lawn because the property continued down and they had a pool house and a badminton court. The entire house experience was simply fabulous and words can’t describe the beauty and grandeur of this magificent property. I am truly blessed to have been in this amazing house, or as I like to call it “The House That Walt Built.”
Sleeping Beauty Diamond Edition can be picked up in stores everywhere on October 7th. Maleficent will also be available on November 4th!!
*Disclosure: I received an all expenses paid trip to Los Angeles for the coverage of several press events for Disney. All opinions are 100% my own.
Sandra Watts says
It’s a beautiful house and only in my dreams.
Jenn says
Such beautiful photos! Great post – so glad we shared such a great memory together!
Diane Holland says
I’m jealous!!! I would love to see this magical place!
Addi says
This house looks so cool! Plus, it has amazing views!
Olivia Douglass says
This is beautiful!! What a great opportunity that you had to go there. I’d love to go visit.
Stefanie says
What a beautiful home! I love all the special details that are still preserved!
Crystal says
I have loved seeing all the photos of the Walt Disney home. The property is just gorgeous.
Dawn says
Wonder if the current owner is in need of a house sitter? 😉 I wouldn’t mind.
Heidi Gray says
I would definitely be game for that!! Maybe we could apply!