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Director Griffin Dunne hired Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch of Roman and Williams to design a house that looked like it could be home for generations of witches. After the movie came out, we all flipped for it and wanted to know where the house was. Perhaps the best thing about Coupeville is the sense of magic and possibility that permeates the town. As you walk through the streets, you’ll feel like anything is possible, and you might even find yourself drawn to the idea of casting a few spells of your own. The staircase on the right of this photo leads up to the lighthouse tower. The top photo was taken from a scene in the movie, while the photo below is on an empty set.
Location Types
It's a beautiful Victorian home built especially for the movie, and it has dazzled fans for years. So much so that it has caused those to obsess over ways to best replicate elements of the home in their own space. The movie is based on Alice Hoffman’s 1995 novel and brought to life by director Griffin Dunne.
The Town Scenes
I Rewatched 'Practical Magic' As An Adult, & It's Flawed But Still Fun - Scary Mommy
I Rewatched 'Practical Magic' As An Adult, & It's Flawed But Still Fun.
Posted: Wed, 19 Oct 2022 07:00:00 GMT [source]
But it couldn’t look haunted It had to be clean and white, not fading and cobwebbed.” I’m so glad she chose to make it pretty and not scary. One side of the home is bordered by a road, while the other side features a picturesque water-side view. I love the name of the road the house is on in the movie, Magnolia Street. I guess they wanted it to be located in the southern part of the United States. For the final scene where the Owens family ‘jump off the roof and fly’, everyone in the town was invited to attend the set in Halloween costumes and be a part of the scene.
Practical Magic Locations
This is because the filmmakers couldn’t find a home that was perfect for the film in the location they wanted. In this view from the movie, it’s easy to see why this kitchen was such a huge hit and why so many folks have copied it for their own homes. We see a farmhouse sink, a charming plate rack, wonderful storage for glassware/dishes inside lighted cabinets and dark wood floors contrasting against creamy white cabinetry. Though this movie was filmed in 1998, this look is still very popular even today. No matter what time of year you visit Coupeville, you can take a Practical Magic walking tour highlighting some of the movie's most recognizable settings.
Alongside its excellent balance of light and dark, the Owens' house also does a great job of balancing styles. This is seen most notably in its large communal spaces like the kitchen. The kitchen's design was important, particularly for this film and its characters, with decisions about its execution going as far as picking the perfect stove. "The AGA is almost like a shrine," said Robin Standefer, production designer of the film, in a 1998 interview in Victoria Magazine. "This is the place where they do their work; it's where they place the cauldron." For fans who have grown up dreaming about living in a witchy victorian house complete with a greenhouse for growing all the herbs they need for their spells, the blueprints for the set design are available online.
Brutalist Movement: Utilitarian Modernism in the History of Interior Design + Architecture
Meanwhile Gillian, witnessing the same incident, cannot wait to fall in love. When the girls are teens, Gillian elopes with her boyfriend and leaves for Los Angeles. Before Gillian departs, she and Sally make a blood spell to always be faithful to one another. In a small Massachusetts town, the Owens family have been regarded with suspicion for over three centuries due to their ancestor Maria Owens, who survived an attempted execution for witchcraft. Heartbroken when the father of her unborn child never returned to her, Maria cast a spell to prevent herself from ever falling in love again. The spell developed into a curse upon Maria's descendants, dooming any man an Owens woman loves.
Practical Magic House: The Magical Victorian Home
Bullock and Kidman play sisters Sally and Gillian Owens, descended from a long line of witches. Raised by their aunts after their parents' death from a family curse, the sisters were taught the uses of practical magic as they grew up. As adults, Sally and Gillian must use their magic to destroy the evil spirit of Gillian's abusive boyfriend before it kills them. To obtain permission to build on county park land, the filmmakers had to agree to raise the house on a platform. Because of the spot's Native American heritage, the county parks and recreation commission would not allow any digging into the soil. The studio also had to promise to dismantle the structure as soon as shooting was complete, and this, indeed, happened the day after filming wrapped.
The glass scale inspired by a 15th-century Italian design found in the conservatory was made by artist Allison Berger just for the movie. At some point during the filming of Practical Magic, the conservatory was taken apart in LA. It was brought to Washington to be rebuilt and added to the house for filming the exterior scenes. I read somewhere, the townsfolk agreed to allow the buildings in town be painted white for the movie. Once the movie was completed, the buildings were all repainted back to their original color. I can’t really say I liked the movie that much, parts of it were a little too morbid for me, but it was definitely worth watching to see the interiors of the house.
Sally falls in love again scene in Practical Magic
Their concerns centered on street closures in the historic waterfront area and expected traffic backups, threatening loss of business. While restaurants and inns clearly would benefit from the flood of studio folk and tourists, many retailers were not so happy and complained about the low compensation offered by the studio -- $30 a day. "We're very disenchanted," said Phyllis Jackson of Ye Kitchen Shoppe, turning a phrase ("Practical Magic Welcome Falls Short ...").
The boutique shop run by Bullock's character is featured throughout the movie, with shots of both the interior and exterior in the final cut. Like most storefronts along Front Street, movie creators painted the building white and returned it to its original color after the movie wrapped. ‘Practical Magic’ was Robin and Stephen’s second film with director Griffin Dunne. It was so real, in fact, that after the movie came out they got a phone call from Barbra Streisand.
From the ornate woodwork and intricate moldings to the tall bay windows and sweeping staircase, the home's design pays homage to the elegance of the Victorian era. Beautiful vaulted ceilings are seen in the attic and upstairs section of the Owens' home in "Practical Magic" and are an iconic element within Victorian architecture. Vaulted ceilings were representative of wealth during this period since they contrasted against smaller homes with low ceilings, as per Bindley Hardware Co. With the Owens' house using plenty of dark wood accents, more ceiling height means larger windows and more light, finessing that balance once again. Though we can't all have dramatic ceilings, creating the illusion is easier than you think. Today's design era leans heavily into doing what makes you happy, and for those looking to bring this movie's set into their daily world, spicing it up with dramatic archways is a good step.
We've already noted that the "Practical Magic" house embraces wood and craftsmanship through its Gothic-esque accents, but it has more than just dark wood details. Certain areas of the home, such as the upstairs bedrooms and the foyer, portray Gothic Revival elements like pointed or lifted archways. These elements add a dramatic essence and remind you that you are standing in the ancestral home of a magically powerful family. The sweeping curves are beautiful, but most people assume they are only displayed on centuries-old churches or historical buildings. Surprisingly, these striking details are oh-so fun to bring into one's own home. Transport yourself back to the enchanting world of the Owens sisters with a closer look at the beloved cult classic film, Practical Magic, which captured our hearts in 1998.
The Owens' home utilizes pendant lighting throughout the house, strategically creating spots of warm light and balancing its light-and-dark aesthetic. According to Fat Shack Vintage, pendent lighting was popular in the 17th and 18th centuries, especially in the French Provincial aesthetic, which was made for the wealthy gentry living in the countryside. We’re waiting to see if any lucky fans are able to make a functional dupe of the home, but it’s also just fun daydream fodder to look through the blueprints and imagine what it would be like. Unsurprisingly, there are elements in Practical Magic that are different from the book.
The entry has lots of stained woodwork that is so typical of most historic Victorian homes. Hookedonhouses.net reports that the team received a purchase enquiry for the house after filming. They also agreed to remove the structure as soon as shooting was over.
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