Celebrating Your Favorite Stories of 2025

The holiday season is here again—and with it, our favorite tradition: celebrating the stories you loved most this year. It's time to reveal the three most popular articles of 2025. 

1    Sears Houses in the Concrete Jungle -- Before frame kits ruled the catalogs, Sears sold concrete block homes—even the machines to make the blocks! Few survive today, but their story is solid. Heh heh. 

2    Pure Research -- From the 1920s to the 1940s, Pure Oil built charming Tudor-style gas stations across America. With blue tile roofs and stone walls, these “English cottages” turned everyday fill-ups into something special. 

3    A Sears Sherburne That Escaped Its Fate -- This South Shore home was down to its last chance — until a restoration brought the Sears Sherburne back to life. A true comeback story! 

We can’t wait to share even more Sears home discoveries with you in 2026. Thanks for being part of our community. Happy Holidays! 

For the Sears house connection to "A Christmas Story", click here!

Christmas Cheer in a Sears Maplewood

Step inside Brooke King‑LaBreck’s Sears Maplewood in Homewood, where twinkly lights and holiday cheer fill every corner. Built around 1933, her home is an authenticated Sears kit house — and today, it’s dressed for Christmas.

All photos courtesy of Brooke King-LaBreck.

1707 Cedar Road, Homewood. That chimney is built for Santa!

 

Sears Maplewood.

The Sears Maplewood, introduced in 1930, was an English cottage kit house, later renamed the Ridgeland in 1933. It is one of Sears’ mid‑priced models, notable for its steep front gable, prominent chimney, and compact floor plan. The Maplewood was part of Sears’ “storybook cottage” trend in the 1930s that appealed to middle‑class buyers who wanted both charm and practicality.

Today, Homewood boasts three Maplewoods and one Ridgeland!

We step inside through the original front door sold by Sears.

This living room has seen more than 90 Christmases!

Hiding behind the tree is an original light fixture.

Brooke is an artist and graphic designer. She created the Homewood poster on the wall as a commission for the village.

In what looks to be one of the two upstairs bedrooms, Brooke's furry friends stay warm. 

 

Every room of Brooke’s Maplewood is filled with Christmas magic!

Brooke writes: "I have lived in this home since 2011.  My husband and I have 2 boys and whenever I feel we are cramped I remind myself it was a family of 5 before me!

"Our home is very lived in, loved, and a constant work in progress as we are able to tackle projects!"

A Storybook Sears Stratford in Homewood

1852 Sycamore, Homewood.

Sears Stratford.

The Sears Stratford was a rustic English bungalow sold from 1930 to 1933.  The exterior featured brick and stone, but because customers purchased their own brick and stone locally, Stratfords can be found in a variety of colors and finishes.

Designed by architect David S. Betcone, the Stratford had a storybook style that made it one of Sears’ most distinctive late-era homes.

This cream-and-brown Stratford is in the heart of Homewood. It has been thoughtfully remodeled, but still retains its vintage character.

The front vestibule and the coat closet. The arched front door is an original from Sears, as is the coat closet door. The small window next to the front door is in that closet.

The Stratford has a spacious 13'x17' living room with a cozy wood-burning fireplace. The recessed built-in bookcases were standard in this model. The triple front windows, which were originally full-length French doors, fill the space with light.  

The remodeled kitchen features quartz countertops and floating shelves. 

The doorway on the right leads to the basement stairs and the back porch. The area where the corner cupboard stands today was originally designed for the refrigerator.

A small hallway off the dining room leads to the two first-floor bedrooms.

This is the rear bedroom.

 Upstairs, the finished attic holds two additional bedrooms, one currently used as an office. 

A master bath was added as part of the renovation, complete with a floating vanity. 

The original owners, George and Ruth Jones, built the Stratford in 1931.  George was a general foreman at the Railway Express Agency in Chicago, a national package delivery service much like today's UPS.

George died in 1958, and Ruth continued to live in the house until at least 1978.

Homewood has more Sears homes to see!

• A Sears Verona once home to legendary geologist J. Harlen Bretz
• A Sears Lewiston still boasts original features and a rich family history
• A Sears Homestead and a Harris Brothers Hancock
  
  

Copyright Disclaimer: All photographs in this post (unless otherwise noted) are from real estate aggregate Redfin.com and are used in this post for the purposes of education, consistent with 17 USC §107.