Seven years in the making, this uncompromising seaside mansion in Palos Verdes rises as a striking ... [ ] departure from the wave of ‘cookie-cutter’ architecture that has swept across Los Angeles.

If you had to describe what typifies L.A. architecture, what would you say? Is it the white-walled, red-tile-roof Spanish Colonial style that springs to mind? The neo-Georgian mansions of Bel Air or the old-school pomp and glamor of Hollywood Regency? Or maybe you feel it’s Mid-century Modern, Art Deco or even the futuristic post-war experiment known as Googie that has had the greatest impact on the Californian city’s streetscape.

In this vast, sprawling melting pot of a metropolis, it’s as hard to agree on a definitive architectural vernacular as it is to meet a waiter who doesn’t harbor movie-star ambitions. Yet there’s one style, argues Lea Porter, one of LA’s most prolific realtors (she has closed more than $400m worth of real estate deals in the last 2.5 years), that now dominates all levels of the market up to $70m mansions. And that’s cookie cutter.

Even though prices in the best-known neighborhoods where A-listers congregate are now “outrageously expensive,” says Porter, citing average values of $3,000 per square foot, “bland bling” rules the roost. Developers, she says, have jumped on the bandwagon and are building identikit homes of anonymous uniformity. “If you didn’t know your own address, you could easily walk into the house next door and not realize it’s not yours,” says Porter, who sighs at the proliferation of “IKEA-modern farmhouses” across the city.

Green hills, blue views: from the elevated position of Palos Verdes, views of the Queen's Necklace ... [ ] coastline are rivaled only by those found in Malibu.

Now imagine the screech of a needle being dragged across vinyl, then swivel 180 degrees to think of the exact opposite. First head out of the........

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