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Clueless star Alicia Silverstone is known as one of Hollywood’s most prominent eco warriors — regularly touting the benefits of her vegan diet and her desire to ensure that her son, Bear, enjoys the healthiest lifestyle possible.
And nowhere is that ethos more apparent than inside the Los Angeles home that the 49-year-old actor purchased at the tender age of 19 and has spent the past 30 years transforming into a clean and green wonderland, complete with every sustainable feature imaginable.
Silverstone previously opened the doors to the property in a wide-ranging interview with People magazine, in which she explained how she first happened upon what would end up being her forever home and the many upgrades she has made to it, many of which were prompted by the birth of her son.
Perched on a winding road in the Hollywood Hills, the actor admitted that the home was incredibly overgrown when she viewed it for the first time — joking that it was total “madness.” However, she revealed that this is exactly what drew her to it, recalling that it felt like something out of a Disney movie. “It felt like ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.’ It was all woods and overgrown and madness, and it had a wild feeling. It was perfect,” the A-lister revealed.
Clueless star Alicia Silverstone (seen in the hit 1995 movie) purchased her first home less than a year after the film was released — and has spent the past 30 years turning it into an eco-friendly sanctuary. CBS via Getty Images
Silverstone was still a teenager when she purchased the “overgrown” wonderland — less than a year after her cult movie, “Clueless,” was released.
Property records show that she paid just $852,000 (US$597,000) for the four-bedroom dwelling in June 1996, which is the equivalent of spending around $1.86m (US$1.3m) today.
However, she has since invested a great amount of time, energy, and money into making multiple eco-conscious renovations, slowly turning it into her dream abode, which she has admitted she has “no reason” to ever leave.
“I’ve been here for a long time. And I’ve touched every little bit of it so much,” she explained to People. “I’ve put so much time and energy and love and stress in it. I have no reason to leave.”
Showing off her favourite parts of her property, she began by highlighting her edible garden, which she has created to be as environmentally-friendly as possible. She noted that she carefully considers her impact on the world around her whenever she makes any kind of change to the space.
The 49-year-old actor regularly showcases her home on social media — and has previously admitted that she has no plans to ever move out. Instagram/Alicia Silverstone
“I’m extremely conscious of the choices I make, so that my impact is as little as possible and I tread as lightly on the earth as I can. I take a lot of pride in that,” she explained.
“It just really makes me happy knowing that I don’t have to sacrifice beauty here. I don’t have to have things not be lovely in order to be green.”
And that’s not the only area of her home that is earth-conscious. Silverstone has also installed solar panels on the roof, and a water system funnels wastewater from the sink and showers, which she can then use to water her garden.
“When I take a bath or a shower or wash my hands in the sink, all of that water is feeding my fruit trees,” she said.
Moving into her kitchen, the fridge is filled to the brim with plant-based snacks. Meanwhile, this space has also been outfitted with a water filtration system.
While many of the changes have been carried out slowly, the arrival of Silverstone’s son, Bear, now 14, whom she shares with her ex-husband, musician Christopher Jarecki, prompted her to take a much closer look at the way she was living and ultimately carry out a much more extensive overhaul of her home.
She replaced many of the materials and the paint with non-toxic wood and colours, while filling the property with vintage furniture that she sources from antique stores and online marketplaces like eBay.
Silverstone says she tries to ensure any item she brings into her home is either vintage or eco-friendly, shying away from anything that might use toxic materials. Instagram/Alicia Silverstone
“Bear inspired me to take care of all the things that I needed to do, that I was supposed to do when I was 19,” she revealed.
That’s not to say that Silverstone’s home is devoid of character. In fact, she has ensured that everything she brings into the home adds a unique element, with images and videos previously shared on her Instagram account revealing a stunning gallery wall in the living room displaying quirky, one-of-a-kind pieces.
One of her favourite places to shop for furniture, she shared, is the Round Top Antiques Fair in Texas, which she visits with her close friend — and Magnolia Network star — Amy Neunsinger. She explained that she tries to source pieces that are “gently used,” but will opt for newly made sustainable items if she can’t source a preloved version of what she’s looking for.
She regularly shows off her second-hand finds on social media, flaunting several decor pieces that she bought on eBay, including a large pestle and mortar that she uses as a decor piece, as well as a stone-and-wood structure that she uses to hold her toilet paper.
She purchased the home for less than $850,000 (US$600,000) in 1996. It is now estimated to be worth well over $2 million. Google Earth
“It’s important to me to be a conscious consumer,” she shared in the July 2024 clip. “In our house, we are plant based, we buy everything used, [and] if it’s not that, it’s eco-friendly.”
Though Silverstone tries her utmost to be respectful of her natural surroundings — she admitted to People that this hasn’t always been the easiest thing to achieve, revealing that she’s actually had to cover her entire property in a fine netting to protect it from woodpeckers.
Having reclad the dwelling in reclaimed barn wood, she found that her home was regularly coming under attack from the birds, which would hammer holes in the facade.
”You know how much I love animals, but I strongly considered how I could take them out. I did everything to try to make these guys go away. I had shiny things hanging, fake owls around, crazy sound machines. Finally, the solution was the mesh,” she said.
Still, the actor does everything she can to bring the outdoors into her home, adding enormous windows and walls of glass to the property so that she can enjoy a seamless transition between the interior and exterior spaces.
Silverstone grows her own fruit and vegetables in her garden, which she and her son, Bear, tend to together. Instagram/Alicia Silverstone
Silverstone has created a kind of fairytale escape in the gardens of her home, where she has planting beds filled with flowers, vegetables, and fruit, including cumquats. She also has an outdoor kitchen, complete with a built-in grill and a Big Green Egg cooker.
Another major advantage to her property is its proximity to her former spouse’s home — meaning that their son can spend ample time with both of his parents, something that Silverstone said they have always been eager to encourage.
Silverstone also has an outdoor kitchen at her home, which is equipped with a grill and a Big Green Egg cooker. Instagram/Alicia Silverstone
In 2020, she revealed to Today.com that Bear loves having the option of where he spends his time, explaining that her son was happy to go back and forth between the two dwellings.
“We ask Bear where he wants to be,” she explained. “But then I started to wonder if that was too much pressure. So, I checked in with him and he said, ‘I love that I get to decide.’ We both have different perks!”
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