A beach house once owned by actress and chanteuse Judy Garland has hit the market. Garland purchased the home in the late 1940’s, and presumably used it as a guest house, and as a private getaway from the pressures of work and stardom.

Located in Malibu, on Las Tunas Beach, the little Cape Cod-style house is designed to merge very naturally with the laid-back atmosphere of the neighborhood and coastline. The current owners are asking $3.695 million for the property; it last changed hands in 2011, for $1.475 million.

The house’s exterior greets a streetside passerby with a steeply-pitched roofline, a gated entry, and cottagey ornaments: extended joists, mixed window shapes, a concise pergola, a shed dormer. Beachside, the home is expressed more freely, and many of the same effects are used to set the mood of a convincing mid-century Northeast-coastal summer escape.

The home was extensively renovated earlier in the decade, and looks brisk and fresh-faced as a result. Interiors are bright and very open in the wake of the work, with the living area presenting an especially potent form of charm: a second-floor gallery extending from the staircase, and looking down toward the fireplace.

Open-trussed ceiling design is employed regularly throughout to drive home the style, with washed-out hardwood floors, brick, and a little tile providing thematic support. The whitewash makes for a blazing effect in daylight, placing the house’s 1,728 square feet of living space in a less confining context.

There are three bedrooms and 2.5 baths throughout; the master is an unassuming joy, featuring its own waterfront deck. Front and back decks offer a great deal of outdoor space for enjoying the home’s setting, its raison d’etre.

Aside from her most famous role as Dorothy, consummate entertainer Garland starred in dozens of other films for MGM, including hit musicals ‘Meet Me in St. Louis’ and ‘The Easter Parade.’