Urban Gothic

When I mentioned my distaste for the industrial look in my "no grey" entry, I forgot to mention that I *do* like the look of urban decay, especially when decorated with contrasting lavish fabrics and furniture. I like the texture and dark personality of industrial wastelands . . . I just don't like that clean, sterilized, industrial new home look/feel. If there is depth and texture, a sort of industrial gothic thing would be swell for my dream house, if appropriately located in a city, not plopped ridiculously in the midst of a beautiful forest or field.

Urban Gothic

When I mentioned my distaste for the industrial look in my "no grey" entry, I forgot to mention that I *do* like the look of urban decay, especially when decorated with contrasting lavish fabrics and furniture. I like the texture and dark personality of industrial wastelands . . . I just don't like that clean, sterilized, industrial new home look/feel. If there is depth and texture, a sort of industrial gothic thing would be swell for my dream house, if appropriately located in a city, not plopped ridiculously in the midst of a beautiful forest or field.

ADD

One of the reasons I'd prefer to have many small rooms connected mostly by hallways and sealed off by doors, is that I have attention deficit disorder. Many small rooms prevents clutter from one room spilling into another . . . with an open floor plan and lots of visibility from one room to another, there is more visual chaos and it's just exhausting for me. I derive focus and comfort from being in a limited, manageable space. Openness winds up feeling overwhelming for me. Sure I'd like a nice big expansive room or two in my dream house, but mostly I want to escape into smaller spaces. Even better if those rooms contain smaller cubbyholes, corners, and closets. Very nice.

ADD

One of the reasons I'd prefer to have many small rooms connected mostly by hallways and sealed off by doors, is that I have attention deficit disorder. Many small rooms prevents clutter from one room spilling into another . . . with an open floor plan and lots of visibility from one room to another, there is more visual chaos and it's just exhausting for me. I derive focus and comfort from being in a limited, manageable space. Openness winds up feeling overwhelming for me. Sure I'd like a nice big expansive room or two in my dream house, but mostly I want to escape into smaller spaces. Even better if those rooms contain smaller cubbyholes, corners, and closets. Very nice.

At Least Three Stories

Presuming that my dream house contains a lot of space, and that this is a perfect world (hence the word "dream" as opposed to "nightmare") . . . I'd like to conserve on the footprint and build UP. For one thing it's spookier. For another it's kinder, environmentally. For another I get a feeling of security being ABOVE ground level. My dream house has a basement too with livable space, so make that four stories. Yum.

At Least Three Stories

Presuming that my dream house contains a lot of space, and that this is a perfect world (hence the word "dream" as opposed to "nightmare") . . . I'd like to conserve on the footprint and build UP. For one thing it's spookier. For another it's kinder, environmentally. For another I get a feeling of security being ABOVE ground level. My dream house has a basement too with livable space, so make that four stories. Yum.

No Grey in my Dream House

Surfing through the architects' sites listed on the AIA Seattle - E-Source Center, there is so much industrial austerity dominating even the residential designs, it's so . . . cold. Sure, some of it is striking, at times even whimsical . . . but not fanciful, and certainly not hospitable.



I saw a home on one of these sites built near Mount Si which is very near where I grew up and it drove home the dissonance; here in western Washington where I have spent all of my 31 years, it's wet. It's green. It's damp. It's beautiful. There should be no grey. No concrete blocks. No grey no grey no grey. We have that overhead quite often. Maybe it's just that I think grey is fucking cold and a home should be a respite from the cold. But grey has no place in my dream house. Capisce?



How come no one is building Tim Burton-like structures instead of these boxes of flim-flam? They're so linear and unwelcoming. Curves, please and fewer right angles!