Sunday, November 22, 2009

Sketching A Sustainable Dream

There are some adventures which are just still a dream, but the only way to make that dream happen is to clarify your intentions and follow every avenue of possibility towards making it happen. I make creative lists, and now I make drawings of what I want too! Right now I am looking for land to purchase (with or without a structure already on it) so that I can begin where I left off a long time ago, in building my own eco & sustainable homestead to live out a peaceful and natural life on. The above pic is my drawing of what I want to happen, I got the idea of drawing when a old neighbor from back in Marshall NC told me once she looked for her farm for almost a year and couldnt find anything she liked, she finally sat down one day and drew an exact picture of what this dream farm would look like - she drew in small details like spring fed concrete watering hole for her horses and hills rolling a certain way, barns in a specific place. After she made the drawing it was in almost no time she pulled up to her future farm, which was an exact replica of every detail of her drawing.
Another thing I am loving to do, is take the online photos of all the places that woo me on the TInY HOuSes BlOg, and save them in a folder for inspiration! Below are some of my most favorites I wanted to share with ya'll... to see tons more like these, go here.
I am attracted to natural wood, whether it's flat, round, logs, cordwood, or a shack - if it's made with wood in a natural rustic way I fall in love. Being in a forest setting, these structures make more sense- they blend in better and hopefully attract wildlife. :)
On the TiNy HOuSes BlOg, there are so many hand built homes that are on trucks or made from horse trailors and other wild imaginative objects. This one below is an antique/vintage photo which is why it holds that true gypsy style and energy.
And of course- here is my dream hobbit cabin, which looks not only like heaven to me but also not too hard to construct.
Now we get to interiors of tiny eco homes- which make good use of natural materials, space, and re-use.
In the pic above I love the wooden counter top, I built an exact counter top like this in my favorite house I ever bought - and would love to do it again! The bedroom pic below gets me because of the feeling of a loft, yet full private room to sleep in- it is very well designed.
Now, the cob house kitchen below freaking rocks, basically cause a real tree with bits of branches in tack was used to hang things off of and i lovvvvvve the micro sized kitchen! I am not into cabinets, everything I have is useful most days and i like having little open shelves like in this micro kitchen.
And last... quirky construction, so quirky I don't even comprehend - but all those warm looking wood slats on the walls, floor and ceiling. Mmmmmm, COmE On DReAM HoME, I am ready for you!!!!
XoXo

11 comments:

  1. You need to leave space in the drawing for your Harrier jet and monster truck.

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  2. Your dream house drawing is similar to Cajun-style houses found in South Louisiana...always wood, always raised, and always with that wonderful porch. I love the knotty pine interior, the wooden counter...I don't like all these granite counter tops...you also make me dream...

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  3. Erik - Oh yes, cause hopefully my future holds a man friend who happens to be a champion monster truck rally racer. Also I need lots of room to put broken down cars up on blocks, right?! lol

    Kittie- I totally thought the same thing after I drew it, I looked at it and thought "this is so Louisiana!" But i do love those swampy wooden houses, and even more I love the houses in the swamps built right on the water.
    BTW- I am not a fan of granite counters either- especially since they are emitting radon or some gas into people's homes. Some natural materials are better left out the house.
    Glad to spread the dream feeling :)

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  4. Love the sketching dream activity! Being a dream lover and liver myself, this is right up my alley/path.

    When we began building our tiny wheeled house we drew it in the sand on a beach when we were like ... in nowhere land, on our way to learning how to build tiny homes.

    We filled old notebooks (with pages that didn't make me dizzy) with pictures and cut out craftpaper models of our vardo; coming very close to what we now live in.

    Dreams do come true in hunks or bits in my experience. Yours will come true using materials that fit you to a "E" (eco-exactly :)) We have found that no two MCSers can tolerate or likes the same materials/look/feel. I love wood, and yet the tannins and terpine in pine is like me trying to drink again ... which yikes, I can't do!

    If you haven't seen The Hermitage Blog, Rima and Tui have built and live in a kind of hobbit-ish home that is so fun to visit & be inspired.

    Yippee for your dream!!

    Mokihana

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  5. I love your house pics. I was just looking at some similar homes in Park City, Utah. I think ski resorts tend to have a lot of cabin-like houses and lofts. I really don't know why anyone would want a big house.... to clean. Any more than 2 bathrooms and I would rather live in a tent.

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  6. Hey Mokihana! I love that ya'll sketched it in the sand first - how awesome to have a dream come to reality beginning with something as simple as that!
    And i LOVE the hermitage blog, it's now my favorite blog - her art is so beautiful and it really inspires me to work more with my creative talents the way i should be doing. Not only that- but the traveling tiny house they built is incredible!

    Jeneflower- I am with you, i dont even have one functioning bathroom where i live right now - to see a toilet flush is a luxury!!! lol 2 bathrooms would be unreal. I would like my house to be under 600 SQ ft for sure - some people say "thats way too small" but i have lived in it before and it was fine, maybe to big?

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  7. Hey Leslie,
    Here's a link (cut and tape) to a post we did a while back, when we were thinking we could build mobile 'birdcages'for others. I'm not updating the blog anymore but the post is kinda cool for the processing taking dream to the touchable thing you might enjoy.
    http://mobilebirdcage.blogspot.com/2009/06/cage-canaries-art-good-for-earth.html
    xo Mokihana

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  8. Love seeing your dreams sketched out...our family had similars growing up and I have my whole collection in the puter now...I used to work on curved glass building site and seem to gravitate to the curves...alot of indigenous people used that...this year I hope to build a temporary in my woods...I have a spot I go to and have pruned out...so much fun to play and dream...thank Leslie for sharing.

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  10. where did you find the last pict?

    thanks

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