Describe/Draw Your Dream Home

[Polemarch]

I owned a condo for almost 7 years, and I never painted. Drywall. No art, no decorations, no adornment. Function won out. There was a big leather sectional, a 52 inch TV, and wall-embedded 5.1. I never invested in the aesthetic features of my condo because it was never more than temporary to me. I didn't see the value in investing in and decorating a glorified apartment.

I'm not much for drawing, but here's what I want some day:

Land: I want about an acre and a half on the fringe of the forest. A large base, flat enough for a significant floor level, but with uneven grades on the edges. The forest creeps in, as the lot clings to the edge of civilization and the edge of uncivilization.

Location: Near enough to a city to have access when I need it, but far enough away to escape the light pollution and ambient human activity. I want to live somewhere you can't accidentally wind up. I want to see stars at night. Closing eyes on a porch swing in a garden on the back of the property and hearing no human voices. Looking deep into a mass of forest, knowing that I can step outside this dimension if I walk far enough beyond the trees.

Composition: Modernist, with elements of wood. I hate brick with a passion. Brick comes from an industrial, grimy past, and it has no place in my world. Let every surface be the bridge between sleek and oak.

Layout: Minimal aspect presented to the road. As you park in the driveway, you can't see the front door or any windows, just the garage in front of you. Walking to the left of the driveway down a stone-bordered path, you wind around the garage and approach the front door. By turning twice to reach it, the experience insulates you from the world you're leaving and welcomes you to the tranquility of my sanctuary. Come on in.

The front room is small - not a coat room or an anteroom exactly, but small enough to mask the significant footprint of the home. There are two ways out of the room; one leads to a hallway which goes to the bedrooms/office, and the other leads to a large social room. The floor plan from this point forward is relatively open, such that you can see the kitchen, as well as a large sweeping view of the forest through large floor to ceiling windows. This room faces north, so it gets a bit of sun in the mornings and afternoons, but doesn't ever get excessively bright or warm.

There's one room off to the left - kind of a bridge between the social area and the bedrooms/office section of the house - that's solely dedicated to meditation. I don't necessarily mean that in the strictest sense - I'd see it as a place for people to be able to sit and face one another (circular/oval), listen to good music, and commune with each other. We don't do that enough - always stimulation and entertainment. But this room is designed to be for self-expression, honesty, and healing.

Finishes/Furnishings: The kitchen will be modern. Stainless steel, a large island, plenty of space for creativity. I've never really been much for cooking, but I really want a fully stocked, state of the art kitchen.

The rest of the furnishings will blend minimalism and class. Nothing hokey or loud. The warmth will be created by the personality of the choices, not by trying too hard. Several different methods/styles of lighting, in order to create different moods for different situations. Outstanding sound system wired through the house for parties.

Summary: I want my home to feel like a sanctuary. When people come there, they need to feel welcome and provided for. But for me, I want to feel like I can shut the world off and be safe there.

[gator]

I find it interesting that any time I think about a dreamhome or some such space in my mind I seem to prioritise functional work space. Specifically I want a space that has lots of natural light, bookshelves and space to display curios, as well as a large, well lit table that I can use for various things. Open concept. Also, house plants. A shop or shed to use tools in. Access to garden for growing veggies.

Beyond that... a good and convenient location, walking distance from basic amenities, like groceries and transit. Urban, but not super high density, with lots of green space. Pleasant and/or non-annoying neighbours.

I tend not to care much about beautiful bedrooms and kitchens. Functional's good enough. Bedrooms are for parking oneself for several hours at night, not for spending any significant leisure time in, unless it's sex and then presumably that would take my attention away from the decor. Beautiful kitchens are nice in theory but not necessary for me because I'm such a lazy and mediocre cook.

I don't have much use for livingrooms because I don't watch TV, entertain guests or lounge around. That space is only useful to me insofar as I can use it to work on projects.

[Hephaestus]

At least 40 acres. I know what 5 acres looks like and it's too bloody small for all the things I'd want to have. Seriously, how the hell could you get a small hydro-electric dam on a 5 acre plot and still have a place for the house, the forge, the workshop, and the range?

I want a fortress. Not a large fortress, but a fortress compound nonetheless. It will be far enough from civilization that I generally don't have to deal with people or people noise unless I choose to. Close enough that I can get services and do my shopping as needed, but still, far enough that I'll think about it before I do.

My primary dwelling would be a 3 story tower with a crenelated battlement and a basement level with a hidden exit out the back of a cliff. The tower would be faced with stone, the walls would be concrete with radiant heat piping throughout. The interior would in places be faced with stone and other places, wood.

The outbuildings would consist of an LP forge, an a machine shop. Another stretch of land would be set aside as an archery range. I'd have some fruit trees and some land for gardening. The hydro electric dam would be based on a nearby waterfall. The core acreage of the household would be surrounded by a 15 foot tall stone and concrete wall with walkways mounted along the interior. The hydro-electric dam would be secured with chain link, and booby traps.

Obviously, I'm going to have a moat beyond the wall, and a drawbridge to cross the moat. The gate needn't be a portcullis. I'd be pleased with a solid iron reinforced wooden gate.

The kitchen will be modern an commercial grade. I'd want a large flat heating element to work with for maximum flexibility, in addition to an auxiliary gas range for when I wanted to use a wok or roast marshmallows or something. I'd want an oven large enough to cook something on a spit. I'd also want lots of counterspace. Gobs of it, in something easy to clean. The floor needs to have good drainage and couple drains so I can just hose everything down when I want to clean up the kitchen.

The interior crafting room would have lots of natural light as well as good lighting throughout. Room for many sturdy table and storage racks. A murphy bed would be handy for those nights I just didn't want to leave, but needed a nap.

The top floor would be the bedroom and master bath. The bathroom would be set up with similar sensibilities to the kitchen in that every surface can simply be hosed down and the dirt can go down a central drain.

The bedroom would have a queen bed, not because I need one, but because it's so much harder to find high threadcount sheets in a twin. I might make do with a full. Either way, the mattress would be made of latex. I don't need a bed frame or 'foundation'. It's fine on the floor. I'm less likely to lose things under it.

No need for closets in the bedroom, they just take up space.

Each level would have a couple secret passages for my own amusement/escape/ambush of interlopers. Similarly, there would be numerous hidden compartments stashed around the buildings.

One last ideal touch: natural hot spring. Something that provides both a pool to relax in, and the heated water for the radiant heating system.

[mondschein]

The more time I spend living in a house, the more I want to live in a small apartment with only the essential stuff. I want it to be minimal and look minimal, a place I can clean myself so I don't have to care about maids and gardeners. I simply can't stand having a strange person in my house all the time.
A balcony to grow herbs would be nice.
White walls and floors, well insulated.
I want to live close to a park in a safe city, so I can relax outside when I want to.

[jigglypuff]

i think i'm really adaptable / not picky when it comes to setting and location, although my only real preference is that i don't live in a neighborhood with an alarming rate of violent crime. i've even thought about moving to a rural area so i could grow and raise my own food with little restrictions.

idk, it's hard to choose between kitschy and "fancy" for me. i love vintage kitschy art and would love my home to be filled with it, but i also like shit like colored glass and i think up these amazing combos that'd be amazing, like black marble with gold accents, that i'd like to feature somewhere in the home. my dream bathroom would definitely be green, though, and would probably feature a green glass sink.

i'd want all this stuff i can't afford. i'd want a room to house my record collection and my personal library. for this room, i'd like to paint the walls myself. i was thinking something jungle-themed, something fun to paint that would create a totally polarizing experience for visitors.

most definitely my dream home would have an extra room with a great big window and a couple big desks that i'd make into my studio. all the equipment and materials would already be there, for free. lol.

my bedroom would have a good bed and the walls would be covered with illustration and design that catches my eye so i can just incubate with all that stuff while i'm dreaming.

the backyard would consist of an adequately sized lawn that's good for free-ranging chickens and dirt plots for gardening and fruit trees. i really, really want my own yard.

[Mxx]

I'd have to go with an asian-inspired houseboat, equipped with modern comforts and technology. It has always been important to me to be close to a body of water, and I prefer a smaller living space with ample vistas, preferably close to nature.

[kari]

The only reason I want to be rich is so I can design and build my dream house. My brother is an architect so he can help me fix it up.


SECOND FLOOR

> The Library - Whole room is padded heavily like an insane asylum, save for two large bookshelves on either side, filled with my favourite books. There are grooves and holes on the bookshelves so you can climb it to reach a book at the top. (It wont topple over because it is heavily screwed in.) Books are arranged first by language, then by fiction/non-fiction, then by genre, and then by colour. There are large plushie pillows everywhere in the form of rabbits and cats. There are squishy small fluff sofas lying around. There is room on a part of the bookshelf for speakers filled with Andrew Bird, Erik Satie, and Owen Pallett songs. The room is illuminated at the top by a light that hangs from the ceiling which mimics natural sunlight that is bright but not overpowering when reading. There are warm-white fairy lights sprinkled here and there. To enter the library, you must crawl through a small round secret passage, resembling a rabbit's burrow.

> Bedroom - Just a large mattress in the middle of the room. Low tables will surround either side of the mattress. (This is how my current room exists now and I like it.) There will be pots filled with colourful Coleus plants, and succulents lining the room. There will be a passage on one wall, which is a huge slide that leads into the backyard, so I can reach my plants.

> Art room - two opposite walls are painted Baker-Miller pink, and the other walls are painted beige. The room is very messy with at least three easels of varying sizes. There are a few drawings on the walls. There are paintings everywhere. This room is huge. The light is bright in this room and everything is clear. This room is directly above the toilet on the first floor - there is a hole passage on the edge of this room where you can access the toilet via a ladder. To access this hole, you must lift up the carpet.

FIRST FLOOR

> Rat rooms - a series of 6 small rooms with low-ceiling height. Each room contains a pair of rats that are to be subjects to (humane) pavlovian conditioning experiments. Each room has different atmospheres that are determined by the music played, the colours of the walls, the smells I designate, and my behaviour in that room.

> Pet room - There will be two fish tanks in one corner of the room, one tank with black and grey fish only, and the other tank with colourful fish. Next to those will be a jellyfish tank. Reptiles and spiders will be in another corner. I will let the rats out regularly in this room and the cats and dogs will be kind enough to tolerate that. There will be a very large and very soft dog and cat corner that will be cleaned regularly. Lots of cuddles will occur in that room. One of the walls in this room will be completely clear, and the adjoining room would be a very nice play-area for the dogs and cats... I can't imagine it just yet but I know the basic idea.

> Exhibition room - My art + art I buy will go up in this room. The walls will be covered with it. There will be a few sculptures hanging from the ceiling like swords of damascus... The room is well-lit. There is a contraption at the foot of the room entrance, designed so that humans will have to climb up through into the room, while animals cannot enter at all.

> Bathroom - With both shower and bathtub, I don't care too much. I guess possibly a vanity table for makeup and hair and stuff. The adjoining room is the bathroom.

> Toilet - in a different room to the bathroom. You can climb a ladder on the side of the wall up into the art room.

> Kitchen - I don't know, just a normal kitchen. I don't care too much.

OUTSIDE

> Front Yard - Flowers. FLOWERS EVERYWHERE. No flowers in pots, all in plots. There will be a few small nice-looking trees. A huge hedge separates my land and public land.

> Back Yard - Beautiful vibrant flowers along the perimeter, and depending on how big the garden is, a vegetable + fruit crop growing in the middle. There is HUGE vertical succulent garden lying against the house, and a compost heap somewhere in this. There should be a slide connecting the bedroom on the second floor window to the back yard, for easy access to my plants.

Other stuff:
- Intercom throughout whole house
- Hallways and ante-rooms will have monkey-bars installed at the appropriate height for me in case I feel like travelling by hand.
- Air conditioning and extremely awesome ventilation.
- Staircase has shelves
- NO POOL

[Utisz]

... but the size of a house.

[Madrigal]

Uh. I have to give this some thought. I don't care about houses anymore. I lived in one or two "dream houses" and I guess I don't really think I need one. Something I always wanted, though, is a fireman's pole right outside my bedroom door. (Assuming there's more than one floor.) So I can just slide down to the living room in a snap.

It's all that comes to mind, my one great frustration.

[pensive_pilgrim]

A fairly large kitchen with a large attached pantry, gas appliances, stainless steel furnishings and good drainage. Space for a large refrigerator. A dining room with space for a big table but also a cozy dining nook somewhere with padded benches and a small window right over the table. For the whole house, windows that are large with sturdy shutters that can be barred. Heavy doors, brick walls. A large, sturdy basement with a furnace, a big freezer and a storage cellar. An insulated attic. Half an acre would be plenty of space outside, but I'd want it to be near mountains and forest and the coast but also no more than an hour's drive from the nearest urban metro area.