Wednesday, August 3, 2011

My Dream Home

Every few years I get the itch to move.  Since I've lived in my current home for 5.5 years, I've definitely got the "it's time to move" feeling.  I like my current house and it works well for my family.  My neighborhood is great. There are kids everywhere and my girls are always running to and from friends' houses.  I don't feel like I need a bigger or better house, just something different.  Moving is not a reality right now, especially not moving into a dream home, but we all like to dream right?

I've thought a lot about what kind of home I would like.  The beach is one of my favorite places.  Should I choose something on the beach?  I have lived in France and fell in love with the old country houses in the South of France.  Maybe one of those? 





Nope, that's not it.  Like many of you, family is the thing that is most important to me.  Thus, my dream home would be close to my family in Minnesota, where I grew up.  Here are some homes in Minnesota that I am drawn to:


This house is located just a few blocks from my parents.  I drove by it everyday on my way to the Mall of America and my job at Abercrombie & Fitch about 20 years ago!


This house has some similarities to the house where I grew up and my parents  still live...all brick, traditional, probably built in the 1930's:




This one might be my absolute favorite.  And, bonus!, it is on the same street where my uncle lives:

I would definitely need a large grassy yard with outdoor entertaining areas.  Perhaps an indoor/outdoor kind of room with seating and a fireplace.  Here's the back.  It's a good start, but I would need to add some sort of outdoor room and maybe a pool as lying by a pool is probably my all time favorite activity.  I love the curved windows and tile roof too :

A pool like this would be nice along with the little pergola on the left:

Houston Southern Estate traditional landscape


And, just for fun, here's the "Father of the Bride" house...love the house and the movie:



I wouldn't want to live in an isolated location.  I like being able to be outside and talk to my neighbors, let the kids play with other neighborhood friends, and even walk to get an ice cream cone, a cafe, or a bookstore.  I like older, established neighborhoods with lots of leafy green trees, pretty gardens and architecturally diverse homes.  Most of the homes I picked here are located around one of Minneapolis's many lakes.  The lakes are great places to run, bike, and just hang out.


So, all of these houses are traditional and OLD.  While I love older homes, Big K and I are not very handy.  I don't want a house that we have to be continually fixing.  Plus, I'm scared of old basements. There are rooms in my parent's basement that I'm still too scared to go in as an adult.  And, old houses don't have many of the amenities I like in modern houses, such a large closets and bathrooms and open floor plans. Thus, I might need a new home designed to look old, like this one:
Lots of old-fashioned molding and architectural details, but features an open floor plan.  This home was recently featured on Home Stories A to Z, if you are interested in learning more about it.

If you've read this blog for more than a day, you might know that I love color and pattern.  While I like the curb appeal of a traditional home, traditional decorating is not for me.  But, I think classic homes are a perfect canvas for fun, bright decor, such as this:


Aqua and pink, one of my favorite combos!  In fact, all of the interiors in this home are pretty amazing.  Check it out at House of Turquoise.

Here's what I would NOT do.  Way to traditional, but again I love the curved windows and style of the fireplace:


I hope you liked my little dream home post.  I have some great guest posters lined up for the next few Wednesdays, so be sure to check back.  I also have room for more dream home guest posters.  Just send me an email if you are interested.

Here's a fun blog I stumbled upon while wasting time doing important internet research for this post.  If you like looking at homes, go check it out.  She even has a little section on homes featured in movies, such as the Father of the Bride house pictured above.



11 comments:

Aubrey {All Things Bright and Beautiful} said...

LOVE the dream home...I'm all about the traditional brick homes...and I'm kinda obsessing over those pink ikat chairs...AMAZING. It's so fun to think about "the perfect house"...especially when I don't have to actually bankroll it (c;

birdie to be said...

YES! These are sooo dreamy! I love the interior with the pink chairs!

Cassie Bustamante said...

i loooove the tudor- and also the light interior with pops of pink is beautiful!

Holly Gruszka said...

I absolutely love the charm of older homes. So neat to see what your dream homes look like. I also got to thinking about growing up and the houses we would pass day after day - almost seems like that's what shapes your preference as you get older. Great idea you had doing this!

A room with a view said...

There is something about a brick house and colonial architecture on the whole that makes one feel at home without even stepping inside. Also love when it is surrounded by greenery.

Thomas said...

very nice design of the home i like this blog....
Architect Plans

Randolph Coleson said...

I can't find the exact words to describe your dream home. But nonetheless, it's great. It also reminded me of my ideal home and how much I want to live in it. But it is impossible for me right now.

Richard Boles said...

That's a big dream house you got there. Just looking at it makes me want to live there forever. Well, who wouldn't? But I just realized that living in that kind of house can be hard. It would be difficult to maintain both the interior and exterior of the house.

Richard Boles

Christian Traughber said...

I like the fourth house. It looks so classy, like the houses in Netherlands during the turn of the 19th century. The only thing missing is a giant windmill, haha. But all of these houses are a joy to live in.

Kevin Noel said...

Your neighborhood really has a lot of amazing houses! They are absolutely gorgeous! If I’ll be the one to drive around your hometown, I’ll find it hard not to take my eyes away from all of the houses I’ll get to pass by. Yes, we all can dream, but, I’m you sure can make your dream come true. I know, in time, you’ll finally be able to build the house you’ve been dreaming of.

Kevin Noel

Calvin said...

Those are really beautiful houses, Suzy. I would want to drive around that very tranquil locality just to view those really wonderful houses. I love it. And, everyone wants to be in a serene and calm neighborhood. I’m sure, in time, you’ll get to finally build your dream house in your relaxing dream location.

Calvin Mordarski