This page is currently a place for us to brainstorm our ideal home, in time it will turn into a beautifully written discussion of Our Ideal Home, until then... it's mostly gibberish... so go read slashdot. The Ideal Home Photo Gallery contains all the pictures on this page and more. Each of the homes in these pictures have certain elements we like, and others we don't. So while some of them may seem like very different houses, their components combine to describe Our Ideal Home.

One Liners

0.25 to 0.50 acre
elements of the craftsman or arts & crafts style
builtins, lots of storage (books, games, linens, gardening)
hardwood floors
no formal dining
laundry / mud room
woodshop
game room
lifetime design (i.e. ability to convert some space to an inlaw suite)
covered outdoor decks / patios (survive portland's wet winters)
high quality interior detail
alcoves
varying ceiling heights
dog space (sleep, eat, baths, toy storage, etc)

Mary Lou and I have spent the last couple of years working on our home, going on new and remodeled home tours, looking at neighborhoods, reading books on design and architecture, and feel that we finally have a vague idea of what we would like in our permanent home. Put simply this home sits on a quiet 0.25 to 0.50 acre lot with mature trees and sacrifices quantity for quality

The Lot

Our current home is on a 0.24 acre lot with a view of an open square acre green. While we love the view, and the illusion of a larger lot, the lot is very narrow, and the house feels crammed between our neighbors. Ideally the house would sit back from the road a ways, still visible, but back far enough to have a front yard. There would be room on the sides for vehicle access, double gated fences, etc. If sufficiently wide, we'd love to be able to have a separate garage that I can use as a woodshop.

Location, Location, Location

One thing we love about our current home is its prime location. I'm 2.1 miles from work, less than a mile from both main freeways and very close to several shopping centers. If we decide to move, we'd like to find something with similar access. So far we know we like Cedar Hills, Cedar Mill, Oak Hills, Lost Park, West Slope, Raleigh Hills, and Vista Hills.

Access

The path you take to arrive at your house is a big contributor to a first impression of the home. Having just a few neighborhood roads or better yet, backgrounds and wooded streets, can help make the place feel more secluded and private. While we like the West Slope and Raleigh Hills neighborhoods, they are nessled between two highways which provide the only access. Driving past a dozen car dealerships, restauraunts, and gas stations makes these otherwise really nice neighborhoods feel much more urban than they really are. Housing north of highway 26, around 113th and 119th have gently wandering, hilly roads for access, lined with old evergreens and dotted with older homes on large lots - a much more appropriate entry to our ideal home.

MaryLou: Warm and welcoming, easily adaptable for large and small social groups. Especially interested in it being a welcome place for friends, would like different areas for different groups to gather.

The Home

We spend our work day in high tech commercial buildings and want to escape all that in our home. We prefer classic styles, such as the Craftsman Bungalow or Farmhouse. The house will make efficient use of space, leveraging each space to be as livable as possible; an alcove or a loft with a desk can serve as an office, rather than dedicating an entire room to that purpose. The guest room could double as a hobby/craft area, or possibly a library. The following is a partial list of features we have in mind:

References

• The Not So Big House by Sarah Susanka
• Creating the Not So Big House by Sarah Susanka
• Not So Big Solutions for Your Home by Sarah Susanka
• Craftsman Homes - Architecture and Furnishings of the American Arts and Crafts Movement by Gustav Stickley
• Shop Drawings for Craftsman Interiors by Robert W. Lang