Quaint? Countrified? Charming? Neglected? Atmospheric? Ramshackled?
Somebody's dream house?
Let's stand back to get the big picture...
If we could jack this baby up and slide some sort of axle between the wheels (assuming there's a matching set on the other side), we could have ourselves a genuine mobile home!
This one, on the other hand, is more of the downwardly mobile variety, wouldn't you say?
Haham that last one looks like ti is from Christchurch! Are you sure you didn't sneak into town, under the cover of darkness and snatch up a morsel of crumbs from our suburbs?
ReplyDeleteNow that would take a bit of work....but we're ready for a break...
ReplyDeleteI wish old buildings never had to fall down.
charming!!!
ReplyDeletewhere did you find these houses?!
Definitely dream houses, both !!!
ReplyDeleteLove the mobile home idea, would be a perfect platform for a travelling magic lantern show, no ?
Some folks might call these "fixer-uppers" or "burner-downers", but personally, I think they're lovely, just the way they are... (cue music from Billy Joel here...)
Gotta run, got a flight to catch...
:-)
Last one is certainly a bit bedraggled. But at least the chimney is still hanging in there.
ReplyDeleteSaj,
ReplyDeleteYou know if I ever showed up in Christchurch it would be on your doorstep, with bells on and a bottle in each hand! Nope, the 2nd handyman special is, I'm afraid, virtually in our own backyard...side yard, actually... as it's our very own. Nice to have a place for BrOwen to stay, should he ever sneak into my neck of the woods. You can stay here in the big house with me, though. Unless you prefer roughing it?
Gwen,
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh at your comment as I couldn't tell if your need for a break meant that taking on the renos of this place would qualify as such, after the extent of the work you did on your place. As in, anything in comparison would be a breeze. We own this derelict; had great intentions to resurrect it when we first acquired it, but time and money and clear vision didn't cooperate and she got away from us. There was lovely old curved staircase inside that I dreamed of tearing out and installing in our place, but it wouldn't have fit. I, too, hate to see old beauties go to rack and ruin--or to vinyl siding!
Roxana,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you appreciate their charm. The first building is on the raspberry u-pick grounds in the village I live in. I think they're using it as a storage shed. Wouldn't it make a sweet guest cottage, though? The second, more tumbling down house is next door to us...right across the yard and along a little path through the trees. We own it, us and the resident raccoons. Unfortunately, it's now too far gone to resurrect and the village won't let us burn it, so we're in a real quandary as what to do with it. Document its decay, I guess.
BrOwen,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea for a travelling Magic Lantern Show. I'll have to whip up a batch of snake oil to peddle at the stops along the way. Maybe we can find a few more and have a caravan of caravans! Circle the wagons around a campfire, etc.
Dream House #2 is the famed Raccoon Hotel next door where the Davy Crockett Suite is on permanent reserve for your much-anticipated visit. You'll be glad to know that the sun has returned so things will be a bit cozier over there than they have been of late (see previous post's reply to your comment).
Mme. DeFarge,
ReplyDeleteYou sound rather like my husband who steadfastly refused to tear the place down (yes, it's ours) because 3 of the walls were still straight and the chimney still standing tall. However, when he fell through the floor to the basement he began to whistle a different tune.
I would have said loaded with charisma, however.. it might take rather more than hammer and nails to regain its original charm.
ReplyDeleteWarden,
ReplyDeleteYes, hammer, nails and a cool million might just do the trick! I like to think that the patina of age adds to the charisma, personally speaking.
How bright and alight they must have been, how much joy to be within, such environment, such sight...how many stories they still hold...dream houses indeed. Please have you all a good Sunday.
ReplyDeleteoh, but see, i'd have two hammers and two buckets of nails and give it a try - on both - i love older places and have redone several myself - well, not quite as in need of TLC as the bottom one, but - i do love the charisma of the old ones - just something about them that speaks to me - beautiful shots, lady!
ReplyDeleteRobert,
ReplyDeleteYes, imagine the stories and histories these places have held within their walls. Ordinary lives moving through time experiencing all the hardships and joys and everything in between of which ordinary lives are composed in such extraordinary ways.
Gyspsywoman,
ReplyDeleteI'm sure that if you had a hammer you'd hammer in the morning, hammer in the evening, and all over the land till you got the job done! I love old houses, too, and have "reclaimed" a couple but I don't think it's an experience I'd like to live through again. Why is it, I wonder, that modern homes tend to lack character?
Big house please. Do you have enough storage space for the vat I will be bringing with me?
ReplyDeleteOh, and my WV today is 'beerbra'...I guess I'll have me one of them for sure!!
Saj,
ReplyDeleteBeerbra!! hahahaha! Will help keep you afloat in more ways than one, I reckon. I wonder if they have straws built into the straps.
Yes, we have plenty of storage room here. Especially if half your vat load is comprised of your wine cellar.
i think many modern houses/buildings lack character today because the perspective of creating/building is no longer the same - today it has to do with getting something up - in the least expensive way - most time efficient way - without regard for the "building of character" within the "heart of the structure" - by viewing it from the perspective of getting the most out of the little in stead of viewing it from an aesthetic view, with an eye for it's meaning to those who will inhabit it - and putting in all those little extra touches that create that character - oh, well, sorry, i ramble.....but i do love older structures - :)
ReplyDeleteWONDERFUL fabulous images!!! Buildings to get you dreaming.
ReplyDeleteGypsywoman,
ReplyDeleteTrue, cheap and quick, get the job done is a popular route but I've also noticed a strange trend of really huge houses being built with all sorts of luxuries. That I also don't get, with small families, tight financial situations, and ecological concerns. I guess it's a case of "if you've got it, flaunt it."
jann,
ReplyDeleteThanks! The buildings that really got me dreaming were the wonderful old crumbling palazzos in Calabria with their warm colours and rich history. I imagine there are many such beautiful dream-making sights in Sicily. (why I live vicariously through your blog)
yep, conspicuous consumption at its finest!
ReplyDeleteyep the camera's perspective certainly alters the viewer's - the first is indeed quaint and charming - from then on it is all downhill!!
ReplyDeleteCatherine,
ReplyDeleteAll downhill? I guess that would count as being mobile...just not necessarily in the preferred direction.