I didn't get around to reading some of Sunday's St. Paul Pioneer Press until last evening, so I didn't see this interesting article about woman-centric housing design till then. The actual printed copy has a nice diagram of one design; alas, the link above has a big ol' honkin' photo of Don Imus instead. (No, he has nothing to
do with woman-centric housing design. Is this a surprise? It's an ad.) Anyway, in my blog entry for Sunday, I briefly discussed housing design tailored for women's religious communities, which is why I bring this up. Perhaps the need isn't so much
for something specific to a religious community, as it is for something that appeals to the way women live together, and/or the way small groups of unrelated, childless
adults live together with intention. This manner of living seems to be getting more
common, at least among people under about the age of 50, from where I sit and
look. I'll admit, I could be delusional, and my view is naturally limited, but when I look around at my friends, a good many of them, even the ones who are married, are living in groups rather than according to the nuclear model.
Anyway, these new woman-centric housing designs are organized around four basic
types of spaces: de-stressing (a master suite with, say, a sitting area), organizing
(larger pantries), flexible living (unfinished areas, optional bathroom arrangements)
and entertaining (kitchens opening to dining rooms and great rooms). They're
basically built so that the space fits the people rather than the other way around. The
laundry area is where the clothes are, instead of tucked into some otherwise unused
space, like the back entryway, for example.
So, I wonder about designing housing for small communities that would take into
account they way they live, and I think what if? What if we designed a house with about 10 medium-sized bedrooms, (12'x12'?) including several for guests, and laundry facilities in a separate wing on the south side that wouldn't have to be heated in the same way as the rest of the house, with one or two dorm-like bathrooms also in that wing?
In the main part of the house: big living room with no TV, kitchen and dining room big and seamless, small TV room elsewhere, library/computer room, art room, small chapel or meditation space, a porch opening out to the front of the house, everything pretty much on the same level, small yard close to kitchen, house insulated with something organic like straw and incorporating green technologies like water-saving toilets and showers, safe ways to light rooms without electricity, corn-burning stoves, etc.
Not knowing much about actual housing construction, some of this may not be all that realistic, I realize, but the basic design seems to me like it would work for a small community. I'm envisioning room for 7-8 people who'd be willing and able to live without a lot space for their own personal stuff. Some of what I've said will be familiar to people who've lived in convents, of course, except that in my experience they're usually bigger than 10 bedrooms, have two or more floors, lots of extra bathrooms, and often it seems they incorporate spaces that are entirely unused these days, like a housekeeper's apartment, one or two extra parlors, a small and large dining room, a pantry far away from the kitchen, and the like.
Anyway, that's my 2 cents' worth about community-centric housing design. I'd love
to get a conversation started on this.
do with woman-centric housing design. Is this a surprise? It's an ad.) Anyway, in my blog entry for Sunday, I briefly discussed housing design tailored for women's religious communities, which is why I bring this up. Perhaps the need isn't so much
for something specific to a religious community, as it is for something that appeals to the way women live together, and/or the way small groups of unrelated, childless
adults live together with intention. This manner of living seems to be getting more
common, at least among people under about the age of 50, from where I sit and
look. I'll admit, I could be delusional, and my view is naturally limited, but when I look around at my friends, a good many of them, even the ones who are married, are living in groups rather than according to the nuclear model.
Anyway, these new woman-centric housing designs are organized around four basic
types of spaces: de-stressing (a master suite with, say, a sitting area), organizing
(larger pantries), flexible living (unfinished areas, optional bathroom arrangements)
and entertaining (kitchens opening to dining rooms and great rooms). They're
basically built so that the space fits the people rather than the other way around. The
laundry area is where the clothes are, instead of tucked into some otherwise unused
space, like the back entryway, for example.
So, I wonder about designing housing for small communities that would take into
account they way they live, and I think what if? What if we designed a house with about 10 medium-sized bedrooms, (12'x12'?) including several for guests, and laundry facilities in a separate wing on the south side that wouldn't have to be heated in the same way as the rest of the house, with one or two dorm-like bathrooms also in that wing?
In the main part of the house: big living room with no TV, kitchen and dining room big and seamless, small TV room elsewhere, library/computer room, art room, small chapel or meditation space, a porch opening out to the front of the house, everything pretty much on the same level, small yard close to kitchen, house insulated with something organic like straw and incorporating green technologies like water-saving toilets and showers, safe ways to light rooms without electricity, corn-burning stoves, etc.
Not knowing much about actual housing construction, some of this may not be all that realistic, I realize, but the basic design seems to me like it would work for a small community. I'm envisioning room for 7-8 people who'd be willing and able to live without a lot space for their own personal stuff. Some of what I've said will be familiar to people who've lived in convents, of course, except that in my experience they're usually bigger than 10 bedrooms, have two or more floors, lots of extra bathrooms, and often it seems they incorporate spaces that are entirely unused these days, like a housekeeper's apartment, one or two extra parlors, a small and large dining room, a pantry far away from the kitchen, and the like.
Anyway, that's my 2 cents' worth about community-centric housing design. I'd love
to get a conversation started on this.
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