Monday, my new sewing machine arrived. I'm so happy with it, before I had to use mom's old and very, very basic machine (which was impossible to find a good wire tension for). Now that it's weekend and I have a reprieve from school, I'm experimenting on the new machine. It can do so much! This afternoon I think I'll finally manage to finish the woolen skirt we had to make in school. I wasn't finished with it and we're no longer working on it in school. I couldn't finish it properly with the old sewing machine, but now it isn't a problem anymore.

Iraqi terrorists, I mean. You really have to be MONSTERS to use women with Down-syndrome for bomb attacks. Some of you know my sister is handicapped -not Down syndrome-, the thought that they would use my sister for such evil purpose and with no regard to her, fills me with rage.

I've been thinking about my ideal home and my fantasy home, I wanted to put it into words. Plus a question.

In most modern architecture I find privacy lacking. Why have all your walls windowed, if can't enjoy the views, because you feel like you are in a fishbowl? My ideal home gives me privacy, so no huge window panels (except for in the roof maybe). Also my ideal home hugs and comforts me. With that I mean it must have a cozy and intimate feel, it has to be homely. For that reason I will never desire a big house or a huge open loft, give me rather smaller rooms where I can hide in and be myself. Our Western dream, tells us that 'bigger is better'. The Americans made this their life motto, but even us Europeans think a bit like that. Having a big home is a show of financial status. I'd rather have a home than a show status. This is what I desire of a home.

My fantasy home does not take into account if it's realizable, financially possible, has the necessary adjustments to live in winter/summer climates,.... It's fantasy. Fantasy can later be translated into reality by making it fit with your means and needs, but that's not important when dreaming. For example the elven homes dreamed up by J.R.R. Tolkien, they are fantasy, not livable. Does it matter that they are not livable in reality? No. It you decide to make it reality and want to live in a tree like the elves, then only, you need to make it match your need and possibly make amends (in you lifestyle for example). What I'm trying to say is that for others it might be the house they dream of having one day (their dream house, for example: "I want to live in a big mansion", "I want to live on a houseboat",...), but for me a fantasy home is just that: fantasy.

So my fantasy home is on a peaceful lake, surrounded by a forest. It's a small wooden village on water. In a way, think of the floating temple in "Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring" [link] . Architecturally I imagine small wooden rooms connected to each other by bridges. For the rooms I think of the treehouses of Orion [link] [link] . The lines and feel of Lothorien in LOTR intrigue me, so I want to corporate that into my fantasy as well. In this fantasy place you have to go to shore to grow crops and to keep animals, it's also quite secluded from the rest of the world. I know a lot more about this place, it's a fantasy world that is in my head and if I was a storyteller I would gladly share, but I don't have a talent with words. I have plans to make artworks showing this place though and that's where I need help

So, I was wondering if anyone of you know some good sites with wooden architecture (going from modern styles to historical buildings, all would be great), villages on water (like Venice, the slumps of the poor Asian people,...), elven styles (architecture, drawings, furniture,...), other fantasy architecture,...
This would help me give me a clearer view of how I want my fantasy to look. Right now I only have a vague view of how it should be, there aren't many details.