There is arguably no bigger difference between housing on the East Coast and housing on the West Coast than notions of “symmetry.” On the East coast (and please don’t start throwing the exceptions at me--I know they exist—plenty of them—I am just doing a little tongue-in-cheek generalizing) housing is more symmetrical—god help you if you design your house with a front door that is not in the absolute center or that the windows on either side don’t match or the dormers don’t match. You could be placed in the stocks, publicly flogged, or burned at the stake, for such oversights.
On the West Coast the other extreme exists where eclecticism is the rule and if things are “traditionally” balanced by East Coast standards your house’s value could plummet.
Of course on both the left hand side and the right hand side of the country you will find all manner of styles--and the markets and the buyers to support those styles.
If someone moves here from the east coast and is not willing to embrace the eclectic side of themselves--buried deep within themselves—they can find that lonely old colonial tucked away somewhere--where it has likely pissed off the more eclectic neighbors for years. But the reality is that the colonial will not really be a colonial in the classic East Coast sense. There will be just enough modifications to allow it to “fit in” with the rest of the Northwest houses. Additions to the home and remodeling that is done to these homes generally brings them ever closer to Northwest sensibilities—with perhaps only the “white” remaining in the end.
This eclectic freedom of design was immediately appealing to me as a designer-builder when I moved here from the east. I grew up in the symmetry of colonial New England—and contrary to popular belief, not in "actual" colonial times. Some time warps never shift however and the desire to keep everything “old New England” is a difficult design barrier to overcome. Everything changes however—even the east coast.
However, the other day, I came face to face with eclecticism gone wild and found myself pushing very hard to embrace what I was seeing. Even intellectually I could not do it—and that was because the design was flawed on so many “practical/functional” levels. This was not “freedom” of design but possibly closer to just plain non-functional design and possibly even unsafe design.
It was eclecticism out of control.
It was a case of where one-or-more later poor design decisions were attempting to overcome one-or-more earlier poor design decisions. While this process often can result in creative solutions that actually can work and thus become successfully eclectic—more often than not they represent instances where someone should have gone back to go—and started over.
I will let you be the judge as you take a look at the following pictures and attempt to imagine all the various decisions that were thought through and culminated in the final solutions you can see in the pictures and not only once—but twice in the home.
Charles Buell, Real Estate Inspections in Seattle
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Fred, of course it was etched glass anyway.
Helen and Larry, I think there are lots of styles that can be done right especially where they work from a practical standpoint
Edward and Celia, thanks
Ronald, no clue about Christopher Alexander---will google after I get done commenting
Alan, and around and around we go
Harry, you are welcome
Diana, perhaps so :)
Susan, yup. When I moved here the real estate agent showed me several things and honestly they were not that great. Finally I told him that when I look out the window I want to know I am in the Northwest---not Syracuse :)
Steven, both bathrooms had fans anyway. There are lots of ways to look at the issues in the pictures. In the following list, under varying scenarios, all could have been wrong. Windows, window size, mirro, mirror size, mirror location, sink location, vanity/sink location.
Jay & Michelle, I think it is true very generally.
Here and now, then forever after!
Brilliant!
And look at the nickel to see a little Eastern symmetry!
Jane, it was perhaps the buried Yankee in me that makes it jump out for me as well
Bill, this is pretty unusual even for the NW
Karen, not sure of all of the causes:)
Rafi, I am sure there are lots of acceptable solutions to the dilemma
perhaps this is a design from the bonghit movement?
Michael, I think Feng Shui is running away as fast as its little legs can carry it.
Travis, I was in an empty house the other day with a very loud child---is that what you mean? :)
Marte---the windows were already frosted :)