Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Lofty Dreams ~ Home Sweet Home #5

Ideally, I'd like to have a live/work loft space in the city and a cozy little cabin in the woods. I really miss living in a loft... Unfortunatly, gentrification has infected every last bohemian enclave in Chicago, so finding an affordable loft space is like looking for a needle in a haystack. I'm always up for a treasure hunt though, so I know I'll find what I'm looking for when the time comes. I'm dreaming of an old warehouse or factory with exposed brick walls and pressed tin ceilings, exposed beams, wooden flooring that go on throughout a huge open floor plan. I want plenty of room for an studio/office where I can make soap and candles, jewelry, art and pottery. I'd love to have a big play area where my kids can stretch out, let loose and play!

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I dream of giant windows with tons of light! I picture the light pouring in over a little wooden indoor greenhouse where I can grow an herb garden. I'd grow common herbs to cook with, magickal herbs for witchcrafting charms and formulas, shamanic plants and entheogenic botanicals that make you "fly" and aid in lucid dreamtime!

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I'm going to the Chicago College of Healing Arts next Spring to take a year long program called Foundations in Herbalism. "The program provides an introduction to plant medicine and lays the foundation for further plant medicine training. Students are taught the skills necessary for designing and making herbal formulas, as well as organic growing and wildcrafting of herbs, and the ecological and political concerns of modern herbalism. An integral part of the program is its series of country weekends, where students are given the opportunity to work with the growing, harvesting and processing of botanicals. Hands-on medicine making labs allow students to gain experience in creating their own tinctures, pills, salves, essential oils and more!"

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I imagine creating a rooftop garden and keeping bees! Rooftop beekeeping could help to combat colony collapse disorder. Read more about urban beekeeping here...

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There are many benefits of a rooftop garden beyond the fact that they can be quiet urban sanctuaries. They add another dimension of green space to an urban scape without taking up an extensive area of land in densely populated places. In some European countries such as Switzerland, bylaws have been passed that new buildings must be designed to relocate the greenspace covered by the building to their roofs. Existing buildings must also comply with the bylaw by greening at least 20% of their rooftops. Read more about "green roofs" here...

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4 comments:

Esmeralda Bohemian said...

I too share your dream, the pics you posted are so very lovely! The class sounds amazing, I'd love to take one like that some day!

Stephanie Alice Rogers said...

That photo from the Practical Magic set is one of my favorites too. I think we have identical taste in just about everything. I've gone through ALL of your archives over the last month and can't believe all that I've discovered in the process - artists, amazing jewelry and clothing, photographers and above all MUSIC. Through one of your posts on Larkin Grimm I found the world of psych folk and I am completely bowled over by Ex Reverie, Fern Knight, Espers, Spires That In The Sunset Rise and many more.

In fact, finding this stuff has spurred a whole new wave of creativity in me - I have put art on the back burner for far too long and now I have inspiration again.

So, thanks!

Lady Lavona said...

So glad to help spark the flames of inspiration for you Stephanie! I can't wait to see your new fruits of labor...I know whatever you create will be amazing! xo Lavona

Zev said...

I'm currently doing a series on home decorating over at my blog, and I love seeing the spaces that excite and entice other folks. We have very similar tastes, though your bent is more magickal, where mine is steampunk. Either way, there appears to be exposed brickwork, big windows, and lovely old jars involved ;) I'm always inspired by your finds, so thanks for sharing!