Travel doesn’t always necessarily require long distances. Sometimes it’s fun just to wander around places nearby. And especially during some holiday seasons, you can cruise around your neighborhood or around nearby cities just to be inspired by different visual elements.
Consider things like outside lighting, windows, doors, and shutters, landscape possibilities for your own place, themed areas of different cities, or even just scoping out what some interesting houses look like in case you’re thinking about building at some point in your life. Cruising around in this manner is totally free, and just gives your mind and body a quick break from more mundane activities.
Outside Lighting
Having interesting outside lighting can make a huge difference when it comes to how people perceive a home. So if you’re out on a short cruise to see what your town has to offer, try going at night and seeing what kind of outside lights they have set up. Most people don’t consider it that much, but those who do give their environments just enough of that touch of epic quality to bring on the admiration of neighbors and inspiration-seekers.
Windows, Doors, and Shutters
If you’re traveling during the day, some of the elements to look for visually in people’s houses include the windows, doors, and shutters. All other things being exactly the same, those three things, designed well or poorly, make all the difference in the world. If you’re doing some exterior designing yourself, make sure that you look analytically at the places your drive by when you’re out journeying.
Landscape Possibilities
And one thing you’ll notice when you’re traveling, either around the block or to the other side of the country, is that landscape design is different everywhere. Sometimes there are cultural elements locked into the presentation of the exterior of homes, and once again, it can make a gigantic difference in how people perceive that location. Just think to yourself the difference between landscape designs with respect to a place like Arizona or Massachusetts. Interesting thoughts, right!
Themed Areas
There are super interesting themed areas around the country as well. In Seattle, there’s a tucked away neighborhood that displays Christmas stuff all year long. You can find places that have Halloween themes, or even Harry Potter themes. A quick internet search, and you’ll see that inspiration is never very far when it comes to traveling to see quirky people in quirky areas.
House-Building Inspiration
And finally, wandering around looking for inspiration when it comes time for you to start designing your own house is always an option as well. Simply by keeping your eyes open as your drive or walk around can do wonders for your creativity, assuming that you keep focused on the topic at hand.