I realized that I had to say something
more substantive about the house,
but I wasn't sure where to start.
I think that small, inexpensive houses
like Daniele and Luc's should be
as simple as possible.
This is partly a question of economics;
complexity costs money, after all, and
I would rather see a restricted budget
devoted to better-quality materials
than to architectural bravura.
But it is also an aesthetic issue.
I like plain farmhouses and
straightforward country buildings.
They usually look good
in the landscape, and
they have a kind of directness
and honesty that appeals to me.
True, they are often really just boxes,
but boxes can be given charm through
relatively inexpensive details
of construction.