Bamboo's Refreshing Appeal

Whenever I see bamboo--tree, furnishing, or house--it has a refreshing appeal. There's an inner urge to go closer  to see it or try it if it's something built or constructed. Like a bamboo house. Bamboo houses are considered more an entertainment than an actual human abode in most places, but I think more bamboo human habitats ought to be built. Bamboo's refreshing appeal ought to change lots of moods for the better. And that means a better community.

It is observed that bamboo's refreshing appeal creates an atmosphere of:

• Relaxation. At a glance, it powerfully suggests easement of activities, if not utter cessation. It quickly develops an atmosphere of resting, releasing positive energy and enhancing mental de-stressing. 
• Putting defenses down. We're often alert about intellectual and emotional aggression against us, so more people have developed an always-ready defense mechanism wherever they are. But seeing bamboo furnishings or houses like the ones in the pictures sometimes can make us put down our guards for a while in appreciation. It is advisable to get some attractive bamboo furnishings in your areas of leisure  study, or where you meet clients.
• Nationalism. Bamboos in the tropics can begin to cultivate a sense of nationalism in you, a quick pride in your heritage and culture, especially in Pinoy architecture ideas. And the good news is, it often brings out a positive kind of Filipinism.
• Meditation. I note most people, when they step into a livable bamboo house or try a bamboo furniture, they immediately assume a pensive mood and then say, "Beautiful!" In that short moment of time they transform from being too mundane or material to being spiritual. At that short interval, they become artists appreciating intangible values.
• Play. Even adults become children with their children.

Bamboo creates a sense of lightness in you and transfers that to your life experience in a glimpse. If you have a heavy heart and come in touch with bamboo, the heaviness often lifts up. I remember the cluster of bamboo in our school premise near a creek when I was a pupil. We'd often go there to refresh after a hectic class. Chemistry was a daunted subjected, and we wished we had it there by the bamboo cluster.

If you can't get along with your spouse, I suggest you both stay in a bamboo house built right beside your house. Spend your nights there. If your kid seems to have problems you cannot understand, get him a bamboo play house. If you have teens you have difficulty understanding, spend overnight camp outs with them in your bamboo house within your property. 

However, problems or no problems, bamboo is among God's gifts to make life happily simpler.

Rich Design Variations
It has lots of varying possible designs you can experiment with. You may render it arched, diagonal, vertical, horizontal, raw, polished, varnished, stripped, logged, matted, or treated with fire for durability and permanence. Some bamboo experts bend, arch and form bamboo in certain forms and make it stay permanently like that by treating with fire.

Some imaginative designers subtly combine bamboo with modern embroidery or upholstery, and the result is a more relaxing and beguiling look raised to the tenth power. I love a bamboo bed or sofa with thick white cushions on them. And if you render the pillows in native tropical design patterns, you have a superb relaxer home furnishing.

Every boy and girl loves bamboo play houses, and I plan to have one in my yard one day--for my boys and their future boys, Godwilling. And I can imagine a huge bamboo house with a large veranda a perfect place for holding my bible studies with my disciples.

It's also advisable to grow bamboo trees in your yard. Having a small cluster would do. It's perfect for relaxing the mind and meditating especially when there's a gentle breeze blowing. Bamboo trees in harmony with the wind creates soothing chuckles.

Here in the Philippines, I think more people should have these houses in their yards. They're perfect not just for relaxation but also for all occasions. And I think interiors should have more of this wood as design feature. In an age of bolstering nationalism in Filipinos, this wood can greatly contribute to this end. If you have growing kids, it's good to expose them to things Filipino, even in the furnishing designs they see around them. We cannot under estimate the power of recall in kids' minds. The more they see native crafts and design elements, the better for their patriotism. These are Pinoy architecture ideas we should consider more.

Bamboo and Wood in Design

Luring you to relax to the max.

I so love bamboo incorporated in architectural design. In fact, I prefer bamboo sofa sets to urban modern ones. I love bamboo anywhere in the house, even in toilet and bath, and especially in the kitchen. I also love it in bedrooms, especially mixed with modern furnishings. Bamboo and wood design are excellent accents for heavy-concrete architecture.

Architectural philosophy encourages balance and symmetry with contrast. This makes the overall impression stick to the mind and the recall effect impresses on people and makes them repeat the design in their own home projects. Contrast eliminates boredom and puts spice and life to the composition. Here, bamboo and wood in design proves very effective.

All-concrete is always an eye sore for me. When mixed with metal, it becomes a bit tolerable, especially if the metal is colored strikingly contrasting. But a triad mix of concrete, wood, and metal is altogether something else. It makes me want to rush into the edifice to see what's inside. It sparks up active interest.

Bamboo creates a vacation mood, an idea of rustic relaxation even if one is amid the hassle and bustle of city life. Better if the hardness of bamboo is made pliant by the sight of soft cushions or its simpler rendition to lengthy strips. Bamboo and wood in design lends life to the coldness and rigidity of concrete and metal.

A mix of concrete, metal, and wood is often the spice of design.

I would like to have my city house retain an out-of-town atmosphere, always having the air of a resort. To attain this, I would consider the presence of bamboo and wood in design, no matter how they are susceptible to termite attacks. I would even have an actual bamboo tree in a corner of my property, as well as other partially wooded corners. Bamboo trees create whispers of sounds indicative of rural breeze gently passing by. And I definitely would like to enjoy that in my city habitat all year round.

I believe city architects should well consider the above when designing urban abodes for the busy and stressed urbanite. To lessen the toll of work pressure and tension, architects have the duty to re-produce the peace and calm of the countryside in the work place and at home, or at least recommend the same to their clients, stressing their importance.

And in this task, bamboo and wood in design would prove invaluable. In Deep Asia, bamboo always brings back time to the simple old days of our ancestors at the same time that we realize the needs of the present. Seeing bamboo puts us somewhat in a meditative mode. Deep Asians find the sight of bamboo and wood in design quite conducive to healthy and beneficial rumination of what is real, needful, and soul-satiating.

That's my ideal HOUSEpinoy--always putting hints of the province in your daily routine. Thus, I like gathering Pinoy architectural ideas I see around and composing them into a blog.