| Tucked away in the corner of
Malihini Island, Kooky has built a beautiful Japanese-inspired home
enriched with tropical garden oasis surroundings. Kooky is an exquisite
builder who is inspired by the items created by the There designers. |
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| She does a wonderful job of
combining the key elements of water, movement, structures, animals,
flora and fauna to create an artistic, unique place in There. Kooky’s
home, garden and oasis deserve an entry in your "favorite places"
folder. Gather up some friends and take a road trip to visit her lovely
home. It's a feel good kind of place. |
| There_Hoods: Was there a particular designer item that inspired you to create a Japanese theme for your home, or did you have a brainstorm of ideas to get you started? Kooky: When I first joined There in January 2006, one of the first places I went to was a lovely little place called Panda Reserve in Grandmaster's neighborhood. I visited it often and took many people there. It had several pandas, bamboo, and a little waterfall. One day, I went to visit the pandas and the whole place was gone. I missed it terribly, so I created a garden of my own for pandas. It has grown over time to include a sprawling home. There_Hoods: The shelter you have created is very open and brings the outside elements into the home. What is the importance of having a non-traditional home to live in? Kooky: The ability to create homes in There offers the opportunity to create a home that you could never do in real life. I already have a traditional home... in real life. I wanted something open and unique for my home in There. It was so fun to create! I chose to use very few walls and no roofs so that I could see the beautiful dusk atmosphere of Malahini and the beautiful neighborhood lots and PAZs around me. I do have a few houses that I've decorated here, but my Japanese place is where I feel the most at home. Without a doubt, it's my favorite place. There_Hoods: The motion of water is a key element in your design. Can you please share with us some of the designer items you have chosen to create the environmental serenity of your home? Kooky: Aaaaah. The water. I really love the water. That's what gives me such a feeling of peace when I'm there. The water shimmers and sparkles. It gives the place movement and life. Susie_Q created the gorgeous animated water that laps along the shoreline. The 13m Rock Waterfall by Meret and the 30m Great Waterfall by KittenKat add height and vertical movement. Meret's 2-tiered fountains add movement and sparkle at eye level. Max Smoke's 5-seater waterfall and Susie_Q's Animated Bridge Ponds add to the movement and life. What awesome designers we have in There!! There_Hoods: The vast array of flora and foliage really compliment the theme you have created. Can you share with us how you chose the flowers and plants you used? Kooky: I can't even begin to express how much I love Xedos's palms! They're incredible! Meret's pastel trees and bamboo trees are absolutely wonderful. His bamboo trees together with Susie_Q's amazing Cyprus trees give the place an Asian feel. I like to think of the Cyprus trees as gigantic bonsai trees. :) They're perfect. Xedos, Alisah, and Susie_Q have a real talent for designing beautiful flowers and plants! They make landscaping fun! There_Hoods: What is your favorite item in your home? Kooky: Oooooo. That's a tough one. I can't choose just one. I can't even narrow it down to ten. LOL Yeah. I know. That was a cop-out of an answer. Sorry. :) There_Hoods: When entertaining guests which area of your home to do you like to show off most? Kooky: The house itself. Arepera's open-air rooms, together with Phedre's Shoji house, Shoji screen walls, and tatami decks provide the structure for the entire home. I love them all. Geea's and NigelBlackthorne's furniture, Taelos's beautiful artwork, MaxSmoke's numerous japanese pieces ( the Samurai warrior, the swords, the dragon chest, Japanese gong, pagoda and gateways ), Arepera's cranes and stone lanterns............I could go on and on. :) The designers in this game are incredible!! They give us so many fantastic things to work with and they're getting better and better all the time. The challenge for the rest of us is to come up with something unique to do with those items to showcase their talents! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you to all the designers! You make this place fun!! You give us an endless supply of new things to play with and build with! Bravo! There_Hoods: I noticed your home, garden and oasis are sandwiched between two neighborhoods. Why did you choose to create your home within multiple PAZs instead of a Neighborhood Lot? What is the advantage to creating a home and garden within a PAZ? Are there any disadvantages to living in a PAZ? Kooky: Originally, I tried a neighborhood lot. The two neighborhoods are on hills and have very little flat space. The water and the sprawling layout of the tatami decks worked best on a flat surface. Susanszy's two beautiful neighborhoods (Shorah and Shorah B'shehmtee), together with all the PAZs along the shoreline form the Shorah Community. The PAZs that several of us have put down in that area help to visually tie the two neighborhoods together. A disadvantage of living in PAZs is the inability to host events in my own lots. Also, neighborhoods offer some protection against griefing that PAZ owners don't have. There_Hoods: How long did it take for you to build your home? Kooky: For the most part, I did it in a few days. The tweaking seems to be never-ending, though. :) When spring is over and summer comes along, it will have a whole different look. Stop by often. Explore the entire Shorah Community while you're there. It's beautiful! |
| Ten items featured from Kooky’s home and garden oasis. |
 Auction:5618224 XD - Palm Tree by Xedos A medium sized palm tree perfiect for the there climate, also available as a group of 3 palms. If you like this try some of the other plants and trees in the xedos auctions. |
 Auction:5676488 20x20 Animated Water Deck V2 by Susie_Q Try my Duck Family with this for an added touch. Designed by request. |
 Auction:5677305 Rock Waterfall 13m tall by Meret Also available, the 10m fountain and 2 tiered 5 seater fountain. Check the Topiary Elephant and Woman fountains. |
 Auction:5605816 Flowering Rush by Alisah First in my line of Aqua Flora. My favorite waterplant. It grows in my pond and has wet feet always. But what a delecate flower! |
 Auction:5683158 Japanese Shoji House (dark) by Phedre Fits in a CAZPAZ. Additional Japanese themed items still PENDING, from tatami decks, shoji walls and roofs. |
 Auction:5613693 Sand Garden by MaxSMoke777 It's Sand, and yet it's a garden. It's the Sand Garden! I know what you're thinking, SAND CASTLES! But seriously, it's a whole Zen-thing. It's like, peaceful and stuff... |
 Auction:5646377 Chiyo Dining Set by Geea Japanese style 5 seater table. |
 Auction:5628335 JAHS - I Room by Arepera Make your own dream house. |
 Auction:5610290 Flight at Night2 Freestanding by Taelos Add an asian look to your house or portazone. Perfect for a Shoji, JAHS, or asian themed house or garden. Search for auctions by Taelos for other fine asian and floral art. |
 Auction:5681060 Crane Japanese Seating Group by NigelBlackthorne Beautiful swooping crane cushions on this Japanese inspired 5 seater. |
| If you would like to visit Kooky's Home click here. If you would like to visit Kooky's Garden click here. If you would like to visit Kooky's Oasis click here. If you would like to view pictures of Kooky's Home and Garden Oaisis click here. |
