Masculine Living Spaces

I have been working on a series of illustrations about a bad boy love interest living in small-town PNW and have noticed there aren't a lot of normal masculine living spaces available (at least that don't offer tropical/ultra-large or modern windows- some of us live in the burbs and in single-story houses to boot!). 

There are a few high-end bachelor bedrooms, but what about the average guy who isn't that interested in decorating and comes from average means? What if he favors neutrals or black and whites? I was especially in need of a masculine living room that doesn't have floor to ceiling windows (how common are those anyway?), a balcony, stairs, or other unusually modern features. I decided to go with a living room that has the right layout but not the right vibe. I'm deleting all the vases (what does a bad boy want with a vase? LOL!) and replacing the paintings of butterflies with paintings of architecture and landscape. I'm throwing out all the throw pillows and changing many of the shaders as well. But I'm still worried that it will look too high end- mostly due to the ornate nature of the room itself. A lot of houses don't have tons of molding or elaborate wall panels.  This guy is practical and doesn't care enough about decor to spend money on it. He lives in a basic suburban box- like many people do.  A ~simple~, ~modest~ room layout with a living room, dining area, and a peek into the kitchen would have been best. But oh well! 

 

Here's to hoping the sexy bad boys of Daz3d get more representation in their digs sometime soon! I would definitely snap something like that up. 

 

P.S. If anyone finds it in their heart to make and sell an Adam Levine look alike, I would love them forever! 

P.P.S. I did try using the Create-a-room set that I own but found that that was *too* basic. Aside from problems joining the walls together, due to beveling, there was also the problem that it looked one dimensional and very much like a 3d model. I guess there really needs to be a balance to the level of complexity or else it just won't look right! 

Comments

  • Lissa_xyzLissa_xyz Posts: 6,116
    edited January 2021
  • You may want to check out the vendor Truform over on renderosity, they have a lot of basic apartments that could be classified as "masculine".

  • SeraSera Posts: 1,675

    Thank you both for the suggestions! I did end up getting Truform's Teenage Boy bedroom, as it will work with minimal tweaks. But Student Bedroom looks amazing! I might end up getting that too. I was going to say that ideally, the living room would look like it belongs in Collective3d's Neighborhood. When I went to Collective3d's page, I realized that they already have an interior that will work nicely! I just have to decorate and it'll be good to go. If only I had purchased C3D's stuff when it was on sale!!!

    Still, I would like to see more interiors in the C3D neighborhood style already furnished with subdued/basic/masculine colors. Pre furnished rooms are less of a hassle, and the overall effect is usually more harmonious than the scenes where I've furnished a space myself.

    That being said, I feel better now.  I have a few options to work with and I'm confident that I'll get something done that I can be happy with. Thanks again! laugh

     

     

  • nabob21nabob21 Posts: 989

    2nd_World at Rendo also has some nice apartment buildings you may want to check out.

  • chris-2599934chris-2599934 Posts: 1,806
    edited January 2021

    For interiors, maybe start with this (and its expansion packs): https://www.daz3d.com/collective3d-create-a-room-base-set

    Then dress it in whatever manner you deem suitable.

    Post edited by chris-2599934 on
  • SeraSera Posts: 1,675

    nabob21 said:

    2nd_World at Rendo also has some nice apartment buildings you may want to check out.

    First, 2nd life has some nice stuff. It has the right vibe and there are no unusual features that would detract. The color schemes aren't crazy and I especially like how all the doors open and some scenes come with props for shots of the external building (that wouldn't be useful for this project, but is definitely a selling point).

    But I do have two complaints about his stuff.

    The first complaint, the smaller one really, is the sheer age of the product and the fact that it was built for poser. Can I update the shaders and do all the little things to make it more usable in Daz? Absolutely. But I don't necessarily ~want~ to. I'll do it if there is nothing better available, or if it really hits the mark. But I enjoy spending my money on Daz, and there is a certain thrill I get in having a great item that works brilliantly "out of the box." I don't mind throwing money at Rendo and Daz all week long! So if someone is looking for something to make for Daz, please take my money and give me an item for the single men of Daz! I might buy some 2nd life, and some new stuff later as well. So I really do want to encourage developers to consider masculine living spaces as a product idea. 

    My second complaint is about 2nd life's apartments, and the one that may really keep me from making a purchase. The scenes he's made that I'm interested in are a little too small. The kitchen is a little too compact for what should be a regular small-town house. Obviously, I'm limited by the options available to me, so I'll make the best purchase I can and take any drawbacks that come with it. But if I can get just the right vibe, then that would be wonderful! Since nothing is on sale, and I still have a fair bit of writing to do on this project, I'll keep looking for a bit.

     My last complaint has nothing to do with 2nd life, but more to do with the scarcity of regular house environments for men. While I admit that many single men do live in apartments, there are plenty of "older" (32 isn't that old, is it?) men who are single too, and financially savvy enough to own their own homes. I don't mind using an apartment scene for a home illustration if I can just angle the camera away so that the balcony doesn't show or whatever. But selective camera work becomes harder when there are massive loft windows that need to be hidden. This story is based on a dream, and I really don't want to change the detail of the main love interest living in a house. It ties into how he meets the MC. He simply cannot be having a fight with his soon to be ex-girlfriend on his front yard if he has no front yard!

    Regardless, thanks for your suggestion. I'll definitely keep 2nd Life in mind in the future!smiley

     

     

     

     

  • SeraSera Posts: 1,675

    chris-2599934 said:

    For interiors, maybe start with this (and its expansion packs): https://www.daz3d.com/collective3d-create-a-room-base-set

    Then dress it in whatever manner you deem suitable.

     I actually already own this. It's definitely useful for smaller rooms, but since many houses have an open layout these days (the living room is connected to the dining area and the kitchen is also visible) I tried to use three floor tiles and extra walls to make a larger space. What I found was that the walls are all beveled, so they don't meet up quite right when placing two side by side. I could replace them with primitives, but then I'd be losing the details of the baseboards and such. In the end, I just had them overlapping a little, which caused a seam to be visible. This is a definite drawback!

     I'd also like a *little* more detail in the finished architecture. Wall plugs and light switches being absent became strangely noticeable when you have five of these walls in evidence. A bookcase built into the wall or just.... something... is needed to break up the uniform nature of the room at that point. That kind of tweaking, if possible, is beyond my skill set. 

    I don't mean to sound overly negative! The product definitely has some great uses. I just don't think it's right for me on this project. 

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,200
    edited January 2021

    masculine is a very vague term

    what you described is actually the dead opposite of what I envisaged 

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • SeraSera Posts: 1,675

    WendyLuvsCatz said:

    masculine is a very vague term

    what you described is actually the dead opposite of what I envisaged 

    Fair enough!

    I am definitely biased by my personal experiences in the homes of single men. These guys just happened to not care much about decorating, although they weren't slobs either. Their places were comfortable but not full of vases, throw pillows or bright colors. When they did decorate, they used blues and reds or browns, but not over the top bright colors. They weren't rich and didn't live in the big city, since those things don't apply to me either. Sure, a lot of them lived in apartments, but I'm older now and the people I interact with now are more established. I feel like there are probably a lot of people in similar situations, so maybe (hopefully for me!) there is a place for these types of items in the market.

     I also like the movie and television sets made for retired men or really serious people: dark or subdued colors with leather chairs and small whiskey stations. That sort of thing. But it's hard to find Daz items like this without the trappings of unusual wealth or big city living. The home of the detective on the tv show Mr. Mercedes is a great example of a single guy living in a modest house with subdued decor. 

    Bachelor Bedroom is probably my favorite product that embodies what I'd consider masculine. It's been useful to me many times, but it does feature a balcony and a fireplace, making it a little high end and inappropriate for what I'm working on right now. Also, I'd like to not use the same bedroom for every project! I hate it when story apps do that. 

    So yes, ~my idea~ of masculine rooms do exist in Daz... to some extent. But they tend to be bedrooms and apartments. I'd really like to see some variety outside of that.  Just my wish. 

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,200

    yeah I pictured along the lines of action figures and posters, katanas mounted above the bed with a bigscreen TV at the foot for one's Playstation or Xbox, bishounen body pillows devil LOL 

  • SeraSera Posts: 1,675

    WendyLuvsCatz said:

    yeah I pictured along the lines of action figures and posters, katanas mounted above the bed with a bigscreen TV at the foot for one's Playstation or Xbox, bishounen body pillows devil LOL 

    I am not against these things! I'd love to see more of that too. heart 

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