I had been searching for the perfect song to do justice to the magnificent Alhambra for so long, that when I came across this enchanting rendition of “I See Fire,” I began hunting for something to do IT justice… and it took me a baffling amount of time to realize that these two searches were one in the same! 😝

It’s only fitting that this song originally comes from the Lord of the Rings franchise, because so much of the architecture and world building that we see in fantasy films and video games borrows heavily from antiquity— especially from the ancient culture of the Moors.

Personally, I believe this is because the Moorish aesthetic is such an unlikely combination of so many different cultural influences already, that its very existence feels otherworldly and fantastical.

When I first began designing my own house, I wanted it to be a confluence of all my favorite cultures from around the world. And once I started heavily combining elements from primarily three different cultures — that of Spain, Africa, and Islam— it didn’t take me long to realize that I could more precisely refer to my style as Moorish.

Yep, the Moors already beat me to it! Lol 😜

I did, however, want to incorporate a lot of MEXICAN influences and traditions into my designs as well, which is why— after realizing how similar the textiles of the American Southwest are to those found in Morocco— I began calling my house building project MOROXICO.

Rather than… Moronico. 😝

(Which, hey. I’m sure "moronic" is a word that has also been used to describe what I’m trying to build… but whatever! 😂)

Yall just wait. My house is going to be cool as hell! 😎