Before You Start Designing there are some exercises you can go through to help you get a better handle on your new home or remodel. Grab a tape measure and a pad of paper. Enlist the help of everyone who lives there (or visits regularly), including small children (they can hold the “dumb” end of the tape). You may have already done these exercises mentally, but it is good to commit them to paper. Getting them sorted will help you explain your expectations to your architect/designer and builder.
Subtitled: Plan Book vs. Draftsman vs. Contractor vs. Architect
There are very few of us who undertake any building project without some planning. We try and figure out what we need, how it’s going to be put together and how much it’s going to cost us. For some projects, we plan it out in our heads. For others, we take pencil to paper and draw it out. Then, there are the projects that we know we can’t do ourselves. For these, we need to hire a designer.
Designers come in many different varieties. There’s the contractor who designs it himself. There are designers who’ll draft up your plans. There’s your good friend down the street. And there are architects. What’s the difference? Does it matter? What is each one going to give you for your money? And why should you pick the Architect?
Those of us who desire residential architecture that better reflects our modern times have wondered what it will take to get there. A look through plan books, Better Homes and Gardens, and a number of places show that we’re not leaning modern, yet.
The “Green” movement might bring hope. While vernacular designs did take into account the local climate conditions and material availabilities (along with the skills brought by those who settled the area), they didn’t take into account many of the things we’ve learned about construction, energy use, etc. Show me a “traditional” house that doesn’t look out of place with solar panels.
“Green” brings hope. “Green” design almost dictates a modern style. It wants us to be more sensitive to the site, material choices, and energy usage. All of these are opportunities for us to come up with designs that aren’t traditional.
Green might be what it takes to final get Modern.
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