A DIY Ally client hired me to help with a layout of a master bedroom/bathroom suite. She listed the “must haves,” sent photos of the current conditions, and shared that it’s their second home soon to be their only home in a rural area of Texas. Based on the information provided, it appeared that they would enter the new space through their existing laundry room! A big mistake, in my opinion. The addition’s outside dimensions were set in stone, a 20’x20’ square.
Sorry, I haven’t been posting. Was teaching my DIY Like an Architect workshop at Art Center last two weekends. Besides, this project in NY is keeping me very busy. Performing construction supervision remotely — discussing every little detail with the contractor over the phone in addition to emailing a lot of drawings and instructions. Most of the design details I am generating right now were not required for the submission to the Building Department. Plan Examiners are concerned with public safety, not aesthetics.
Problems eventually morph into blessings in disguise. My ignorance of Pyramid Height Law and subsequent compliance with it led to a better-organized plan. I am grateful to the Building Department inspector who put me on the spot. Thanks to him, I literally turned the project around and it's much cleaner now.
Having just come across a post advocating putting wheels or casters on furniture, I am thinking out loud. Enhancing versatility with casters is a terrific concept. Unless the piece in question is intended to be a certain height, like a desk, and it would be ergonomically awkward to raise it. Clearly, it’s always better to build in wheels right from the start, not as an afterthought.
Although nervous and uncomfortable promoting my own system, I’m compelled to recommend it. I teach a strategy of organizing thoughts aimed at generating a parti, a launch pad for an architectural design. The process is quite simple; it’s outlined in my how-to ebook DIY Like an Architect: 11-step method.
Recently, a friend asked for my help with a design of an apartment she is looking to set up as a vacation spot for her family in Batumi, Georgia. Excited with a challenge at hand — maximizing function within a minimal footprint — I set out to create a compact unit that offers its guests all the comforts of a luxurious hotel room.
I am back from New York; it was a week of intense work coupled with mother-daughter(s) quality time. As far as the Hamptons project, I handed it off to be submitted for an assortment of building permits. The next step is to focus attention on the site plan, starting with the hardscape and then transitioning into the actual landscape.
I received an email from a DIY Ally client with the subject line: “Exterior elevations. Front door entrance, steel French doors and windows.” The message read: “Alla, I am thrilled to find your website and would appreciate your help. I am in the midst of remodeling my 1930 home and having difficulty determining the appropriate look of French doors, windows as well as the front/back door.”
A client asked me to create an electrical plan for her. I responded: “Oh, no problem. But first, I have to design a reflected ceiling plan.” She wondered what that entailed. I explained briefly and would like to elaborate.
I am back from New York. As anticipated, it was a productive trip. I’m inspired by the opportunities of the new project in Bridgehampton, “a former whaling and farming village.” Will gladly share many details as the design process moves along. It involves remodeling and adding to a traditional shingle-style house on a ¾ of an acre lot. Besides the primary residence, there is a freestanding shed on the property that will serve as a guesthouse, pool house and gallery.