01 CONCEPTUAL DESIGN
The most important aspect of creating any design that truly feels special is the act of blending inspiration with authenticity. We call it balanced works. This is vitally important early on in the journey and documenting this well provides a strong ethos to come back to along the way.
During the initial phase of the design process, we will take the information we’ve gathered from you, as well as what is on the survey or any other pertinent documents - to create a number of design options for us to study. Generally, these options are presented in the form of sketches or simple massing drawings so we can start to visualize the different routes your project could take.
Typically, the end result is somewhat of a mixture of the various ideas put forth and the blended work starts to take shape.
02 DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
As the design starts to become more exciting and the different obstacles and constraints start to work themselves out we try to move quickly into some form of a three dimensional study to explore massing and overall aesthetic.
This is a fun and inspiring part of the design process where we get to compare and contrast our original imagery with what we have started to craft. We will not only carefully study scale, proportions, and our immediate context - but also really start to dig into materials and exterior finishes. If we haven't already, this is a great time to start looking at bringing the other trades to the table.
In this second phase of design the house on paper starts to look less like artwork and more like blueprints. We will start to show the project in it's various plan views, side elevations, and some simple building sections. These often serve two purposes: to familiarize our team with how the house will appear on paper from here on out, as well as start to give us documents to share with any applicable ARB's or civic reviewers we may need early approval from.
03 CONSTRUCTION
DOCUMENTATION
As decisions continue to be made, the drawings are carefully refined in regards to materials and methods of construction. This distilling process is what we call the Construction Documentation Phase.
Information from our various other consultants, such as structural engineers, landscape architects, and interior designers, are developed and coordinated with the architectural design drawings. Specifications for materials, doors and windows, fixtures, appliances, etc. are all added to the drawing set. All of this merged together will create the final permit and construction set that will eventually be used on site to build your home.