This picture, on the right, showed up on my FaceBook news feed today. This is a unique design idea. Yes. That is a wine cork floor. I am a fan of cork flooring. But usually, it comes in sheets or rolls. The wine cork floor looks pretty nice. I’m not sure […]
Design Ideas
62 posts
The Villa Savoye, by the Swiss-French architect known as Le Corbusier, is one of a trio of modern Europe houses from the early 20th century that have shaped my design sensibility. Along with the Rietveld-Schroder House in The Netherlands, and the Maison de Verre in Paris, The Villa Savoye just […]
Continuing my series of posts attempting to answer the question, What is Architecture? This post introduces my architectural creed. It is a statement of belief and intent. All of my decisions about design are based on the ideas summarized in my creed. The creed is duplicated here: I believe in […]
This is the first in an occasional series of posts about what architecture is and how it should be made. I am working on an architectural creed and hope to share it with you soon. The title of this post could be restate as “what is the difference between architecture and […]
It has been a couple of weeks since I was able to post anything here. I’ve been busy working on projects for my clients. But this past week saw a very important milestone, 25 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law. 25 years is a […]
Some of my favorite rooms and buildings are libraries. There is just something about the combination of books, buildings, and light, that inspire architects and readers to make better spaces. In this post, I’m going to grapple with an idea about the synergy that happens when the owner and architect […]
Indulge me for a moment, if you will. Today I want to share a marvelous little house in the UK by some architects I both greatly admire and have dedicated quite a bit o time learning about their careers. In addition to my professional degree in architecture, I have a […]
I’m not one to take design advice from the folks at Fortune magazine, but they recently posted an article entitled “The Home Renovations That Will Deliver The Biggest Bang For Your Buck“. After reading it, I am still not one to take design advice from the folks at Fortune magazine. […]
I have a confession to make. I have an architect crush. It is common among architects, especially young ones, to have architect crushes on one or two favorite established architects. An architect crush is when you find the work of an architect conceptually, visually, and emotionally admirable and appealing. You’ […]
This apartment in Spain by PKMN Architecture, is an inspired bit of space planning and “thinking outside the box”. The client, an artist and designer who works from home, needed a house that provided a series of different spaces. The solution the architects came up with is ingenious. It may […]
Sometimes you have to make a small kitchen work. Expanding the kitchen is not viable because of cost, space constraints, or because you are renting. Kitchn.com recently published a list of 8 ways to make more of a small kitchen. Though, there are two number 4’s and no number 6. […]
One of the things I am interested in, and have some experience with, is designing for living in small spaces. The average American house is 2300 square feet, which is about 1000 square feet larger than the average American house of 50 years ago. Are American families bigger than they […]
The Villa Rotunda by Andrea Palladio is probably one of the most iconic homes ever built. It’s influence reverberates through the profession of architecture over 400 years since it was completed. Like most architects who find themselves in North-Eastern Italy, I made a pilgrimage to see this house in 1988. […]
One of the most common questions I am asked is about what material to use for kitchen counters. The current (July 2014) issue of Consumer Reports magazine has a nice article about this question. Much of this issue of the magazine is dedicated to kitchen design, materials and appliances. It […]
Fastcompany.com recently posted about the Gethsemane Church in Seattle by the architects Olson Kundig. It is a thoroughly Modern building. For many, if you say “modern architecture”, the images in their minds are of cold, sterile and emotionless buildings. Yet this Modern church feels warm and comfortable. One of the […]
Recently the website Inthralld.com posted this feature about displaying your wine collection. I have already written about it at my wine website. The Inthralled.com post features pictures of 10 pretty impressive architectural installations for displaying wine collections. Personally, I don’t agree with wine “collecting” per se. I believe that wine […]
Bob Borson over at Lifeofanarchitect.com recently wrote an excellent post about the benefits of Deconstruction versus Demolition. In it he talks about the environmental and financial benefits of deconstruction instead of demolition. The post can be boiled down to the following: demolition is quick demolition puts everything into the landfill […]
Noted design magazine, Forbes, recently published an article about the “8 Kitchen Design Trends to Avoid“. I happen to agree wholeheartedly with 2 of the 8 – avoid trash compactors and counter top microwaves. These should be avoided. Though, if your existing kitchen doesn’t have space for a wall or […]
I came across this rather large infographic (it’s like an internet poster) about kitchen design. It covers the most fundamental aspects of design. There is more to it than these basics, of course, but this is a good place to start. I told you it was large! by
The kitchen remodel project in Fremont was recently completed. This week I was able to take some pictures of the completed project. But before we look at the pictures of where we ended up, let’s look at the pictures of where we started. The original 1975 vintage kitchen had some […]