How does your Design Team work?

I am curious about how everyone keeps their Design Team working together on the same page.  Not only in class but in the real-world as well.

I am currently working at Design Center that has had a lot of turn-over in staff recently and we are at times scrambling to figure out what is going on with a prior in-progress client project.  With our lack of knowledge -the client is frustrated - makes the company look bad - etc...

Should there be a computer database of all daily customer interaction or should it be a paper copy?  Ideally - it would be nice to have a tablet/iPad that we could use as a notebook to electronically keep our notes - that everyone could access at any time.  But there are millions of APPS - and who has time to figure out which one is the best one, most user friendly, etc.

Good team communication is crucial for Interior Designers - I just want to find a simple way to keep everyone on the same page without taking a huge chunk of time to document notes.

Music to WORK to:

As finals projects and exams are just around the corner, I thought I'd provide a new perspective on some "push through it, drown out the world and get it done" music. I think many of us already turn to music to help us relax, focus, and get work done, but I also find that the same stuff over and over again can get old! So I turned to Songza.

Songza (if you aren't familiar) is a music site, much like Pandora, but rather than making a playlist for you there are pre-made playlists meant to fit a certain mood or activity. I found this playlist, "art school all-nighters", along with a list of similar playlists meant to help inspire and foster your creative (or desperate) efforts.  NOTE-I haven't listened to all of these, but based on my previous experiences with Songza I can assure you that there's someone for everyone!

Click here to head to the playlist!

If you're new to the site, all you do is select an activity or mood (usually based on the time of day, but there is also a side menu), and then pick from a few choices that the site thinks would be appropriate (again, there is also a search bar and menu).  I would also recommend "crowd-pleasing dance pop" and my personal favorite, "the perfect drive", for some good times. :)

As you move in the final stretch, don't forget: MAKE IT COUNT AND HAVE FUN! And hopefully Songza will help you get there.

Happy listening!

Three Famous Living Architects

In this blog I explore the careers and work of three famous architects still in practice today...



Frank Gehry

Born in Canada in 1929 , Frank Gehry is a well-known, controversial architect who currently works in Los Angeles. His style can best be described as "deconstructivism", a style characterized by distortion of shapes. Critics are quick to point out that his buildings are inefficient and sabotage cityscapes, while fans celebrate his cutting-edge designs and role as a pioneer in computer-based design.



Zaha Hadid

Born in Iraq in 1950, Zaha Hadid is an Iraqi-British architect. Critics of Gehry will likely be even more off-put by her style as she further pushes "deconstructivism" into a futuristic blend. Her work is well-regarded and she may be the most sought-after current architect around the world, but like Gehry she recieves many of the same criticisms for her standoff-ish buildings and inefficient designs. She deserves special recognition, however, for her role as a pioneer in a traditionally male-dominated field.



Tadao Ando

Tadao Ando, born in Japan in 1941, is everything Hadid and Gehry are not. Ando's work can best be characterized as "minimalist". His work seeks to blend in with its environment, and the beauty is often in what isn't there as much as in what is there. Ando, who taught himself architecture, still works in Japan where his buildings seem to evoke Japanese philosophical history.

What are some of your favorite works by these architects or your favorite architects still in practice today?

Defying the Time-Space Continuum

I don't know if you realized it - but Friday night the earth stood still.  For a brief moment in time, their was world peace.  At least at my house!  I was in an alternate universe where the Interior Designer and General Contractor were actually working together for the common good.

We were going through a set of drawings Paul was pricing.  He was trying to get the price back into the client's budget.  For example, the project has 90 doors - the specified door frame is $150, the slab $350, and the hardware was $500 per door/opening.  We were surprised that all offices had doors - when the trend is 'open/transparency.'  NOTE:  Some personal offices do need doors - but not all offices in this particular building would require doors.

We were looking at the number of bathroom fixtures.  Doing the basic occupancy load calculations - the 50,000 SQFT space needed 11 water closets for just the women!  It seemed excessive for the number of actual staff of about 100 to 150 people.  I am curious what the actual occupant load calculated by the architect was - the numbers weren't on the CDs I was looking at.

I have always felt that the Designer and General Contractor should sit down and go through the drawings together.  Paul had marked up most of the detail drawing pages.  The detail/elevation tags on the detail pages didn't always match what was tagged on the plans.  So Paul couldn't 'see' what the designer was doing or trying to explain.  I could 'see' what and where the detail drawings were showing.  So I was able to talk Paul through it - so he could then actually 'see' what was going on.  Making it easier for him to deconstruct and price accordingly.  

In the real world, in the last 10 years the amount of time a General Contractor has to look over and price a building has gone from a couple of weeks to 'needed the price last week.'  The same is true for Architects and Interior Designers - everything has to be done last week, so we glance at the drawings as they go out the door - hopefully to the right client.

So in my little part of the world on Friday night - the earth did stand still, there was world peace, and Santa was able to put us back on the 'Nice' list.  The Interior Designer and General Contractor played well together, with no fighting!!

I learned that the really cool rooms with-in rooms we LOVE to incorporate into all of our commercial design projects are actually a Fire Protection NIGHTMARE!  You have to put sprinkler heads above the structure as well as inside the small room - plus you can only have a certain percentage of run-off or 'trapping' of fire suppressant.  Not to mention - what happens if the fire suppression system has some kind of leak - you have to think about adding drainage.  So Paul has pretty much squashed any of my design dreams involving the room with-in a room trend.  That's OK though - I would furious if my award-winning design was ruined by unanticipated sprinkler heads.

FURNITURE MANUFACTUERS WITH CAD

It can be a pain on projects to determine what furniture manufacturers provide CAD drawings through their websites that students can use instantly and for free. I have created a list of some for future reference:

http://www.blastation.com/
http://www.livingdivani.it/EN/Home.aspx
http://www.hermanmiller.com/
http://www.knoll.com/
http://www.lammhults.se/
http://www.encoreseating.com/
http://bretford.com/
http://www.coalesse.com/
http://www.hbf.com/Pages/Home.aspx
http://www.hightoweraccess.com/
http://www.bebitalia.com/

Let the Sunshine in

This week I wanted to reflect on the idea of taking the outdoors in. Although it's not a new idea, this concept has gained a lot of popularity recently. From green sculpture to glass walls, designers and architects have begun to truly appreciate and emphasize the importance of nature to our well being and it is starting to show in the rest of the industry as well. Here are a few examples, past and present:

1. CREATE, Singapore, Perkins&Will

Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise at the Singapore National Research Foundation--combination of outdoor space with overhead cover and exposed spaces. successfully integrates the indoor and outdoor as well as usable transition space. Makes the outdoor feel cozier and the interior feel more spacious.

2. Green Sculpture

Great way to bring a sense of nature and complexity into an otherwise simple space. Really creates a contrast with the white as well. (what great staircases!)

3. Farnsworth House, Mies Van der Rohe

One of the originals-Van der Rohe created a space that literally showcased the outdoors and used the landscape to add to the interior.

4. 3-Form

Now has the option to incorporate natural products between pressed glass to create a more open and natural environment

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It's all about the details.....

 

Since Christmas, my husband has spent every weekend staining, applying urethane, and then installing Oak door trim and Oak baseboards on the main level of our house.  One would think this is a pretty easy task - but it has taken significantly longer than ever imagined.  Why?  Because each piece of Oak has a different grain pattern/size that takes the stain differently - we have to look at 2 or 3 pieces of trim or base at each location, determine which piece looks the best for that area, etc.  As we are going through this very tedious task, I realize that I overlook this small detail - BASEBOARDS - on all of my Interior Design class projects.

When it comes to residential baseboards, we actually have a few basic choices to make.....wood (painted or stained) or tile.  The heights are fairly standard.  The builder basic is about 4 inches tall.  As the base height increases the finish product becomes more "high-end."  My husband and I always look at the baseboards when we go into someone's home - it tells a lot about the overall quality of the home.

Why do we have baseboard?  

To cover the last of the rough carpentry. 

 

How do you determine what kind of baseboard to use? 

• For my house, we decided painted baseboards on the basement level and second floor. 
• Oak baseboards on the main floor.
• All three levels use the same trim height and profile

 

1. Retained original white painted base.Oak base against new oak floor – too much wood and very dated.

 

2. 'Quarter-round’ in addition to the baseboard. 

 

3. New oak base with new tile floor.  White painted trim would look dingy and dirty next to the tile.



 

4.  White painted base with light color carpet.  Base disappears; you see the wall color contrast against the flooring.

5. 'Quarter-round’ in addition to the baseboard. White painted base with darker wood floor. 

 

6. White painted base with carpet color similar to wall.  Gives a clean transition between wall and flooring.



  

Quarter-round is used typically with wood and tile floors when the flooring material is not tight against to the finished wall.

 

Bathrooms are difficult to determine the type of base to use, especially near toilets and showers/tubs because of all the water. 

• Tile base seems logical – the initial cost of the base is expensive; the maintenance of the gout is time consuming. 
• Painted wood base is inexpensive to install, but is quickly damaged by the water.
• Stained wood base material cost is expensive, install costs same as painted wood trim, but finish can be damaged by cleaning chemicals then allowing water to damage the wood.