3-D STUDIES FOR A CUSTOM HOME IN ANACORTES

It is hard for a lot of clients to visualize spaces, and it is very helpful when they ask me to generate 3D images so that they can see what I see when I am designing it. But it also is a way to further explore the topic and get into the details that I had not thought about. Here we are looking from the deck into the Great Room with staircase, Living Room, Dining Room and Kitchen to study. The house is under construction right now, the foundation is being poured, and wall framing will be next. We are actually doing things that will affect the wall framing, by going through this study.

This image shows the relationship of the beamed ceiling and tv/fireplace wall that we are studying.

This is looking into the kitchen and out tot eh side deck that has a BBQ and sink for covered outdoor entertaining off the kitchen- very Pacific Northwest!

Shot looking from the outside on the deck into the Living Room.

Then there was another idea that the client had saved from “HOUZZ”, that had flanking display shelves and some storage. I added a bench in front of the Electric Fireplace, as a place to warm up in the winter- I know people like to be able to sit by a fireplace when it is cold out, even though it is only electric, it will generate heat.

MADE IT TO A PROGRAM COVER!

Skagit Island Counties Builders Association! This was the kitchen that I did for my neighbor in Anacortes! The Contractor was “True Bearing Built”- my 3rd project with them- great contractor to work with!

WHIDBEY ISLAND REMODEL- 1 year to finish

When you don’t have lot of space and want a jetted jacuzzi tub and a shower, this works! It is a 48” long Japanese Style soaking tub that has really powerful jets- not those tickling bubbly ones that do not get into your sore muscles. Have done 2 projects with this tub and everyone loves it. 30” deep. EMPAVA EMPV-48JT11

The tub faucet is built into the lip of the tub with the controls and an integral sprayer to wash down the tub after use- very handy! The wiring is a bit tricky. The contractor did not look at my drawings when installing the cabinet handles and put the lower drawer handles in the middle of the door panel instead of at the top. This means that one has to bend down another 6 inches and practically touch your toes to open a drawer- ugh! My pet peeve! Please try to catch your hardware installer before they make this mistake….once the holes are drilled, it is over. You can patch the holes, but a divot will always be there.

The Laundry involved adding a skylight, changing flooring, adding cabinets . Much more functional with storage to put stuff and a folding counter.

Nice new shower in the Guest Bathroom!

New media cabinets with pull out drawers for an extensive record collection! Equipment hidden behind screened doors. Again, cabinet pulls are mounted in the center of the doors instead of a the top of the doors! The older that you get, the harder it is to bend down:-) No patching those holes now…..these cabinet installers are likely on the construction crew, do not look at the drawings, and are told to install the hardware….do I sound picky? God is in the details, as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe used to say!

Kitchen needed more storage, so the space under the overhang with filled in with cabinets. Easy fix! And people can still gather there.

MODERN ART STUDIO/SHOP ON WHIDBEY

Shop is on the left, Art Studio is on the right.

This will be the view from the street

The rear of the Art Studio will have a covered porch facing West.

Here is the other side of the Covered Porch of the Art Studio. I really like the split roof for the 2 halfs at 2 different angles.

KITCHEN & BATH MAKE-OVER IN ANACORTES, WA.

This was a challenging existing space with many 45 degree angles. I was determined to get rid of the 45 angles in the cabinets and not ditto them as the previous design had done.

Kitchen “AFTER” uses rift cut Oak Cabinets from “Smith & Vallee” in Bow, WA. Photo Credit- Damian Vines Photography.

The Kitchen “BEFORE” had angled cabinets everywhere and a refrigerator that took center stage. We moved the stove to the peninsula, moved the refrig. and kept the sink where it was.

The Kitchen “BEFORE” had a weird corner area to the right of the refrig. with more angled cabinets, even in places where the wall did not angle.

Kitchen “After” backsplash detail is glass mosaics that go well with the Quartzite counters. The gas stove was supposed to have a pop-up downdraft, but there was a structural member in the way so had to go with an over-head fan. New doors go out to the deck, where there once was a picture window.

AFTER- New Master Bathroom utilizes that existing space much better then the old design with flanking storage cabinets.

AFTER- The backlit Vanity Mirror really floats off the wall and adds good light at the same time.

The Master Shower ”AFTER” features a pre-fab shower base, a bench under the shower head, glass tiles (from Home Depot, no less) and a glass enclosure. The free-standing tub replaces a huge tub deck that took up most of the bathroom before. This is very light and airy.

Master Bath BEFORE had 2 sinks, an enclosed shower.

Master Bath BEFORE with huge tub deck. Very dated looking and not a good use of space.

CONTRACTOR = TRUE BEARING BUILT CONSTRUCTION (This is my 4th kitchen/bath job with them- they really keep the clients informed on weekly progress with reports that are very helpful)

Another Cool Modern House!!!

I am so excited to report the I have clients that trust my logic and vision for GOOD Architecture!!! I have had to fire 2 clients this year so far for not being able to listen to logic. I am so sorry. I do not like to do this, but when I am pushed to put my hard earned architectural stamp on work that I can not condone, the pressure is great. The process is complicated and I have so many appreciative clients that value my logic, and appreciate my vision. To those, I extend my heartfelt thanks! I am here to serve as best that my talents can do.

Working with a client right now on a vacant lot on Whidbey Island. Just starting to work with the 3D model of the site that I imported from the surveyor. There is a surprise 10’ drop from one side of the site to the other. I asked for a survey of the site and was able to crate a 3D site model with the slope of the site. These things are invaluable to access how tha house sites on the site.

The client wanted an outdoor covered porch , outdoor kitchen, hot tub.

There is a 9’ difference from one side of the lot to the other

Working on different elevations

The Lot slopes more dramatically then we thought- need to evaluate the grade changes….trying toi save trees.

ORCAS ISLAND RETIREMENT HOUSE- PRELIM. MODEL

A couple from California hired me to help them with their Retirement House on Orcas Island. The caveat was that I had to work with a retired building designer who hand drew all of his plans, elevations and sections in PENCIL. When I finally got his drawings, besides being very hard to read- (scans of pencil drawings-yikes), I could not get the big sloping roof to work from the 2nd floor down to the 1st floor as one slope. If I shortened up the 2nd floor, then I could get it to work.

Well, one thing led to another and I wound up doing a little re-design. He had the Master Bedroom on the 2nd floor and I think that all that I’ve read on “Aging in Place”, that the Master Bedroom has got to be on the FIRST FLOOR. SO I moved the Master Bedroom downstairs and put the 2 bedrooms upstairs.

Then the other issue was the Laundry room was tucked under a staircase landing with 7’ headroom and room for just stacking washer/dryers. No layout area, no linen storage. I flipped the laundry to the front porch with its own side door for their dogs, linen storage, side by side washer/dryer, sink & counter.. None of these changes went over well, so I wound up calling it quits. They held firm to the design that did not work, the roof that did not work, with no collaboration .

I could not put his design on my stamp, that was the bottom line. I have standards and that was that- had to fire the clients. This is very rare for me to have to do and I do it with a heavy heart. But it would have been a great house- let me know if you have a lot to build it on? 3 bedroom, 3 baths, really nice laundry off covered porch. Great covered outdoor seating area outdoor fireplace! Aging in Place! Passive Solar!

This is my favorite shot illustrating “Passive Solar Design” with a big South Facing bank of windows that form the window bench for the Dining Room. My re-design basically took the best elements of the other guys design and added Passive Solar- because this site is in a Forest, so it gets very little light. I was trying to capture that Southern Light for those cold winter months when every more bit of light is so much appreciated.

FIDALGO ISLAND KITCHEN ALL ARTED UP AND LIVED IN!

Got to go back and get some photos of the lived in kitchen and to see all the art installed. The corner floating shelves were a masterpiece to engineer and install! Luckily the homeowner was also a detailed wood worker and worked with the cabinet installers to get the shelves plumb and straight on the corner. The up-lighting on the upper shelves works really well with all of their art.

The blue and yellow theme plays out wonderfully though out the kitchen

Detail of the baking center drawers- big tub for 50 lb. bags of flour

Lots of storage for rolling pins and baking gear. It is all in the details. Fresh baked loaf of bread on the counter:-) Yum!

Pull out drawer next to “Le Cornue” stove for cooking utensils that normally clutter the counter, works really well.

Corner upper cabinet doors needed a double magnetic catch system to prevent sagging, because of the weight of the glass…took a few tries to get it right. Plus added 3rd hinge on the door.

Italian hinged corner cabinets work beautifully! Door pulls from Amazon in brass!

8 UNIT APARTMENT BUILDING STUDIES- ANACORTES

Just found out that I have to add a “Roof Deck” to the roof of the building that I already designed, because the roof deck on the 3rd floor does not count as a roof deck- it all about the interpretation of the code. And it can be interpreted 2 different ways, then the permit center’s interpretation wins.

The main concern is that it is going to add height to the building to extend the stair to the roof, so now we are over the 35’ height limit to meet this requirement that has been interpreted to add a roof deck on the upper roof, not lower roof.

The extended stair tower is going to be more noticible- we can’t add windows to it because it has to have a 2 hour protection fire rating.

This is what the Apartment Building looked like before we had to add a roof deck…..

FIDALGO ISLAND KITCHEN REMODEL FOR ARTIST COUPLE

It is my honor to be able to work with Josh Williamson of TRUE BEARING BUILT CONSTRUCTION on another project! The clients are both amazing artists and the centerpiece of the kitchen was all about the La Cornue Periwinkle Blue 110 Range and matching Hood.

https://www.truebearingbuilt.com/portfolio-items/fidalgo-island-remodel/

ARCHITECT: Island Architecture

CABINETS: Smith and Vallee Cabinet Makers

COUNTERTOPS: Creative Surfaces

PHOTOGRAPHY: Damian Vines

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

This is a fully re-visioned kitchen space that is hardly recognizable as compared to the old layout. Some bold moves make all the difference! The former location of the refrigerator was turned into a butler’s pantry, allowing the workflow to be rearranged for better functionality.

A new lighting plan with dimmable LED cans and undercabinet task lighting provides a warm ambiance, greatly improving functionality throughout the kitchen. Dramatic floating shelves add definition to the space, and the countertop and tile finishes complement the warmth of the wood finishes.

The project was made possible by a collaboration between Smith and Vallee Cabinet Makers and Island Architecture. Together, they tied the client’s love of art and design by adding pops of color and unique hardware to the project.

The wrap around corner floating shelves were quite the challenge to install, but with the help of the Artist, who is a wood worker, it was a collaborative vision that came to be.

The upper counter continues as a shelf that runs in back of the sink and into the lowered window sill to become a place of distinction for future art and plants to occupy.

The window was enlarged and the sill dropped. The clients have a huge art collection that they plan on displaying and I can’t wait to get some more shots with all their collection up and displayed! It will be a transformation of this Zen look, for sure. All the up-lighting above the cabinets is for art!!!! Can’t wait to see…..

Here is a photo of that amazing stove during construction- the photographer did not get a shot of this side of the kitchen for a good after shot, sorry! Love the color!!!!

This is the kitchen before. Dark Cherry cabinets with the stove in the back and heavy upper cabinets- we punched out a wall and added a window back where the old pantry was and expanded the kitchen back to gain counter space.

Kitchen Before

Kitchen Before- see how the window sill was high and cut off view to the garden?

Here is the shot I was looking for of the finished stove side!!!!!! Art is starting to bubble in….