Adding To Your Life

Last Spring,longtime friend and client Connie lamented over lunch  about not having a screened  porch on her Keowee lakefront home. When I asked her why she didn't add one she responded by saying several builders had told her there was no way to put a porch  where she wanted one because of her complex roof line.

" Sure you can", I said.

Just after Labor Day the selected contractor will begin her porch project. The journey from that lunch time conversation to her new reality was actually, pretty typical in the custom designing process for me. It has been the first of a lifetime  experience for Connie. Even clients who have had design services in the past may not have experienced the  extended process necessary for making an addition to a home. It  can be complex.

I would love to tell you I was able to smooth everything so successfully Connie had a stress free experience but this was not the reality. The process requires a lot of work on the part of the client.

Sequential decision making is necessary. It is true some clients say, "Just do it!" but most want to have a say in the  function, the style and the budget of their projects. Which means putting in the time
and the hard decision making is required. This sounds tough, I know but it is the truest path to a successful design that is yours.

It is a key responsibility of the designer to help the client identify the function, the style and the budget  for their projects.  Just yesterday I received an inquiry e-mail about our services. In that e-mail, the homeowner said,
"...my experience in the past with decorators is they have their own style or I have been unable to adequately communicate my preferences and I've ended up with rooms that are too formal/traditional for me."

Her lament is the very definition of  the differences between a decorator and a designer. A decorator does just that, styles (decorates) your home for a season or to reflect current trends. It is a lot like going to Talbot's or Chico's for their pros to "style" your personal look. There is a tremendous difference in having your home decorated in the latest home fashions and having one designed to meet your needs both functional and aesthetic.

Designers are educated in  creating volumetric art which  uses the elements of light, color, texture, scale, contrast, focal point and furnishings  to create an environment which reflects the interests, lifestyle and functional needs of the occupants which compliments the architecture and the views out every windows. We designers  bring the full comprehensive design process to every project of every scope and every budget.

With Connie, we broke the process out into stages.

 In the assessment stage, I came  to her home to
take field measurements, take photographs of her architecture from the rear, to analyze how a porch would look from the dock, to identify best views we wanted to capture and to determine the material use best suited to her contemporary architecture.

The most important part of this process was the interview to determine how the porch would be used. It sounds simple but Connie's needs included her daily enjoyment of her gorgeous location, and adequate space for dining and gathering for her frequent entertaining schedule. To my delight , we also discovered  she  loved the idea of having the perfect spot for  her grandchildren to experience Summer nights sleeping on a porch, watching the fire flies and the stars to the tunes of the hoot owls.

In the design stage we produced Plans "A" and "B" with both bird's eye views and elevations of how either plan  would  actually look on her house. The plans show options for a vaulted ceiling of either a hip or a gable style, a straight out  from the  main house  floor plan and the other  angled  to the long view up the lake. That long view was really, really nice but angling the Porch  visually dominated her architecture. We wanted a more cohesive statement so we choose the straight out floor plan and revised a furniture plan  angled  to capture the long view.

Once all the decisions have been made on the footprint and the materials, we produce design documents by which the projects are permittted,  bid and, built. A selected plan is   finalized with  an on site review of all the materials selected: woods, stone, screen, railing, roofing, lighting, skirting, stain, furnishings,  to give the client the best visual possible of what will be built and how it will look. Those series of decisions are necessary to make a project perfect. In some cases, clients are not good with conceptual space so for these folks we mark the outline of the floor plan onto the ground with marking paints or flags and tape.  It is always an emotional and a financial expense to add an addition to one's home so we do our best to help the client "see" what does not yet exist.  

Bidding out the project is actually pretty simple. Invite  2 or 3 good builders to come meet the home owners,  walk the site, review the plans. Encourage builders to bring their best crew and make any alternative recommendations they may have, before they bid, so those changes can be reflected in the bid.

The hard part for Connie was in choosing the builder! All good builders, with solid reputations,  reasonable timelines and competitive bids. When you like them all, the choice is hardest.

If you are considering adding to your life, not just  to your house, then do  prepare for a positive experience by choosing those professionals who can best guide you in attaining your goal  in a way which will reward you with a "happily ever after". If you would like our assistance in reaching this goal please e-mail us, we will be happy to respond.

Planned Renovations

Have you been thinking about a remodeling project?  These days many families are choosing to invest in their existing homes rather than building or buying new. There are many reasons for this trend but the ones we hear most often are about heart.

One client 'June' called because she needed a main floor Master Suite. Her husband had mobility issues. This meant he needed to minimize his use of stairs and seriously needed a walk in shower. June wanted to stay in her home.  She loves her location, loves her neighbors  and did not want to abandon her beautiful garden which had taken her 15 years to perfect. She first called to ask if we could come and see if it was even possible to do what she was thinking.  What she had thought of doing wasn't really feasible but we were able to show her a way to meet her goals, honor a budget and improve the value of her property.  In fact, we were able to space plan her new Master so the primary view was of her beloved gardens.

Our client 'Andy'  called because she had a major plumbing issue. The quotes to fix the problem were substantial . When first she called it was to say she was simply  not going to spend that huge sum of money in a bathroom she had never liked!
If she was going to have that sort of disruption she

wanted the long desired heated stone floors, deep soaking tub and a vista.   In this particular instance we not only gave her the bathroom of her dreams, we actually  did a renovation plan which  both moved and expanded the bathroom in a way which brought it into this millennium. Andy now has dual sinks, a separate shower,  and linen storage  to go with her her new soaking tub, heated floors and fabulous view. Had she just done what the plumber recommended, she would have  never had the bath of her dreams.

Do you know how this works? Sometimes a family will have an idea about a renovation or remodeling project. They do a search, call 2 or 3 contractors to come and see if what they are thinking is feasible. A contractor evaluates from the professional viewpoint
of  can it be built?  For those of us who have a professional practice offering space planning and interior design services we start at a different point.  Is this the best option? Does it improve function , aesthetics, flow, resale? Is there a better approach to reach all the objectives  within the budget? Not just can it be done but is it the best that can be done? A contractor is credentialed to build, not design.  Designers and space planners are credentialed to plan space for maximum benefit and to infuse that space with style. 

How do we do this? It is a process. It starts with listening to your ideas , evaluating your architecture, your design style, you budget and making a plan. We do drawings!  You must have the correct space  before you place anything into that space.

Right now, on Keowee,  there are many houses with fabulous views and grounds for sale. Bargain prices abound. However,  quite a few of these houses are dated but can be renovated without the price per square foot exceeding prudence. Often these homes have floorplans with  isolated Kitchens, all the Bedrooms are  either up  narrow stairs or down steep stairs.  Many are plagued with beautiful rooms which are never used because they are at the front and the view is at the back! Decks are narrow, Porches are cramped, Bathrooms are ...  functional . We don't even need to talk about old carpets, wallpaper and tile counter tops  do we?  If the price, the view, the grounds are right for you, chances are we can renovate the house to make your biggest dreams come true.

Not long ago we updated  'Karen's' house.  We  took out just a portion of two walls, extended the kitchen, added texture to the fireplace wall, replaced all bath fixtures,  removed carpets, added hardwoods, paint and a few window dressings. Now, for the first time in a dozen years, Karen tells me every morning when she pads out to the Kitchen to make coffee she thinks, "I love my house!" .

Not long after Karen's renovations were complete she asked us to help her friend "Georgie" who had looked at purchasing a   1987 built house, off North Flagship,  which had never been updated. Georgie loved everything about the property except the house . She had assumed it would cost too much to " fix it"so hadn't made an offer.

We met on site with her realtor to discuss what worked for her needs and what did not. To her absolute delight we were able to show her how a few inexpensive changes solved all the space planning problems and everything else was just cosmetics. Georgie bought the house.  When she is entertaining on the Porch, she  reflects on having walked away from this dream  because she just had not been able to  recognize it was there.

If you have a dream for your home which has not been realized,  give us a call. Our services are listed on this blog pages right side column as are our e-mail address and phone number.  Don't be shy:

 keoweedesigner@gmail.com
 or
www.perspectivesinteriordesigns.com