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Posts tagged ‘Design Team’

May 13

Adventures in Remodeling, Part 3: The Kitchen

If you imagine your ideal kitchen, do you dream of a spacious room connected to the outdoors through a sunny breezeway that provides lots of storage?

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In this 3rd chapter about our 1920 bungalow project, Arciform’s lead carpenters Jamie Whittaker & Eric Delph share stories about the kitchen addition, with all of its special touches.

Jamie tell us that this kitchen is the hub & heart of the home, a space for living & creating. It’s full of ideas from the whole team that became reality, but not without challenges.

Some of his favorite features: the two beautiful dutch doors, one leading to the new covered back porch & the other to the the side yard.

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The custom kitchen table, which provides space for eating or lounging while watching a TV that can be concealed behind a drop-down panel in the wall.

Another favorite piece is the fridge. It started as a big, modern appliance & we “dressed it up” like a vintage cooler you might see in an old general store.

The spacious salvaged island provides plenty of room for family time, & the built-in storage has a pressed tin door panel to resemble a pie safe.

Eric lists the 1929 Magic Chef range as a gem. Our client bought it online from some distant state & had the seller store it while we remodeled. When our client called for delivery, he learned that the seller had passed away & the range could not be found! Our client had to fly someone down to find it & bring it home.

He also lists the large vintage sink as a favorite element, with its built-in double drainboards and legs.

We turned the original kitchen into a little walk-through library

Jamie installing the cabinetry in the breezeway

& PM Adam enjoying a hard day at work

Arciform & Versatile Wood Products Teams on this project included:

  • Brad Horne, senior drafter, responsible for documentation & working with the city of Lake Oswego. We could not have done this without him.
  • Marty Hegg did all the fixture & finish specifications.
  • Principal Designer Anne De Wolf worked closely with the creative clients.
  • PM Adam Schoeffel led the construction team, helped with detail development & found treasures like the kitchen island.
  • Devin Morrow assisted with project logistics.
  • Dave Thomas managed deconstruction, salvaged material organization & labeling, which was crucial.
  • Eric Delph was our primary site lead! Among many contributions he personally co-designed (with the client) & constructed the garage storage & its icebox doors, & kept the crew on track.
  • Jamie Whittaker was our co-site lead, chief of special projects & master of craftsmanship.
  • David Gamble built the cabinetry, walnut kitchen table & worked on the salvaged table & fridge panels.
  • Dan Brindusesc & Eric Voss built the exterior doors & did sash work on the stained glass windows.
  • Rene Flannigan & Brent Dickey did all specialty finishes on the salvaged table, wine cellar door & panels in the garage.

Thanks to our wonderful, creative & inspiring clients, we were all able to do what we love to do!

If you missed part 1 or 2 of this series, check them out here.

Professional photos by Photo Art Portraits & Blankeye.

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Feb 8

Your Whole House Plan Part One: A Solid Foundation

You may only be thinking about a quick update to your master bath or basement right now. But have you considered how the choices you are making on this remodel will affect the future plans you may have for your house?

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Creating a whole house plan will ensure that each step you take to improve your home will be thoughtfully considered and efficiently executed with the needs of future projects in mind. This will save time, prevent costly re-dos and offer the peace of mind that each improvement you make will dovetail seamlessly with the projects before and after it.

In this three part series, we’ll break it down step by step to offer which questions to consider and which best practices to keep in mind for each phase of your plan to ensure a result you’ll be happy with for the lifetime of your home.

Part One: Creating a Solid Foundation for your Whole House Plan

1. Identify Your Goals

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Before you spend any money on your home, it will be important to consider carefully the following questions:

  • Which investment will be right for your home based on its current value?
  • How does your plan fit in with the style and scope of homes in your neighborhood?
  • Which kinds of improvements are most appropriate for your stage of life and the life cycle of your family? Some remodeling projects recoup nearly 100% of their cost in increased home value- others may not but may be worth the investment for other reasons.

You’ll also need to keep both your family’s long term and short term needs in mind.
Consider:

  • How will your family’s needs change over the time you plan to be in your home?
  • Will you need to accommodate an aging parent?
  • Make room for your family to grow?
  • Prepare for an empty nest?

2. Assemble Your Team

Assembling the team of professionals you’d like to work with at the beginning will ensure clear communication and avoid unnecessary overlap or conflict between the responsibilities of each professional.

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At minimum, you’ll want to identify your:

        • Architectural Design Team
        • Construction Team
        • Interior Decorator
        • Landscape Architect

Keep in mind that each of these teams will have existing relationships with city officials and subcontractors who will also end up being an important part of the decision making process as you develop your plan.

As a design|build company, Arciform offers an integrated design and construction team that will stay with you every step of the way and coordinate all of the other professionals you will need to complete your projects.

3. Develop Your Design

Your whole house design will take into consideration any engineering, systems upgrades (like new heating or electrical) and structural changes required to meet your long term goals.

EUGENIS & AMY. CONSTRUCTION SET REVISED. FULL SCALE. 18X24. 2.17.15

It will also develop the design details for each proposed project so that they will fit the architectural style of your home while showcasing your family’s unique tastes and personality. Along the way your design team will help you consider the following questions:

  • Which layout changes will make your home function better?
  • What storage needs do you have?
  • Which appliance or technology upgrades are you hoping to incorporate?
  • Which architectural details will integrate well with your home’s era and style?
  • What mood and design aesthetic would you like the finished spaces to evoke?
  • Which colors, shapes, textures and design details would you like to see integrated into the finished project? Every detail of your proposed project that can be selected in advance will save costly delays and change orders later.

4. Deal with the Foundation First

If your goals include updating the seismic bracing, mitigating water infiltration or expanding the head height in your basement, these are all projects that should be tackled prior to any interior renovations. This includes digging out your foundation or lifting your house if necessary.

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Getting your basement completely dry will often also require a look at your rooftop water management systems, your landscaping plan (to be sure water is being directed away from your foundation with appropriate grading) and may include the installation of underground french drains to route groundwater around and away from your home.

5. Update your Mechanical Systems

Are new furnace or heating systems part of the long term plan for your home?

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As un-sexy as these basic mechanical upgrades can be, they can make a huge difference to your comfort in the home. They also require ripping into walls, usually on multiple floors, so it is best to take care of them early before you start any internal renovation projects.

The last thing you want to do is tear into your beautiful new paint job to arrange the installation of a  heating duct.

6. Button Up Your Envelope

After your mechanical systems are updated, its time to consider what energy performance upgrades might be needed in your home.

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Sealing the cracks and air holes that create drafts, adding insulation and installing new windows and doors can all happen prior to any internal renovations.

Thayer Perspective

Next Step: The Fun Part! Planning your Interior Renovations

In the next installment we’ll take it floor by floor to offer insight into which projects to tackle first and what questions to ask as you design your dream kitchen, master suite and basement.

Explore the Arciform Project Galleries | About Arciform | Schedule a Design Consultation

 

Apr 14

Meet Design Department Manager Marty Hegg

Marty vacation

Here is Marty after a Cape Lookout hike with “my two favorite people in the whole, wide world, Erik & Birgita.”

After working with Arciform for several years, we are delighted to promote Marty Hegg to the role of Design Department Manager. This recognizes the extremely important (but often behind the scenes) role she plays in every design we execute for our clients.

We sat down with Marty to learn a bit more about what inspires her about the design process.

When did you know you wanted to work in architectural design? Tell us how you got inspired to do this work.

I have a hundred technicolor & tactile memories from Kindergarten: my best friend’s living room walls (Easter egg lavender)…

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…our green scratchy frieze upholstery on the “davenport”…
…the oh-so-fancy red, flocked wallpaper at Eve’s Buffet (Fred Meyer’s restaurant)….

brick floor

… the brick-look flooring in my Aunt Mary’s kitchen….

terrycloth bedspread

… and my parents’ terrycloth bedspread I used to pretend was a fancy garden for my Fisher Price toys to play in.

Going over to friends’ or relatives’ homes, I often gave myself a secret, solo house tour to get the layout in my head. I have been drawn to interiors ever since I can remember, especially how different materials and colors can change the look and feel of a space.

Describe one of your favorite Arciform projects. What were the challenges? What were some of the features that made it memorable?

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The Hardison home is one of my favorite Arciform projects. I used to think Victorian homes were a little stuffy and formal, but these clients, Anne and all of the crew infused their home with such a sense of play. It is beautiful yet welcoming, cozy and creative, designed for the whole family to really enjoy.

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Getting the submarine hatch up to the deck at the 3rd floor addition was a huge challenge! Actually, finding and purchasing the submarine hatch alone was a little scary.
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What do you enjoy most about your job?

I love hunting for and finding anything from tile to cabinet hardware to great paint colors, then sharing them with the design team or clients. Pinterest is one of my favorite ways to collect gems to spec for our clients (paper-free, so I don’t fill any file cabinets).
I work with some incredible people, too! It is a beautiful thing to work alongside people who are both creative AND problem solvers. The design-build world is such a dynamic environment. I love walking out in the shop and seeing designs take their beautiful shape. I learn something every day from at least one person under this big roof.

What are the top 3 things on your “bucket list?”
1. To be an aerial photographer over North & South America for a month or so (childhood dream career).

2. To trace my maternal roots while exploring as much of Mexico and Spain as possible.

3. To visit Slovakia and see the house my grandfather grew up in, discover the Tatras Mountains & travel up the Danube.

Explore the Arciform Project Galleries | About Arciform | Schedule a Design Consultation