Going Mobile

I come from a place where homes are built from reenforced concrete and stone sidings, construction time will take about a year. I moved to a place where house constructions methods are called "sticks" "balloon frame". A place where homes could be just ordered out from a catalog, be assembled within hours after their delivery.
In the town I live in the housing market is very active. Houses are being sold and bought routinely, homes are torn down and mini-mansions are being built along side small nondescript small houses. On my street alone there are currently 3 active job sites. One had been completely raised to the ground, to the second house a massive addition was put on, and the third one caught my attention - the home was taken down, but the foundation was left in tact. A few weeks after, our street was closed down for the day, as trailer trucks delivered prefabricated parts of the home. At the end of the day a towering 3 story home had been added to the street.

I have to admit my initial reaction was shock and dismay seeing a home built at record speed is unsettling to say the least. After a few days as I was driving through my town I noticed a few more of these mobile homes being assembled. I was even approached by friend to make comments on some plans, and you guessed it, it was a mobile home plan. Even Dwell Magazine wrote up a piece about it in it's latest issue. Now that really caught my attention.

In 1908 Sears had started a mail-order home, so the mobile, pre-fabricated home is not a new concept. What is interesting to notice is the shift in peoples' idea towards the pre-fabeicated home along the years. From the initial excitement of this a modern way of building a home fast, to turing away from it as it were a cheap low-cost home, and now turning full circle back to it. 

I guess it has to do with many factors. We are just now seeing the spring of a reviving housing market, people have been hit hard, and are slower to part with money and many decisions being made at family tables want to eliminate the many of "unknown" factors. The finicky weather in the region can grind many construction sites to a holt, thus increasing the building costs and prolonging the process. Dealing with private contractors is intimidating to many people, who do you trust? The down side to pre-fabricated homes is that people feel they are limited with their choices, they can't leave their own personal mark. Homes will all look the same. It still suffers from this is a "cheap low cost home" reputation. 

On a larger scale, I feel mobile homes are the way to go these days. Like with the fashion industry, customization will become more and more available - thus eliminating the "they all look the same" fear. The known cost and time factors are huge at alleviating the unknown for many people. They can now focus on picking colors and kitchen cabinets rather than fighting with a contractor over hidden costs. Further more, this is the environmentally right thing to do, the martial waste is smaller, they can be re-used later on (maybe moving it to lower income areas), and they are now built to be energy efficient, the cleaner process allows for better quality control of the overall process. It sounds so easy I'm even tempted to try this myself. 

Let's be Honest

so many choices so little time

I like coffee to be coffee, non of that vanilla hazelnut with pumpkin pie twist, tea should be the strong black kind. Food needs to have a clean fresh taste, not overwhelmed with spices. I'm what people would describe as a "purist", I like things to be what they are, no smoke and mirrors.

"Keep It Simple Stupid" or Kiss-it, as I like to say, might sound like an easy thing to maintain, but the design material options out there make it hard thing to follow. Design is a very intricate process, which has many layers and facades to it. If you have ever lied in your life (we all have), you know how hard it is to stick to the made up facts. Design, the great mimicker of life, is like that. If you "lie" with your design, it will eventually catch up to you.

What does it mean to "lie" with your design choices? In my view it means using materials that imitate "real" things in the wrong way, best example I can think of is the use of formica (laminate) countertops to look like granite. The disappointment displayed by people, when they touch that fuax countertop that feels warm, plastic, and light weight , verses the cool, slick, heavy feel of real granite - is telling.

But what if we take that concept and twist it around? We need a countertop, and our budget is tight. Rather than trying to pass ourselves as something we can't afford to be, I'd suggest trying to a least pass off as thoughtful and creative. In recent years laminates have become one of my favorite materials to use, it's easy to clean, has a consistent look, and the variety of options seems endless. I've learned to embrace the 'faults' of laminate (such as obvious seam lines) and incorporate it in the design itself. Showing the world loud and proud - yes this is LAMINATE!

Laminate pride 

It's what I call remaining authentic to ones self (or material). Authentic design t's not about using "real" materials like wood, granite, marble - most of us can't afford these in our homes, let alone offices. It's about remaining true to the limits of your project (budget, structure, etc.), it's using materials the way they are intended to be used and not passing off mutton as lamb.

When you understand the qualities a certain material possess you will invoke honest and authentic design. People will be able to read the space as authentic and honest, which in return will make them more open to trust.

Force of Habit

photo by // Emily Neumann

Alarm goes off, scroll down the device to see if the world is still out there, swing out of bed, wear a sweater, walk down the stairs, turn on coffee machine.

Habits are hard to kick off and are ingrained in us. The way we move about our most comfortable and known domains, our home, our office, is automatic. I don't think about which leg swings out of bed, I just swing it, I don't think which hands goes first into the sweater, I don't think about how I walk down the stairs without making the floor creek my brain already learned how to walk around the loose floor boards. Humans are creatures of habits, so much so that we don't even notice how we move about and use the space around us.

When I was in school one of my professors declared, "Designers can't and should not design their own spaces". I was baffled, I mean who would know better than I how to create my home or office? After years of working with people and companies, I can safely say - there is much truth to that statement.

When people first approach me to work with them there is always a slight tension at the start of the process (almost like first date jitters, except I'm the serial dater). The design process is an intimate back and forth of sorts. I'll need to observe, ask questions like what side of the bed you sleep on, how many times a day do you use that hallway bathroom, are you a lefty. These questions are about learning your habits your small movements so I can provide you with the most functional space you can get. In return I get clients that doubt and second guess some of my choices, like kitchen handles I pick out - you don't use your hands the same way when you are 30 or when you are 60.

It's hard to make a leap of faith when you know how YOU move about a space. What people don't realize is that some of the habits they acquired along the years, are usually the result of bad design choices. Having the toilet placed in a such a spot that you can only brush your teeth with your left hand, because the door doesn't open all the way on the right, or placing the sofa in front of the TV, only to later realize this actually completely blocks the space and decreases the flow in the room. In more challenging (and costly) instances locations of entire rooms in a home or office have not been completely thought about, some office kitchens are located where everyone can smell what you are having for lunch.

It's a designers job to challenge your habits, take you off kilter, unbalance you. With some choices you'll agree, with some you won't, some will need some getting used to, but I can promise you this it's worth while going on this journey and explore for yourself how you move about the space.

And for those who are wondering, my designer is my husband who constantly challenges my habits.