Seeing Things From Our Client’s Perspecitve It is not unusual for somebody to only need an architect once or twice in their life, and many of our clients are working with an architect for the first time. We feel that communication is THE most critical aspect of our relationship with clients and so we work…

The Hard + Soft Truth about your project Costs When shopping for a bottle of wine, usually the first question the clerk will ask is “how much are you looking to spend?” This is not to try and take advantage of you, but rather not waste everybody’s time describing the qualities of the $300 bottle…

Architecture and Light The psychological effect that your surroundings have on your mood is absolutely fascinating. Many researchers and psychologists have spent quite a lot of time on researching the effects of different designs, structures, lighting styles and colors on your mind and mood. During many years of research, these professionals found that colors and…

What Is LEED? LEED stands for Leadership in Energy Efficient Design and is a rating system and agency that certifies buildings are sustainable according to their rating system. LEED, unlike PassiveHouse, takes many factors beyond energy usage into account when certifying a project. Indoor air quality, material sourcing, recycled content, and construction techniques are among…

Sustainable Design Strategies Green design is an idea that most people have heard of, but few understand what it means from on a practical level. Most people when they think of a Green Building think of solar panels, but in reality, there is much more to it. While onsite renewable energy generation like solar panels…

CRI (COLOR RENDERING INDEX) CRI is a measure of how accurately a light source can reveal the intrinsic colors of what it is illuminating.  Color is just the brain’s way of interpreting light wave frequency.  When light hits an object, it absorbs some frequencies and reflects others.  A red apple absorbs all the frequencies, except the…

Light and Mood How Architecture Uses Lighting Styles To Enhance Your Mood The psychological effect that your surroundings have on your mood is fascinating.  Many researchers and psychologists have spent quite a lot of time on researching the effects of different designs, structures, lighting styles and colors on your mind and mood.  During many years…

The Landmark Preservation CommissionHOW TO DESIGN IN A PROTECTED DISTRICT The LPC, or Landmarks Preservation Commission, is a city organization charged with protecting various historic districts and buildings. If your project falls within a historic district or is an individually landmarked building, you are required to gain approval from the LPC before any work can…

Do I Need an Architect? There are many reasons why you should hire an architect. Architects are designers and can typically deliver more creative, useful, and pleasing spaces than contractor’s or engineers (or you;) alone. Architects are trained project-managers and like a symphony conductor can help get all the various consultants, GCs, and sub-contractors to…

WHAT IS AN ARCHITECT? An architect is not simply somebody who works in an architecture firm or one who has graduated from architecture school. An architect is a licensed professional deemed by their jurisdictions to have met all criteria required to hold the license. It is a protected professional title. Each state has slightly different…

UNDERSTANDING PASSIVE HOUSE Passive House design is a strict design standard that limits the energy use of the house. While LEED concerned itself with many different factors, such as indoor air quality and embodied the energy of materials, Passive House only deals with energy usage. In the most basic terms, to achieve a Passive House…

FAR – Floor Area Ratio FAR is a zoning acronym that stands for ‘Floor Area Ratio.’ This number will dictate how much ‘floor area’ you can have in relation to the size of your lot. It is one of the methods used by city zoning regulations to control the overall size of a building. For…