Before you begin

25 03, 2010

More than just a pretty picture

By Steve McKee|2010-03-25T06:07:56+00:00March 25th, 2010|Before you begin, Thinking like an architect, Uncategorized|Comments Off on More than just a pretty picture

An engineer buddy of mine likes to joke that architects just create “pretty pictures,” while engineers deal with real things like forces and loads. He knows this statement is simplistic, but that’s just all the more reason for him to chuckle. How easy it would be to just draw the alleged pretty pictures and be done with it. But really, it’s so much more interesting to go beyond “pretty” and also infuse a building with a multitude of nuanced choices that will enhance the quality of everyday life. Like the way a second floor window that is obviously there to [...]

26 06, 2009

Secret weapons of design

By Steve McKee|2009-06-26T06:22:47+00:00June 26th, 2009|Before you begin, My favorite columns, Thinking like an architect, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Secret weapons of design

Over the years I’ve found there are certain tools used in designing a house that are so useful and so powerful that they deserve to be in some sort of Hall of Fame. Barring that, I will at least list them here. I’m talking about the type of design where clients get to be a part of all the important decisions involving their house. Perhaps there is another type of design; if so, I’m unaware of how to make a living doing it. The method that I’ve been using for the last twenty years relies on owner and architect bringing [...]

22 04, 2008

Building green, getting real

By Steve McKee|2008-04-22T22:22:54+00:00April 22nd, 2008|Before you begin, Elements of Design, Thinking like an architect, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Building green, getting real

To build green is to create a structure that is designed and built and operated in an ecological and resource-efficient manner. This includes the use of energy efficiencies in every way, lowering water consumption and selecting building materials for durability and performance and also providing for healthy indoor air quality. Just about every article I’ve read about green building discusses this subject in big general statements like the above paragraph, and when I’m finished reading I usually feel no closer to being able to do anything real about it. It would be very easy for me to write my own [...]

22 11, 2007

You, the tile shop, the decision

By Steve McKee|2007-11-22T04:04:23+00:00November 22nd, 2007|Before you begin, Elements of Design, Uncategorized|Comments Off on You, the tile shop, the decision

It can overwhelm a person to stand in XYZ tile shop surrounded by so many possibilities. So, so many. But going in, you and your significant-other had a strategy. A ”look” that the two of you discussed a few times already, like when an image of a cool bathroom happened by in the Sunday Chronicle magazine. Or whispered about briefly in the dark of a Diane Keaton movie when the to-die-for kitchen up on the screen caused you both to miss dialog in order to point out the black stone countertop with the subway tile backsplash and the white raised-panel [...]

19 09, 2007

Figuring out how much your building project will cost

By Steve McKee|2007-09-19T04:06:43+00:00September 19th, 2007|Before you begin, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Figuring out how much your building project will cost

If the title of today’s article got your interest, get in line. Estimating the cost for a building project is one of the most critical steps in the early decision making, yet remains one of the most vexing. It’s a classic “catch 22” situation: We need a full set of drawings to figure out the cost but don’t want to commit to drawings until we know we can afford the project. Later, when a design is finalized and a full set of drawings and structural calculations are meticulously completed, a bid process exists in which builders scrutinize these drawings and [...]

17 08, 2006

Getting bids: “The rules”

By Steve McKee|2006-08-17T04:41:44+00:00August 17th, 2006|Before you begin, Uncategorized|Comments Off on Getting bids: “The rules”

In a perfect world, sealed bids for your construction project would be delivered before noon on a designated Friday and then opened at three o’clock and read aloud to the small crowd of assembled builders hoping to get your job. Actually, now that I think about it, that sounds a little too rigid and uptight for the world I want to live in. But the scenario I just depicted actually is the way it was done on huge school remodels that my old boss would do. After many days of effort assembling their bids, the builders really had a lot [...]