On shapes

In my case while I'd admired and critiqued other house shapes actually drawing a floor plan of our own home was new territory.  So the method I used was to first think about what the core shape would be. 

A simple rectangle or classic L shape was out - almost every project home was a series of perpendicular rectangles with few going outside of these boundaries; so it was easy to decide what I didn't want.  Drawing from my inspirations I concocted a basic layout using a pencil and paper.

My initial sketches combined the curved glass wall with the obtuse L shape.  This provided a starting point so I could begin adding extra rooms and seeing how well it worked.  I proceeded to add rooms around the perimeter of the basic shape and out of it came a basic layout that is pretty close to what it looks like today.

The shape of an obtuse L configuration provided something unique that would have angles that would challenge the eye and provide interest in its form. The rooms would protrude from this core shape; it was important that the shape was not diluted and still visible from both the outside and inside of the home.

The placement of rooms followed the requirements of maintaining close proximity of rooms that had relationships with each other.  The children's bedrooms were at an arms length from the master bedroom but close to the main bathroom, the study could open out to the main living area and it would be no problem getting the groceries from the car to the kitchen.  Other touches like a deck and pool added food for thought.

One thing that was obvious is that we would not be able to fit everything on one floor.  So the guest room was missing and there were also practical considerations like storage that were still unanswered.  However, this technique definitely worked well for getting all my thoughts together where they could be analysed and allowed to evolve. 

It was also fair to say that the true appearance of the house could not be seen or abstracted from a simple two dimensional floor plan.  Three dimensions would be needed to express the concept in its full form.

On rooms

As we are building a home of our own design we put a lot of thought into what rooms we would need.  The location of rooms in relation to each other is also an important factor to ensure that the home works and does not present hurdles when carrying out daily activities.

There are a number of techniques that I had seen such as bubble diagrams for working out the position of rooms relative to each other; although honestly I didn't use them when putting together ours.  I relied on practical ideas of how to overcome common design problems with everyday living.

The first requirement was that it would be a family home, so two kiddie bedrooms were top of the list.  The bedrooms would need to be a decent size to avoid the overly cluttered look and have enough room for when their inhabitants are older, so 3 x 4 m would be the minimum.

As the central meeting point of the home, the kitchen was also of high priority.  There is a commonly known test for kitchens called the work triangle test.  This is said to ensure an efficient working environment by ensuring that the fridge, oven and sink are all in a triangular pattern from each other.  A large working bench and also a generous pantry would be ideal attributes.

The first rule of the bathroom is that it would have a separate WC.  The WC would need to be spacious enough for a basin so that one's not hampered when the bathroom is in use. 

For the main bedroom we wanted a large ensuite and walk-in-robe.  Who wouldn't? Otherwise it needed to be in reasonable proximity to the other bedrooms.

I tend to spend a bit of time in the study when working on either personal projects or occasionally work, so it was important to me that the study was open to the main living areas.  This way I supposed I could remain in touch with what was going on, rather than being hidden from view.  However a large cupboard where all the computer junk and books could be hidden from view would make the room workable from a practical perspective.

A guest room would be useful to accommodate visiting friends and family - with its own bathroom to make things comfortable.  But small enough to make sure they want to limit their stay too :-p

While a part of the philosophy of this home has been to minimise the number of living spaces to remove duplication, there would need to be one exception for when there was one Masterchef fan and one Rugby League fan eager to watch their favourite show on a Friday night.  So a family room would also be added into the mix.

One of the last two rooms would be the laundry.  In our townhouse the laundry is narrow and difficult.  Something that would open things up and allow actual laundry activities like folding possible would be nice.

Finally the garage.  Here is where the requirements become a little less ordinary.  Together we have three cars and a motorcycle so lots of space was always going to be important.  We settled on a four-car garage to also provide workshop space.  It would need to be close to the kitchen so that bringing the groceries in from the car would be easier.

As I mentioned earlier when designing the positions and relationships of the rooms I didn't use a bubble diagram.  However out of interest I have decided to give it a go and see how it would look, the results are below.

On influence

Ideas are often built on the shoulders of others.  The challenge of where to start our own design was quite daunting, so drawing from the influences of others would make the seemingling impossible possible.

Early inspiration was found when I was looking through the Domain insert from the Sydney Morning Herald where I ran across a unique obtuse angled L shaped house by the Sydney architect David Boyle.  The shape provided an interesting layout which avoided the common perpendicular box amalgamation or right angle L shape for something more challenging.

Other influences came from the UK Channel 4 television series 4, episode 5 of Grand Designs.  The episode was called the Curved House, designed by Threefold Architects.  I had seen it quite a few years earlier but of all the designs presented on this show it was a standout.  What appealed to me was the openness of the living areas that opened out to the backyard which was made possible by creating windows along unique curved shape.

As our design evolved other influences resolved issues with the details.  Most notible was a northern facade of the "the toaster", better known as Bennelong Apartments. There was also the more unusual such as aircraft hangers.

Not all influences stood the test of the design process, however they all contributed to the exploration of the possibilities.

On white

White is the colour of occupational health and safety.  More specifically it is the name of the Construction OHS induction certification, i.e. the White Card.  To become an owner builder in NSW one needs a permit to build and the White Card is a prerequisite of the Owner Builder Course.  Unlike the Owner Builder Course which may be completed online, the White Card course is mandatory face-to-face delivery.

So I picked a Saturday morning to complete my first step towards our home and booked myself into a White Card course at Parramatta.  Arriving at 8:30am, I proceeded to spend the next 20 minutes finding a full day's parking in Parramatta's notorious one-way streets and 2 hour parking meters.  Once seated in the class room I noticed a diverse mix of students; mostly tradespeople or the unemployed looking for ways to improve their prospects.

As one would hope, the instructor was an expert in all things safety.  He was a safety investigator and had a treasure trove of experience investigating when things go horribly wrong.  How wrong?  Apparently three people die while at work every day in Australia and many more are disabled or seriously injured.  So the message of the course was very much about identifying hazards and performing risk analysis to determine what action to take.

At the conclusion of the course we all did an exam and all passed.  It turned out the instructor was a fellow student pilot so we talked headsets, course structures and aircraft types while we waited for everyone to finish :-) 

Be safe!

On architecture

'Architecture is the intention of permanence' - Robert Hughes

As I started this blog part way through the design process of our build, when there is nothing new to report I will revisit the old.  The architecture of our home falls under the latter category.

I have long held a passion for architecture, as Seinfeld's George Costanza always said he wanted to be an architect, a part of me did too.  Originally we considered project homes, but it soon became clear that despite some promising designs ultimately they did not satisfy our requirements.  Something custom to our needs was the obvious solution.

To me, it comes down to understanding how you live; that is the pathways one takes day-to-day whilst performing everyday activities.  Whether you're doing chores such as cooking or gardening, or enjoying the luxury of leisure, maybe watching sport or writing a blog, they are all connected and in my view it is the job of the architecture to link these activities so they can function within the same environment.

That doesn't make it sound easy!  So breaking large problems into smaller ones and adding some guiding principles for good measure is the solution:

Be together - Many modern homes today have three places you can eat and four places to relax and watch TV.  I'm not suggesting that you have can't have any time alone, but the architecture should encourage cohabitation of its spaces.

Be practical - A home that allows form overtake function will never achieve harmonious living.  A nice motherhood statement; translated, the layout of the rooms must have a working relationship with each other.

Be stateful - The asthetics of the home should inspire and promote a feeling of happiness to its inhabitants.  To achieve this it should reflect the style that the owner wishes to convey and makes a statement of who they are.

Be modern - A home is not modern because of how it looks, it also must be suited to modern lifestyles.  For example, homes of the 50's and 60's have next to zero storage because people just did not have the wealth of belongings that we have today.  The architecture must suit the needs of today.

So with these princples the task of designing an architecture that would serve as a permanent home for Dani and I would commence.

On focus

I vow the procrastination to end and to begin the build of our new home.

Last October my wife, Danielle, and I bought a block of land in Kellyville NSW with the plan to build a new home for us and our future family.

What better way to record the build story than a blog?  I hope it will not only entertain and inform followers, but also act as a journal to capture all the thoughts and ideas that will run through my mind to reminisce in the future.

So to move things along and allow me to focus, the work on my race car will take a hiatus and my pilot's license is on hold.  I have a passion for design and seeing things done so the ultimate test begins now.

Enjoy!