Process

Great design begins with great vision. One of our favorite parts of the process is meeting with clients to listen to what their visions are. It's then that the project begins to take shape. We think of you as the designer, and offer our years of expertise and experience to help you see the pros and cons of different scenarios.

If your undecided on what design(s) you'd like, we invite you to view our extensive library of already completed home and renovation designs. Feel free to use them as suggestions or as inspiration.

We'll apply our years of experience with design, orientation, zoning, and conservation issues to not only initiate the process, but help keep it going as smoothly and quickly as possible.

Consultation

An initial consultation begins with a review of your site plan/lot layout and budget (for new homes) or a site visit and budget (for renovations and additions). We’ll talk about what you’d like to accomplish, listen to ideas and concerns, and answer questions.

We can also examine your home at this stage, to inform you of expected and sometimes unexpected construction costs that could occur. We typically save our clients money at this point by designing to minimize impact so we can lower construction costs. Our years of experience navigating complex zoning and conservation issues will further simplify this process.

Once you feel comfortable that all your questions and concerns have been addressed, we’ll create budget-conscious conceptual plans for your project. We will also outline the documents and drawings you’ll need in order to obtain building permits.

Schematic Design

Design sketches created at our consultation lead to an initial schematic design plan, a set of detailed drawings that show how the project will unfold. Site orientation, optimal views, sun direction, landscaping, light, weather, grading, and more are all taken into consideration.

The 3D/2D technology used in creating the schematic plan not only shows you interior, exterior and room layouts, it gives you a realistic sense of spacing and traffic flow, which are crucial to the overall design. We fill in these plans with to-scale furniture and review different scenarios with you until we arrive at a final design.

Construction Documents

Preliminary plans are created, reviewed, and refined as the project progresses until the design is finalized. A pricing set of plans are then put together in order to begin dialoging with contractors.

We’d be happy to help you choose contractors at this point. Working with so many people over the years has allowed us to build a vast network of skilled and dependable people.

Feedback from contractors and consults with structural engineers give us the information we need to ensure all permit requirements have been met, and to then complete the drawings that will go to the builders.