Design, Meet, Revise, Repeat | The Outpost Project Part 8

After a round of revisions and a meeting, it becomes clear not everything is as resolved as I thought. The Outpost project enters a new phase as we refine the design and prepare the drawings for construction. This "awkward phase" - as I refer to it - is a natural part of the design process. How long it takes to work through it varies, but it always results in a better building.

Time stamps:
1:04 Locating the Screened Porch
1:35 Budget Considerations + Phasing
2:15 Should every space orient to the view?
3:47 Exploring one more location
5:04 Master bed + bath options
5:37 Remote presentations (using Loom)
5:53 Skype meeting + new concerns
8:17 "I find it a little...boring..."
8:36 You are not your work.
9:51 The need for reference images (I use Pinterest)
10:17 Redesigning the Master Wing
14:02 New information = new options

The video opens as we seek to locate the screened porch which I left out from the previous plans. It's natural - especially when building on site with sweeping views - to want every room to capture that view, but you'll see that prefer to position program spaces to take advantage of the full diversity of a site's features, not only the most dominant one.

As I return to the studio to incorporate the changes from our site meeting, I run through several revisions and schedule a Skype call to discuss progress. During that conversation it becomes clear that the master suite needs to be redesigned to create a separate dressing area and group the shower and soaking tub together.

As a young designer, I had difficulty separating myself from my work. Hearing a critical comment from a client (i.e.: "I find it a little...boring..." ) can be jarring at first. Having worked with many clients and heard a lot of critical feedback, I've learned to draw a very clear line. I am not my work. The work is the work. My job is to shepherd my clients through the design process and help them build the home that best suits them, not the one that will look best in my portfolio. It's possible to hold esthetics, form, and function in high regard whilst meeting the client's needs, they're not mutually exclusive.

The video ends with a brief charrette as I sketch and redesign the master wing. As you'll see, this creative friction from my client pushed the design to a new and better place.

Having cleared these minor challenges and confirmed the project is on budget, we'll be moving ahead with the design of the exterior shell package preparing for a construction schedule in the early summer of 2020.

Choosing windows and doors and designing the elevations are up next.

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