every architects design process is
extremely personal and nuanced for
example I have certain tools that I
reached for ritually when I start a new
project one is a favorite lead pencil
and with a lightweight medium-sized
barrel and a thinly ridged grip loaded
with a medium weight HB lead that's not
too soft and not too hard it has a
broken clip at the top and a small blue
button near my thumb to advance the lead
it's with this pencil in hand that I
begin each design visiting the project
site writing taking notes and sketching
in a pocket-sized gridded sketchbook I
take with me a small corded bundle of
prismacolor pencils light cream sky-blue
may Green French gray yellow ochre and
oxide red to fill in the line work of my
sketches and suggest order it has to be
this way for me and I know that when I'm
armed with these tools the ideas will
flow easily while each art architects
habits are individual and idiosyncratic
the broader architectural habits we
share lay the foundations for good
design here are eight of the many habits
that guide successful architects during
the design process
number one they tell a good story our
memories of places are inherently linked
to stories a home that tells the story
of a specific client in a specific place
at a specific time enriches the
experience and gives it a reason for
being architects are taught very early
in the in design school to conceptualize
projects by inventing a narrative which
is traditionally called a party a party
is like a rule book in a way and a good
one allows us to refer back to it when
we're stuck wondering what to do next it
organizes our thoughts and guides us in
how best to relate the story through our
design a narrative can flow from
something specific say a beloved tree to
preserve or something more general such
as all rooms must have natural light it
can emerge from a client's specific
request nothing white please or the
shape of a building lot it can apply to
every level of design problem even down
to small renovation or decorating tasks
finding the bigger guiding idea and
creating a story around it and be used
every design decision with meaning
number two they take risks taking risks
to do something out of the ordinary as
part of any creative field rethink
reimagine retool and invent
new ways of doing the same old thing
while the laws of physics still apply
even gravity can be challenged this
isn't to say that everything requires
innovation or bold action but looking at
a problem through a different lens often
reveals interesting solutions that don't
rely on standard practice here's one of
my favorite designer hacks for being
bold the 8-foot door standard doors are
6 foot 8 inches tall and 3 feet wide and
roughly correlate to the human form
we're used to seeing doors this size
substitute an 8 foot slab and the
difference is instantly recognizable
just the act of opening this door forces
you to sense its weight and a tight sure
8-foot doors are more expensive but the
effect elevates a standard design
element from mundane and accepted to
exceptional taller doors can let in more
light when glazed and their proportions
can completely or reorient smaller
narrow spaces like this hallway making
them seem larger I use them often in
spaces with eight-foot ceilings where
the door is open and when the door is
open it's as if the entire wall has
dissolved number three they sweat the
details at its heart architecture seeks
to solve problems but it's the way we're
able to solve those problems the poetry
we bring to the solution that separates
the good from the bad it's possible to
solve the problem of a stair guard in
many different ways but here the
designer has chosen a minimalist
outwardly effortless expression the gray
of the thin stainless steel cables
matches that of the concrete stair run
and their attachment is deliberate and
considered details matter because
they're often the things were most
engaged with on a daily basis this means
the means by which we all all the
components come together in a structure
are the details creating what architects
call a family of details unifies a
project the horizontal patterning of the
wood clad wall here references the board
form concrete wall to the left while
there are different materials they speak
the same language the same can apply to
the hardware used on a project all the
doors have bar poles in stainless steel
for example or all the plumbing fixtures
are angular and in brushed nickel number
four they simplify the ability to
simplify means to eliminate the
unnecessary so that the necessary may
speak said painter Hans Hoffman too
often we let complexity act as a proxy
for interest
Architects are schooled and editing down
to the essential components if it
doesn't have a function its necessity
should be questioned here are just a few
areas where simplifying can make the
design stronger simple shapes they
usually cost less are easier to build
and look beautifully beautiful unadorned
a simple material palette two or three
materials at most devised rules for how
each will be used by varying one
materials finish from smooth to rough
you can achieve variety without
complexity simple trim or none simple
windows choose two window sizes one for
large openings one for small ones leave
connections between materials exposed
and expressive concealed joints are
usually costly and time intensive to
execute number five they establish order
designers prefer applying order ordering
principles to everything at every level
naturally the need for order requires
hierarchy which basically means you have
to decide what the most in what the
what's the most important thing and let
the other things defer to it when
beginning a new design project I usually
evaluate three main things the building
site existing or new the client and the
budget the overarching concept is
derived from the one that asserts the
strongest pull and I begin crafting a
narrative around that force that's where
the ordering begins regardless of the
strongest pole it always circles back to
the site where I determine which
dominant site features either the view
topography or other structures are most
important before deciding what a
building looks like we have to think
about order we have to think about and
order the spaces on the site from most
public to most private and decide how
we'll arrive in the sequence of how the
spaces will unfold for renovations the
ordering principles are often set by
what the existing structure is lacking
natural light space connection to the
outdoors etc for some projects I've even
gone so far as to develop a rule book to
establish specific modules the grid
materials and a guide for adding modules
to the structure in the future the
wonderfully illustrated compendium
architecture form space in order by
Frank's Frances Ching is required
reading for every first year
architecture student and it's one that I
still personally find inspiring
especially with respect to order
number six they repeat repeat repeat
repetition and architecture is a good
thing
common thematic elements repeated again
and again help to reinforce our previous
habit of establishing order windows
doors columns beams materials these are
all part of the natural order of
buildings repetition doesn't have to
equate to boring rather it unifies a
design repeating patterns materials
grids and proportions are the
underpinnings of order the cardinal rule
of repetition is that it takes a minimum
of three of anything to see the benefits
if two is good three is better
repetition not only makes sense from an
economical standpoint but it provides a
reference point and background against
which to highlight the things that we
think are really important laying the
groundwork for our next habit number
seven they break the rules the
prerequisite to this is the previous
habit once we have an established
repeating pattern we can decide where to
break the rules imagine a series of
windows aligned on an orderly grid the
one window that breaks this set of rules
must do so for a very important and
specific reason like a view to a tree
canopy or a distant view with a
repetitive order as the background
calculated rule breaking is assured to
have special meaning it also balances
the repetition to keep it from being
staid and monotonous this sterility
power of breaking rules look at the
restraint exercised in the surrounding
space
traditionally stairs are composed of
stringers at the edges boxed risers and
some combination of a handrail and guard
rail the designer of this stair
reconsidered every one of those
assumptions breaking the rules and
turning it into a sculptural object the
stair hangs from the upper storey
forcing one to observe the process of
moving upward by springing from a heavy
concrete plinth to a much lighter stair
object the risers are open allowing
light and views through and the plywood
stringers double as stair support and
guard number eight they engage the
senses while the stunning visuals of the
architecture we consume online appeal to
our sense of sight our experience of
architecture is actually quite different
we're taught as architects to think
about all of our senses when designing
opening a home to a view is as important
as shielding it from unwanted noise or
the smell of the ocean or nearby cedar
tree architects consider the difference
in feel of cool concrete versus warm
wood on one's feet and the sound rain
makes on a metal roof to think about
design from an experiential level often
reveals architectural opportunities that
make life in a home or a place much more
pleasing good architects and designers
think about light and shadow where the
Sun moves throughout the day where the
wind comes from or the sounds of an
urban neighborhood and how they can play
along