The Architect's Lair

Found materials

It is not uncommon for architects to receive samples of windows, stone, brick, etc. for their review, and then to turn around and use these materials in their home. For example, we get a lot of carpet samples, and they are great for using as car floor mats or next to the cat's litter tray. So I wasn't surprised when a former coworker contacted me to see if I wanted some granite.

Evidently, he has a job where they wanted a sample of a certain black granite in a certain finish. The supplier sent it, but the sample went through a series of mishaps before arriving late - and broken - to the final destination. It arrived so late, they had already ordered and received another sample which arrived intact. That left them with what had been a fairly good size piece of granite, 2' x 3' or something, now in about 4-5 pieces.

I, of course, jumped at the chance to get some granite like he was describing. All I need to do is pick it up, which I'm doing tonight. (it would be more appropriate to say that my husband is doing the picking up, of course; I'm 4-1/2 months pregnant and not in a condition to pick up heavy stone just now!)

What to do with it, though?

Well, I have had this idea of building a little meditation hut, or tea house, in our backyard. My idea so far is to build a butterfly roof held up by wood columns, with a rain chain to channel the water to a copper basin, over a concrete pad with a built-in fire place (irori) and colorful cushions for sitting, and bamboo screens on two sides for privacy. Simple but elegant, big enough for just 4 people to sit, looking over our moss-covered boulders and what will eventually be a koi pond. I figure that this stone, fitted together to make a 'table' riser within the concrete pad, would be a little wabi-sabi touch to the space, a place you could set a hot kettle for tea perhaps. It may not get built this summer, but maybe next...

Meanwhile, I'll happily store the stone. Mmmmm, pretty.

almost funny

How many architects does it take to design a closet?

Five, if my eyes were to be believed yesterday. Apparently my office IT guys are building a new rack for the office servers, and are going to enclose a corner of the office to become the server closet. Well and good. But I had to laugh out loud when I walked by and saw the two IT guys and FIVE architects from the firm all standing around, looking at the corner as they took turns gesticulating and talking. Most amusing.

Too many cooks in the kitchen, methinks...

This Ain't Your Typical Prefab

Very interesting article from Wired Magazine about the growing trend of prefab houses, particularly ones that are modern and use sustainable technologies. I liked this quote in particular:

Buying a house, Kaufmann says, should be like buying a sneaker. On her Vaio laptop she pulls up the site for Nike iD, which lets people design their own shoes by choosing from a palette of options for lacing, fabric, and so forth. "Every shoe has the same bones," she says, showing me the record of the Nike Free she bought the previous week, "but you can customize your own, down to the color and putting your initials on it."

To Kaufmann, the question is obvious: "How can we do this for architecture?"

I also like the analogy between hybrid cars and these new prefab houses; the early adopters help pave the way and shows others what can be done. Makes me wonder if there are any prefab manufacturers in my state that I could work with to develop something like this, since obviously the freight from British Columbia would be a bit steep. Hm.