Prelimenary Drawings: Fun on the Job

These are preliminary drawings for a prospective client who wants a kitchen with plenty of open counter space and double ovens. She also wants a laundry room that does laundry and also serves as a mud room for three children with lots of stuff. Freezing while measuring it, I thought the laundry room should also be warmer.

I spent this week reworking the first floor floor plan of the house. I doubled the size of her kitchen and added a walk in pantry. I gave her a laundry room with nearly seven feet of folding space, three niches for the three children, a recycle center and a wardrobe closet for the adults plus plenty of space to store soap powders and cleaning supplies and tools. I added base board heating. I made the existing dining room in to private den and gave her a dining room that's two feet longer and six inches,(cubic inches), wider than the one she had. The new space will function better and has flow. It was a good week. How good? I'll find out on Monday.

I don't design my residential spaces on the computer; I draw by hand, old school, with a T square, scale and right angle. Doing the drawings by hand, I feel the space. I anticipate any joinery problems. I find the oops before they're oops and work them out before they can add expense to the project, (keeping to the client's budget is a major priority). I like having a heads up before we walk on site with a crew and a hammer. These drawings are as much an art as fine art drawings and just as much fun--maybe more. They're puzzle solvers and a key instrument for achieving a more tranquil living space. So occupied, my week flew by.