::Things to consider for the short and long term spatial needs::
Happy Valentine’s day, President’s day and 3-day weekend for some people around the country!
Valentine’s day comes to remind us about love. Love for our families, ourselves, friends, significant others, etc. The last year has brought many extreme situations; some people are sheltering at home and hanging out 24/7 with family and loved ones while others experience some isolation. In either situation, we have seen many families and individuals re-thinking the way they live and making decisions that will impact their future in the short and long term. Telecommuting has also allowed people the enormous advantage to work from home with many companies implementing this practice permanently.
Many families are experiencing an entire set of different challenges from years and decades before. The space that before the pandemic was used for eating, sleeping and a few hours of entertainment and family bonding has become our place for all our basic and social needs, all-the-time.
We have been adapting our homes to fulfill the function of offices, classrooms, gyms, yoga studios and home theaters. Also, while some relied on dining out for most of the week, now find themselves cooking 3 meals a day plus snacks.
It may be due to the lack of personal space, or to the fact that we find ourselves staring at our walls all the time that is making us see and think about all the things that do not work, or that could be improved in our homes. We wish we could push the walls out. Or maybe do a quick layout rearrangement and move a few walls and doors. Some also wish to add a pool or an outdoor deck of patio.
We hear of some people becoming frustrated with their current spaces and there is a very good reason for this: our houses were not designed for our current set of demands. While it may sound obvious, it is important to really understand this statement. Our houses were not designed to have 3 to 5 individuals inside all the time while fulfilling the many needs that each one of those individuals require or demand.
Even more, many of our houses were designed over 30 years ago, with a different program and goals in mind. Our current living spaces fulfill the needs of those families in the past, but these spaces need adjustments to be able to properly function and fulfill the demands of our daily dynamics.
What are the considerations that we must have present when we modify our homes to fulfill our different set of goals and needs? In order to bring the spaces up to date and fulfill our current needs we need to see them as a system. Every room in our house is not an island, but part of an ecosystem. Each part of this ecosystem interacts with and affects the function and flow of the whole. Making a room bigger may achieve your goals for that room but completely destroy the functionality of one or more spaces. Therefore, a good and detailed plan is paramount for the success of your project.
Sometimes quick changes are possible. Here are 3 things to consider for your immediate spatial planning and needs:
1) Set your Short Term and Long Term Goals:
Take a deep breath, go for a walk and change your spatial environment. Think about the short and the long term goals. We are all tired of this pandemic but I still would like to think that eventually we will go back to some kind of social interaction and life outside of our house bubbles. Having kids at home all the time is temporary and eventually schools will be open for interaction again. I know that we really want to solve a problem for the short term, but focus on the long run.
2) Improve the existing layout:
Walk around your house and try to find a space, area or niche that is not really utilized. It may even be an extra closet or a very long hallway. Can you combine uses and repurpose a room? Can you donate items to release some space? Before starting to demolish walls, try to evaluate the hidden opportunities in your existing living arrangements. It may not achieve all of your goals, but it could buy you time until you have a more detailed plan and structure for a bigger remodel. There may be a missed opportunity within the existing layout that you have not considered yet.
3) Consider temporary partitions:
Low bookshelves or temporary partition walls can divide spaces without necessarily changing the structure of the house. You can use bookshelves to separate kids' desks. You can also hang sound panels for some noise control. While these measures do not provide total privacy, they can help to set boundaries and to establish zones for different family members.
Because of the very specific needs that each family has, and the different demands for our current homes a professional evaluation is highly recommended. Having the experience and advice from someone looking out for your needs and can understand your goals as well as see your entire house as a system is invaluable. An Architect can help you to identify the potential for development in your house and assess the feasibility of such endeavor. By moving, reconfiguring or adding a few walls you may be able to reach your goals, and you need a good trained eye to provide guidance.
Other times, however, a big addition or project is necessary in order to accomplish all your goals. Here, a Master Plan of your house is an excellent tool to develop a map with specific action items that would allow you to phase work according to your available time and budget.
I will talk more about Master Plan in the next blog, so stay tuned! You can also message or call with specific questions about your house or project. We enjoy working with clients from the first stages, helping them develop goals, the big picture and a strategy for development.
In the meantime, I will leave you with
a few belated Valentine’s Day
cards published by ArchDaily (1)
By Shaghayegh Daneshmand-
Saman Farahmand
By Carly McMahon
By Mahnavaz Rahimi
As always, thank you for your support, and please help me reach more people by sharing with your friends, family and colleagues! To know when a new blog post is out you can follow us on Instagram and Facebook.
Gracias!
Citlalli
There are as many styles of beauty
as there are visions of happiness
-Stendahl
References:
(1)https://www.archdaily.com/805126/105-valentines-for-architects-and-architecture-lovers
Special thanks to my editor, Ilya Godes!
Citlalli is an architect and a mom who enjoys
finding the extraordinary around us and
understanding what makes each person thrive.
She believes that art, and good design should
be accessible, and her motivation is to help build
a better world for the next generations.
She has worked on residential and commercial
projects for 15 years, and decided to open her own
studio in Los Angeles, California, aimed to make
great architecture accessible and affordable to more people.
ความคิดเห็น