Design in modern times.

I have been holding this blog now for months.  It has been a wonderfully busy year both personally and professionally, with no time whatsoever to think about writing.  Not that anyone cares whether they read this blog or not, just thought I'd start making excuses for myself.  Our five children with 15+ dance classes, baseball, football, and basketball, which I coach all three, keep me in blissful auto pilot mode.

I wanted to share a project that I recently completed that was so unique that it begs writing about.  Please don't think that i am suggesting this is the way you should go.  I just thought it was interesting how it happened.  Neither my client or I set out to do it this way, it just morphed into this.  It shows how modern times can affect the design process.

The project was a remodel of a kitchen, family room and living room in Brookline, MA.  A complete gut with a budget of about $200k.  Mentioned that number to show you how truly interesting it is that this project went this way, considering what was at stake.  The client contacted me via email and we kept going back and forth with making progress each step of the way.  I met in person with this client twice.  Yes, twice.  Once when I measured the space and once when I came to look at the final project.  Here is a pdf with the emails back and forth of that process.  Not for everybody, but if you want to see how the process works from beginning to end, knock yourself out.

I design and sell custom cabinetry and interiors.  www.tommymahoney.com

That is different from an interior designer, or interior decorator.  I think most of the time Interior designer and decorator are the same thing.  A designer is a midpoint between what can be built to what something will be in your space using drawings and specifications on how to actually build it.  Not just what it looks like conceptually.  

I typically design kitchens and baths.  Nowadays, however, i seem to do more living room built-ins and media rooms than i do baths.  People are even asking for furniture in dining rooms and bedrooms lately.  The reason is that what you can purchase from a store is not designed to your specific needs.  You may be able to customize wood, color, etc.  But what if you could take the interior and customize storage compartments and drawers to what you own.  It has huge value as it is also something that lasts for generations.

Most all of what i do is via computer.  This means things can be shared back and forth between myself and my clients.  My clients and I share and save all links and specs from products and ideas we see on the internet.  Many websites are even offering designers and homeowners the ability to save and share what they see on the sites themselves.  I have some sites that I've been doing this for years.  I have some products that I have used in the past; instead of searching the net for that product again, I just go to my sites and email my client a link to it.  This is done in seconds which saves me time and allows my client to get information back quickly.  Obviously my drawings are shared back and forth, tweeked, noted, approved or rejected.

Even products that i don't sell can be immensly important to a project.  If I design a new window into a wall, i can go to Andersen or Pella and pull specs.  Even to the point where these sites offer CAD blocks that I can download right into my AutoCAD drawing.  If I want a particular type of appliance, their websites offer the same thing.  Here is a scenario that happens to me.  A client is meeting with Gail at Wickford Appliance and is struggling with what fridge they want.  I get a text asking my opinion and within seconds I can pull up the fridge specs for a few that will be right for their specific project.  Both Gail and the client will get that email and save it in their records.  Gail can see if she has it in stock or go to the web with my client and look at even more specifics.

During the process, multi media is an irreplacable tool.  Here are some images and a video to the above project that I used with the builder and homeowner to discuss various aspects of the project.  I can reference what is shown in the picture or video what we have an issue with and in lieu of a meeting that may take days to set up with all the important players, we are done in minutes.

Here are some photos of the final project.  I will be going out soon with my professional camera to take shots for my website.  These don't show very nicely.

Not everyone can work this way and I get that.  But as i always say, there is a spectrum of possibilities one can use.  One client may want to sit down face to face for every decision and another can do it like the example above.  My wife is  closer to the sit down.  Nothing wrong with that, but I have also seen some of my clients who outrank me in age take to the other extreme like fish to water.  It comes down to what works for you and how your project affects your other life.  Some people have all the time in the world and some work unimagineable hours.

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