Twins Room

The first step of this project was to choose a children's book that would be the inspiration. Immediately I thought of all the endless books that were favorites of mine when I was a child. By far, the Dr. Seuss books were my favorites, inspiring the design through the book, One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. The keywords are rhythm, contrast and whimsical. Teal, red and yellow are the main colors, inspired by the book. In application of the room, rhythm was created with the vertical lines seen in the design of the furniture. Contrast was created in shape (square vs circular) and color (teal, red & yellow). Whimsical is applied in the child-like and carefree quality of design. If I did this again I would spend more time on the presentation board. I did not plan well enough as to how the floorplan, drawings etc would fit. Therefore I fill the board is a bit crowded. It is also harder to see the shape that is my board- which is a camel (from the inspiration image). Contrary to some belief, it is not a caterpillar ;) Overall I really like my design and feel it is able to transition with the twins as they get older.

3 concept study models

Final Concept Model

Accessible Kitchen

The kitchen was inspired by the original concept developement. This room was based on those 3 original study models. From that the keywords were chosen, which are movement, balance, & unity. What makes this kitchen unique is that it had to be accessible for a mom who liked to cook but was limited in what she can do because of a wheelchair. The dad also liked to cook so I had to make the kitchen functional for both of them and the height differences. Therefore I created an island where Patti, the mom can ride under the lower counter and eat at the bar with her kids and husband. Other features are there are 2 ovens, one high and the other low so Patti can use one oven and the husband can use the other. Also there are no cabinets under the cooktop so Patti can still use the stovetop safely.

I learned a lot during this project. My main lesson was to always consider every part of a space. I realized halfway through my design that I had a column in the middle of my Fridge. This wasn't going to work so I thickened the wall to accomodate this. Who knew something as small as a column could be such an issue in design! So note to self...always pay attention to the little details.

Combine Building Concept Development

"Domesticity, privacy, comfort, the concept of the home and of the family, these are literally, principal achievements of the Bourgeois Age." -John Lukas

I found this quote in a book about the history and importance of home. After quote analysis, I pulled the words privacy, conformity and desires. The latter two words coming from the analysis of Domesticity and Bourgeois Age. I wanted to show in my concept models the conflict between the outside world (conformity) and the home (personal desires). For many people, home is where we go when we want to get away from the world. I wanted to illustrate that in my work throughout this semester.