Illustrating Our Process: Exterior Design Development

In our most recent series, we’re exploring each of our design phases to give you an in-depth look at our process. Our first post in the series highlighted Schematic Design and all of the different points of inspiration we can have, plan iterations that we draw, and decisions that we ask our clients to make. This week, we are focusing on the first portion of the Design Development (DD) phase.

Looking at inspiration images for a project in conjunction with a model shot is often helpful when trying to understand how materials will work together – Chalet’s Zen Koya is a great example of this.

Generally speaking, we like to divide our DD process into three meetings. The first meeting focuses on the exterior of the home. The second focuses on interiors, and the third brings in additional technical information and resolves any revisions from the first two meetings. For this post, we’ll look at all of the prep work that we do for the first meeting. We’ll also share what to expect as client responsibilities during DD.

Working in 3D

Once we’ve received SD Approval from our clients, we jump straight into modeling the house in 3D. This can take a variety of forms. Sometimes, we know exactly what the house is going to look like, and we only do one or two versions. This can happen when clients have a really clear sense of what materials they want to use, what color the house wants to be, and what roof shape they might be most interested in. Of course, it helps that we’ve been looking at inspiration images as we’ve been moving through SD. By now, both architect and client should have a great sense of the direction that we want to pursue.

Screenshots of DD1 models for Stoll House – we did two versions of a flat roof design – we knew a lot about the design for this house before getting into models, so figuring out which overall massing our clients preferred was our biggest goal.

In other instances, we have a variety of ideas on how the house could work in three dimensions. Sometimes, that means playing with a variety of roof profiles – is it pitched? Flat? Does the roof have a parapet or does it extend into an overhang? In other cases, we look at a variety of materials: wood siding, metal paneling, fiber cement, stucco, composite siding – these are all great options to explore, often in unique and interesting combinations. We love exploring in the model, and oftentimes the iterations that we show to clients end up being only a small selection of the number of different models we look at internally. Part of the design process is throwing out all of your ideas and seeing what sticks.

The massing for 8 Oaks was figured out by the end of Schematic Design, so we were able to focus the meeting on materials. The screenshots above show just three versions. By the time we finished Design Development, we had explored nearly a dozen different material combinations to find exactly the right combinations. We can’t wait for this one to start construction very soon!
Behind the Design: Cold Spring Creek
On renovation projects, we often like to look at before and after views so that our clients can really start to understand how their house will change over the course of a renovation. Here, we’re looking at the existing and proposed elevations, materials and models of Cold Spring Creek, currently under construction.

Internal Collaboration

We like to collaborate with other Studio MM team members on the exterior DD phase. In a pre-Covid world, this meant meeting for a pin-up. Now, we do it all over Zoom. When we feel particularly inspired by a project (or when we feel particularly stuck) we often hop online and do a charrette. The Project Manager will walk the whole Studio MM team through the plans and through different model iterations, while all of the rest of us will chime in with suggestions and ideas on how to resolve problem spots, or offer suggestions on alternative materials to investigate. It’s a really fun, energetic process that allows a fresh set of eyes to look at the project and generate creative solutions.

Cabin for a Goldsmith - Modern Cabin in the Woods
We do a lot of charretting via Zoom these days – here’s a fun snapshot of how we worked through Cabin for a Goldsmith!

DD1 Meeting: The Big Reveal

The DD1 meeting is often one of the most exciting parts of the process. This is where it really feels like the project comes to life! We love to present to our clients, especially because we get to share in their excitement about seeing their house in three dimensions for the first time. In this meeting, we talk a lot about aesthetics. What materials do you like? How did you imagine the windows to look? Do you prefer horizontal or vertical siding? We want to tease out everything that you both love and don’t love about each model we share. Similar to schematic design, these likes and dislikes will help to guide our revision process moving forward.

Sharing a model with a client for the first time is always great fun – here we are looking at Duchess Farm Retreat in an early DD meeting.

Beyond sharing 3D models, we often share additional inspiration images that are more closely investigating materials. We call these material palettes. While the model is great for showing volumes of the house and the overall color and tone of the project, these palettes often give a better sense of exactly how materials will work together. We also spend time in this first meeting sharing more developed drawings of the project, including larger scale plans, elevations and a site plan.

As we did on Chalet’s Zen Koya, adding some inspiration images to a model shot of Brewster Residence provides context and ground our massing ideas in real materials and textures.
South Mountain House - Modern Residential Architecture
Another great example of this is South Mountain House – here we were looking at both interior and exterior materials, as they have a strong relationship when looking at the glass volume of the house.

Moving Forward

Right around the time of the first DD meeting we like to get our clients started on selecting appliances, fixtures and other finishes for their home. We create a shared document that lists all selections they need to make for the design. All of this information will be included in our specifications and in our drawings. Sometimes we need to make adjustments for special appliances or fixture choices, so it’s extremely helpful to begin this process as early as possible. We like to have everything selected by the time we sign a contract with our contractor, so starting to visit appliance showrooms and tile vendors during the early DD phases is a great help later on.

Wass House - Custom Residential Architecture
Once a home’s exterior is developed, we love sharing a few snapshots of what the project will look like from some different angles. For Wass House, we were lucky enough to look at drawings with our clients in person and on site!

The second DD meeting will focus much more on the interiors of the project. We look at inspiration, interior elevations and start talking about lighting layouts and fixtures. If revisions are needed from the first DD meeting, we will spend some time adjusting the model for our clients to review. Keep an eye out for our next post in this series to learn more about this second phase of Design Development!

ICYMI:

Illustrating Our Process: Schematic Design

Illustrating Our Process: Interior Design Development

Illustrating Our Process: Construction Documents

Illustrating Our Process: Bidding, Value Engineering and Permitting

Illustrating Our Process: Construction Administration

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