The White Eichler Lesson

Recently, the Eichler Network published a piece entitled, “Heartbreak Over White Paint” about how wrong it is to paint an Eichler home all white. Then they followed up with a second piece entitled, “White Blight, Not Alright,” It felt like a rebuke since I’ve done a few white Eichlers, and since one of my white Eichlers won a prestigious design award from the American Institute of Architects, it seemed to me this contradiction was something that needed to be addressed. Several nationally recognized Architects from the awards jury, and the Eichler Network are on opposite sides of the issue. So I thought I’d share my experience.

My clients had been working with us for nearly a year when they said they wanted to whitewash their Eichler. I was horrified, and I nearly quit. In the shower I had been practicing my speech about how to put my foot down and say I wouldn’t do it, and if they were going to do it, they’d need a new architect. At the time, I didn’t believe in whitewashing an Eichler.

I nearly quit.

Then my good friend Gina messaged me about how she was shopping for new homes and never liked Eichlers because they always felt old and stodgy to her, and her family doesn’t really relate to them. She said she could appreciate the mid-mod style, but that it just wasn’t for her. But when she saw this beautiful white Eichler designed by incredibly talented architect, Ryan Leidner, Gina completely changed her mind. She said she’d move into an all-white Eichler because they’re more her. This, funny enough, was a bit of an epiphany for me.

An Epiphany

The ethos of Eichler homes are to provide good design for the masses. Broadening the appeal fits the Eichler ethos.

This might sound familiar… because Ikea has the same ethos. Even a 50 year old Ikea piece is still Ikea, and it’s one of thousands of the exact same thing. This doesn’t mean the design isn’t good, it means it’s not precious. It’s meant to be enjoyed, well loved. Most Eichlers aren't precious. There are over 10,000 of these homes in the bay area alone. If you own one, you know that most of your neighbors have the exact. same. house.

They’re beautifully designed, but frankly they aren’t built well. They’re missing structural components and without structural upgrades, they’re incredibly weak laterally (so they’re the most likely candidate to fall down in an earthquake). They aren’t insulated (like, at all). So good luck with your heating bill in the winter. If they light on fire, they’re very likely to burn up in a matter of minutes because of the way they’re built. In short, they’re beautiful but imperfect, and they need to be adapted for modern day living.

This is what I do. I adapt Eichlers so they suit the family and also are stronger in earthquakes, are heated and cooled properly, are well insulated and energy efficient, and safer for kids (or rambunctious adults… you do you.)

The Templeton Eichler

I agreed to do the white Eichler, and proceeded with an end goal of a simple, perfect looking piece of modern architecture that called to the mid-century roots through original detailing. At the end of the project, I was walking through the new atrium as the delicate clicks from photographer, Mariko Reed’s camera broke the silence, when a simple meditation came on over the whole-home audio system. The house was singing to me. And it wasn’t just my ears that heard it, it was my soul. The way the rising sun hit the roof line and gently bounced down to the immaculate white cork floors, warming my bare toes, the meditation, and the soft morning light… that was it. That was the moment that brought the delight of this simple home into my soul. Dear Benjamin Moore, Chantilly Lace OC-65, I couldn’t have done it without you.

Groundrules

So it’s alright if you want to whitewash your Eichler, because you get to make your Eichler your home. But let’s set some groundrules so this trend doesn’t get out of hand.

1. It’s NOT OK for real estate agents to whitewash an Eichler. This decision is solely for the homeowners, because it’s their house, not yours. The number of cheap Lowe’s kitchens we rip out immediately after sale?! Save your $8000 and leave the kitchens and bathrooms to the future homeowners.

2. Don’t paint an original Eichler, or any original unpainted elements since the supply is dwindling. There are not enough of them left. If you want to whitewash your Eichler, buy one that’s already been touched. Painting original mahogany wall, or unpainted bricks, and painting that gorgeous grey washed original ceiling should be a crime. Don’t do it. Buy a different house since those things can’t be undone.

3. Don’t mess with a master. Don’t paint a custom designed home from the 1950’s and 60’s. If anyone puts paint (any color) on any wood in a Neutra house, I will come after you. The only thing you should do with these homes is protect and restore them to their original state.

Leave a comment below if I missed any ground rules. Happy painting, y’all.

Megan

What's the difference between interior design & architecture?

When embarking on a home project, whether it's a renovation, a new build, or a significant interior transformation, it's essential to understand the roles of the professionals who will bring your vision to life. Two key players in this process are interior designers and architects. In this blog post, I'll demystify the distinctions between these roles to help you make informed decisions when planning your dream home.

Understanding the Architect's Role

Architects are Master Planners: Architects are like the conductors of a symphony, orchestrating the entire design process. From the overall structure and layout of your home to the integration of systems like plumbing and HVAC, architects are master planners who ensure that the building is not only aesthetically pleasing but also functional and structurally sound.

Spatial Design and Exterior Elements: One of the primary focuses of an architect is spatial design. They conceptualize the layout of rooms, consider traffic flow, and optimize the functionality of spaces. Architects also design the external structure of your home, including its shape, materials, and overall aesthetic. They take into account environmental factors, zoning regulations, and engineering principles to create a cohesive and resilient design.

Technical Expertise: Architects bring technical expertise to the table. They understand the complexities of construction, building codes, and structural integrity. During the design process, architects work closely with structural engineers and other professionals to ensure that your home is not only beautiful but also safe and durable.

Understanding the Interior Designer's Role

Focused on Interior Spaces: While architects take a holistic approach to design, interior designers specialize in the interior spaces of your home. They are experts in creating cohesive and visually appealing environments within the architectural framework. Interior designers consider color schemes, furniture layouts, and material selections to enhance the aesthetics of each room.

Attention to Detail: Interior designers pay meticulous attention to details that contribute to the ambiance and functionality of a space. This includes choosing furnishings, lighting fixtures, window treatments, and accessories that complement the overall design. They focus on creating atmospheres that align with your personal style and preferences.

Bringing Your Style to Life: Interior designers collaborate closely with homeowners to understand their tastes, preferences, and lifestyle. They translate these insights into design elements that reflect your personality, making your home a unique and personalized space.

Collaboration is Key

The key to a successful home project is recognizing that architects and interior designers complement each other. Collaboration between these professionals ensures a seamless integration of structural and aesthetic elements. While architects lay the foundation for your home's functionality and resilience, interior designers add the finishing touches that make the space truly yours.

In conclusion, architects and interior designers each play vital roles in the design process. By understanding their distinct contributions, you can make informed decisions and build a team that will bring your vision to life. If you're planning a home project, consider how these professionals can work together harmoniously to create a home that is both structurally sound and aesthetically pleasing.

Almost all of our work on our website involved an interior designer. We have some recommendations for interior designers we absolutely love working with! Just ask.

What's it really like to work with an Architect?

Embarking on a journey to build or renovate your home is an exciting but complex process, and working with an architect is a crucial part of that adventure. In this blog post, I want to shed light on what it's truly like to collaborate with an architect, providing you with insights into the different phases of the design process and the dynamics of our working relationship.

The design process is an emotional roller coaster for both homeowners and architects alike. It's a journey of exploration, creativity, and problem-solving. From the initial spark of ideas to the final realization of your dream home, emotions can run high. As your residential architect, I understand the importance of guiding you through this process with empathy and expertise.

The chart above describes the typical involvement of the architect (green) and the client (blue) of a project.

Schematic Design

This is where the excitement begins. During the Schematic Design phase, our collaboration is at its peak. We work closely to explore design concepts, discuss your vision, and refine the overall aesthetics of your home. Your input is invaluable during this stage as we shape the fundamental ideas that will set the tone for the entire project.

Design Development

As we move into the Design Development phase, your direct involvement may decrease slightly. Now, I delve deeper into the technical aspects of the project, focusing on building systems such as structural, HVAC, and electrical. Coordination with structural engineers becomes crucial, ensuring that the design not only looks good but functions seamlessly.

Construction Documentation

During this phase, the drafters are hard at work creating detailed drawings for contractors to bid on. My role transitions to meticulously reviewing and redlining these details, ensuring that every aspect aligns with our vision. While my direct involvement may seem lower, rest assured that I am meticulously overseeing the process to guarantee precision and quality.

Bidding

The bidding phase is a collaborative effort between us. We review drawings together and engage with contractors to clarify any questions they may have. This ensures that the bids accurately reflect the project's scope and expectations. Clear communication at this stage is essential for a smooth transition to the construction phase.

Construction

As construction commences, your involvement becomes more prominent, and yes, it can be stressful. The contractor takes the reins, and I am there to provide clarification on drawings and design intent. My role is to be a supportive guide, ensuring that the vision we developed together is faithfully translated into the physical structure.

Working with an architect is a dynamic and collaborative process that involves intense phases of interaction and periods where our behind-the-scenes efforts come to the forefront. Throughout this journey, effective communication and mutual understanding are key to a successful partnership.

Remember, your dream home is not just a structure—it's a reflection of your lifestyle, aspirations, and individuality. As your residential architect, I am here to navigate the complexities, celebrate the triumphs, and ensure that the final result exceeds your expectations.

How long will it take?

It depends on the scope & complexity of your project and how quickly you can make a decision. Not an easy answer. Let’s start with the design timeline:

For a typical project with a balance of standard and custom design, you can plan on the following time frame

Schematic design 8-12 weeks

This depends a lot on how quickly you’re able to make a design decision. We usually design several options that address your needs in different ways. Your feedback helps inform the next version of the design. Sometimes we’ll show some creative and unusual options to get the discussion going and help refine the designs so in the end you get exactly what you want.

At the end of this design stage, you’ll have the size and location of your spaces laid out, the flow from one space to another, and the 3D vision of the project.

Design development 10-12 weeks

Design development is when we add in all the building systems.
1. Structural Engineering (how to keep the building up). This can take some time, depending on how complex the design is so we like to involve our engineering team as early as we can.
2. Energy Calculations. This will tell us what the required performance of your windows and glass must be, how much insulation we’ll need, the size and efficiency of your heating and cooling system, to help keep your home sustainable for the long term
3. Mechanical strategy (how to heat, cool, and exhaust to keep your house cozy and comfortable.)
3. Plumbing fixture location (Exactly where does the sink go? Do we want a shower or a tub?)
4. Electrical layout, which includes lighting, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, switches, which switches turn on which lights, outlet locations, TV locations, you’re getting the idea…
5. Fire sprinkler layout (if applicable). We always use one of our trusted consultants for this.
6. Interior Design (If you have a designer) starts during design development.

At the end of Design Development, we have a permit set and we submit to the city or county.

Permitting 12+ weeks

Yep, and this timeline is out of the Architect’s control. We always submit your plans for permit, or join you when you do. Then the only thing we do after we submit is wait for their comments and feedback. They’ll send their comments, we’ll enter them in our system, amend the drawings, send the revised drawings to you, and then we’ll resubmit. Each time the resubmission takes between 1 week and 4 weeks, depending on how many comments are received and how many engineers are involved. Some jurisdictions and projects go through quite quickly (4 weeks is quickly) and others take longer (Sometimes 10-12 months, depending on complexity).

But not to worry! While your project is in permitting, we’ll be hard at work on your Construction Documents.

Construction Documents 10-12 weeks

Construction documents are the drawings that show the contractor how to build the project: i.e. custom details, specifications (exactly which window system?, how does the door threshold work?), schedules. This takes the longest out of the 3 phases of design and we rely heavily with our interior designers and drafters during this portion.

At the end of Construction Documents, you’ll have your “Bid Set.” This set is important, because it is what the contractor is legally bound to build.

Bidding (pricing from contractors) 4-6 weeks

Bidding is when we send the Construction Documents to different contractors to get a price so why does it take them so long to give you a price? On HGTV they’re throwing out numbers on day one!

Because to properly bid your project, they will need to send the drawings to various sub contractors (the framer, concrete contractor, roofing company, window installer, etc. etc.) to get them to read and understand the drawings, and then prepare a bid and review it with you. This is time consuming on the contractor's part.

At the end of bidding, you’ll select your contractor, sign their contract, and construction will start!

Start of Construction

A lot of clients ask how long construction will take. This is entirely up to the contractor.

Construction is often the longest and most trying time of a project, so it’s important that the Architect is there to be your advocate. We know the design better than anyone, and the contractor is bound to build whatever is in the Construction Documents. .

Do I really need a permit?

If you’re hiring an architect, you probably need a permit. If you’re building something small enough that wouldn’t require a permit, for instance bathroom remodel where you’re leaving all plumbing fixture locations as-is, interior paint, casework & trim work, etc, then you won’t need to hire an architect. But permits have inherent value to your project and your home. What comes with a permit?

First, home value.

Having an approved permit will let you legally sell your home with the additional square footage, with the additional bathroom or bedroom, and it will add value to your property.

Second, code compliance.

During Plan Check, the building department, fire, mechanical & electrical review the Architect’s plans for code compliance. The building code isn’t always as straightforward as one may think, and plan checkers will interpret the code and help clear up any discrepancies. They check the Architect’s work.

Third, inspections.

When you get a permit, a significant amount of the permit fee goes towards the inspectors who visit the site during construction. Generally speaking, the bigger the project, the more inspectors, and the greater the fee. Inspectors are crucial for code compliance. They check the contractors work to make sure there are enough nails in the shear walls, they make sure the electrical is installed correctly, that the waterproofing is lapped properly, and that the fire rated wall between your garage and home is actually built to withstand 1 hour of fire burning inside the garage before it burns the rest of the house down.

Why should I hire a licensed contractor?

We get asked if it’s OK to hire unlicensed contractors more often that I’d like to admit. Our answer is a resounding NO. But we learned this one the hard way. We’re just going to share our experience. Straight up.

GOOD, FAST, CHEAP. When selecting your contractor you get to pick 2. You can’t have all 3.

We had some clients, who had just bought an adorable 2 level house and wanted to remodel as soon as humanly possible so they could move out of their expensive rental and into their new home. In addition to their kitchen they needed to remodel 2 bathrooms, and add another bathroom on the first floor. They also wanted a more open-plan living area on the first floor, which included removing some walls.

After understanding their needs for a fabulous interior concept, we brought on interior designer, Karina Marshall of Marshall Interiors, and completed the design process in record time. The clients got an initial bid from 2 licensed contractors, and each was roughly the same - $150K give or take. A screaming deal if you ask me. Then they got a third bid from an unlicensed contractor for… $54k. That’s like a 66% savings! $100K off? Sign me up, right?

I completely understand this is SO INCREDIBLY TEMPTING. The clients asked for my advice, so I explained that licensed contractors can be held accountable for their work (and mistakes). For instance, if something leaks, licensed contractors are bound to come back and fix it. If a licensed contractor installs something incorrectly, they’re bound to fix it to match the architect’s drawings for free. They’re also legally required to be insured. And, perhaps most importantly, they are also bound to building code, you know… like waterproofing a shower and using safe electrical outlets in wet locations. You know, THE BASICS.

After explaining why to hire licensed contractors, the ultimate decision is up to the clients. And they chose the unlicensed guy. Can’t blame them, right? $100K is $100K.

Here’s how it went.

First, the unlicensed contractor opened up the wall and boom! There was the sewer pipe for the upstairs bathrooms in the way. So… he charged the clients to move it, because… he didn’t account for any sewer work in his bid (even though were were adding a bathroom). The licensed contractors did account for it. Same with all the mechanical rework required when the wall was removed, all mechanical work required was billed extra, even thought it was always in the scope.

Our clients were billed extra for designs that were already in the drawings.

The unlicensed contractor put outlets all over, without following the drawings. Then every time they got in the way of something, say… a wall mounted sink, he would just move the sink over. Unfortunately, he didn’t think about the wall mounted faucets (already installed in the wall) and that they would miss the sink if they moved… So I went to the site to see how to coordinate, and I asked the contractor, “OK, where are the drawings?” He said he didn’t know.

He didn’t even have the drawings printed, so… what exactly was he building to?

That’s right, he had been building for 3 months at this point, and wasn’t even using the drawings the clients had paid us for.

Among a thousand issues, one issue just baffles us. He used 2 different grout colors on the same wall. So the tile mosaic is running along in grey, and suddenly it switches to white on a weird uneven line in the middle of the room. A licensed contractor would be obligated to rip it out and redo it. They also probably wouldn’t do that in the first place… but these poor clients had no way to get that fixed unless they literally pay to have it ripped out and done again, correctly. So paying twice to get one part right. They ended up just leaving it.

They installed one side of the kitchen cabinet frame UPSIDE DOWN. I kid you not. And then said, “Well it wasn’t right-side-up in the drawings!” And he billed the clients for his time to install it right side up.

Missed the shower rail. Even though it was in the drawings. How would he know that if he never printed them, right? The contractor missed it, and he charged the client extra to install it, where a licensed contractor would be legally bound to install it, per the drawings, no matter what.

He charged the clients to fix his own mistakes.

Installed the entire kitchen backsplash in the wrong direction, not following the interior elevations. We had to go to the site to show him to install the tile horizontally. After he mocked the interior designer, he then installed the entire backsplash of expensive tiles vertical. The contractor had to rip it all out and re-order, re-install, at the clients expense for time and money.

That one mistake cost the homeowners 6 weeks.

Other major issues with this build:

They covered up the plumbing valve for the tub with drywall and tile, then lied about it. He said the valve didn’t fit the trim, so he didn’t install the plumbing valve at all. We were absolutely sure we had seen the valve installed before they added the tile… It took an hour to convince him to open up the tiled wall! And wouldn’t you know it, a valve was in there, and it very well may have flooded the inside of their second story wall if it was left that way.

The bathtub is permanently installed noticeably crooked, about 2” difference from one side to the other.

The wrong grout color was installed on the master shower and the contractor refused to fix it.

The tile was installed at an angle. Not a slight angle, a massive difference of 2” over the height of the wall. The worst part? The vanity mounted to this tiled wall is a box frame, meaning there is a perfect vertical line right next to the misaligned tile.

In the kids bathroom, they installed an outlet where a drawer went, so the drawer didn’t fit. Even though the outlet was correctly located in our drawings, they made the homeowners pay to move the outlet.

In the end, this couple spent… you guessed it…. $150K.

My clients spent about the same amount that the licensed contractors bid.

Except, had they hired a licensed contractor, the project would have been done sooner, and it would have been done correctly.