Thursday, November 29, 2007

My Custom Bookplate



I am so proud of myself. I just created my very own personalized book plate. I've always wanted to do this, I've just never had the chance. I'm trying again to catalog my vast collection of books and in that process I need some book plates, so that I know a book is officially in my collection. I drew this in AutoCad and then added the drawing of my house and then hand drew in the details and the mountains. I am so impressed with my self. Now I just need to take it to Kinko's and see if they can make an actual bookplate out of it in high quality (acid free) paper.
I am so cool!

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

What is design?

I feel the need to define the term "design" as used by an architect.
I've seen the word thrown around a lot by various people and to me design is more than just nick-naks, pillows, and wallpaper. To me those things are purely personal. I don't think I could hire someone to pick the art for my walls or choose the color of my bedspread. We all need to decorate the interior of our homes as we see fit and for what feels good for us.
For an architect, design is the layout and feel of the interior space. If something is designed well the space won't change much with the addition of wall paper. It's the way a room flows from one to another, its the layout of the windows and the size and type of windows, the use of wood trim or the lack thereof. It's creating a space that feels either welcoming, cozy, reverent, or utilitarian, what ever the rooms needs to be to be functional.
Most houses that are mass produced these days are designed to be blank boxes that HAVE to be painted and decorated to reveal your homes personality. When an architect designs a house for you there should be less blank wall space and less that needs to be "decorated" in order for the house to feel like your own.
So when I talk about designing homes that are for families and children I am not talking about the furniture or the towels in your guest bath. I'm talking about the way the rooms relate to one another, the amount of storage that is designed into the house, and the way a space facilitates its purpose. Every room should have a feeling and if it's a plain white box with a 3x3 window on 1 or 2 walls, it has no feeling.
There are so many things that can be done with the architecture of a room that can give it character. There are arches, and soffits, wood trim, built in shelving, vaulted ceilings, beamed ceilings, tin ceilings, pointed arch windows, clerestory windows, walls of windows, concrete floors, mosaic tile floors, all in the architect's toolbox just waiting to be used.
I get so frustrated at builders building crap that does not jive with the way a family actually lives. There is no storage, no character, no ease of traffic flow, and such poorly designed bathrooms that it drives me crazy. But what is 1 woman to do? I can complain here all I want, but only I can make a difference and change the way we view the family home.

Publicist?

The more I think about it, the more my potential book really does have a market. The things that I need help with are just plain getting my name and my ideas out there. I think I really do need a publicist. If I want to go Martha Stewart big then I'm going to have to do more than just write this blog and do some cool houses. I need a show on HGTV, I need NPR interviews, and I need coverage in magazines like Cookie, Dwell, Working Mother, Metropolis, and BHG. I'm not sure how to do that, but it needs to get done and I have no idea how much it would cost, or if I could even do it myself. I need to just keep writing and send some stuff off to the magazines and see what happens. I can do this, I just need a very elaborate plan.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

I know it's been a while. The holidays is my only explanation. I should hav a good solid 3 weeks now before the kids are out of school for Christmas. I hope I can get a few things accomplished.
I've decided I still love architecture, I just don't like building. So I'm going to do my best to make a living being an architect and not being responsible for actually building anything. Is it possible? I'm not sure, but I'm going to try.
I've got to finish my book still so that I can combine my love of both books and houses. It should be fairly natural for me to do it, I've just got to put forth the effort to get it done. I know I can do it, it's just a matter of time.
Nothing else is going on.....just trying to make money so that I can take my family on a real vacation and pay off some bills. I guess that's the same thing most of this world is trying to do.....why does it have to be so hard sometimes?
Ugh.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

I'm home again today. I haven't had a full week in my $1200/month office in weeks and probably won't until after Christmas. The little one has a stomach bug. I had completely forgotten that she was the queen of throw-up until she started barfing last night at 11:00. All was good until my husband went to drop her off at daycare and she threw up all over his jacket and then brought her directly to my office to take her home while he went off to work. Ahh the joys of motherhood.
I guess it's not like I had anything to do today anyway.....just another day of internet surfing and reading and deciding what I'm going to do to start making $3000/month since this whole architect thing isn't paying the bills.
I like the idea of the web site that gives away free architecture advice. Of course I had to e-mail the AIA and find out if that is legal. I'm sure that if I do start giving away info they will find a way to revoke my license. They are so stuffy, those architects. I'm still waiting for their response. Should be interesting. In the meantime I'm still exploring the whole cool architecture web site idea. It just might work if I can work between naps and all of the various days off of school for my 3 childrens' 3 different schools. I keep bringing that up. It's an obvious detrement to my lucrative career as a successful architect. HA
Anyway like I said yesterday if anyone is actually reading this, I am offering for a limited time (until someone tells me I can't) FREE Architecture Advice. I know it sounds too good to be true, but I am willing to answer any questions at all regarding your specific project. I can't draw anything for you, but anything else is fair game. Try it. I just might suprise you with my vast knowledge.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Free Architecture Advice

I've been reading a lot lately about starting and owning an e-business and wondering if architecture has any market for such a thing. I would like to give away free advice on designing houses and working with contractors and getting plans thru the city. I would also like to have cool architect related products and cool architect designed stuff as well as sell my services as an architect for creating plans ---design only---no construction documents, for people who need the work done and need a little bit more hand holding than some architects are willing to give. I think it would be a cool place to hang out as an architect and as a person who would like the help of an architect without plunking down thousands of dollars for our services. It sounds cool, but can I do it? Has it been done before? I could have cool architecture inspired toys and books and just cool things related to architecture. I would like to try it out here first if possible. I'm not even sure if anyone is reading this, but I would really like to be an accessible architect. I will answer any questions pertaining to architecture. I would absolutely love to help. I've seen some pretty monstrous things built recently and if my free advice can help to stop that, then I am all for free advice. Do you need to move a wall, find a contractor, remodel your bathroom, get a permit for a water heater? Those are all things that people need help with and that architects are uniquely qualified to answer, but most won't take the time out to help people like that with little questions. Half of my time in fielding new phone calls to prospective clients is given away free answering these same questions. Most are related to timing and budgets and they just need someone to talk to and let them know their budget and or time frame is unrealistic and most do not turn into actual projects. If architects had a place to send people with questions to weed out the people who need a little guidance first it would save them a ton of time. That just might be my way of combining architecture with a good solid on-line presence. Wow that really sounds pretty cool. I'll have to investigate it further.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

The Holidays

Last weekend was the first in a long string of holiday weekends at home with the kids. It is so hard sometimes to be at home with them all, all by myself for the whole day and not drag them out to shop for most of the day just to get out of the house. Why is that? Kids get bored so easily and they all want to watch different DVDs and it's a little too chilly for me outside. They love the 40 degree weather and the chapped cheeks. I can't sit out there and watch them play. It's just too cold for me.
So what do we do? I pack them in the car and drive out to the mall to go to Old Navy who is eternally out of any size that I might wear, and then we drive to the completely other side of town to go to Target just to buy mouthwash. Yes we needed it, but we needed nothing else at all. It was just a desperate ploy to get out of the house with them all and hope that someone might just fall asleep while we were driving all over town. No such luck.

Meanwhile my phone has been ringing all weekend but the ringer was turned off since we were at the movies Friday afternoon. 1 new project prospect called and a business for sale prospect called. Motherhood always takes precedence. That's why I have the jobs that I have, so that I can take the kids to the movies and take random days off if someone is sick or has a half day due to parent conferences. That is my other job........mother. That's why I turn down projects and opportunities. I have to be a mother first and everything else has to come second. That is the eternal plight of all mothers. Work or kids and hardly ever work and kids. So with this the holiday season upon us I pretty much resign myself to doing nothing but maintaining the businesses I already have and spending my time shopping for Christmas, going to school holiday programs, and sitting at home with any one of my 3 kids that might have the day off school during the next 2 months.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

PollStar

Here's a new thing we're trying.....After attending our Millionaire Mind weekend I think I came to the conclusion that the things that I really love are writing and reading books, and going to concerts. The one thing I want to do before I die is to have Chris Isaak perform for my friends and family in my backyard. So on that note it kind of led me to concert promotion and putting together shows for other people who want their favorite band to come and play for them in their home town. That in turn led me to PollStar where I quickly plunked down the $400 membership fees. I've been getting the magazine for the past few weeks and it is so fascinating to see how much bands are making on their tours. PollStar also provides contact info for all of the bands booking agents which blows my mind. It's just a simple phone call to find out if your favorite band is available to come play. Of course it's a little bit more technical than that when it comes to scheduling etc, but the info is a major start. Is this my new career? If would be awesome, and we definitely have some music industry connections, but they are old and who knows if anyone would take us seriously, but it would sure be fun to try. Our first goals are to bring Chris Isaak and BRMC here to Flag to play. What could be more fun than bringing your favorite bands into town to play? Anyway that's something we are working on in the background to all of our other business ventures.

I turned down a good job the other day for a remodel in the country club. I just wasn't feeling it and I have so little time the next few months before Christmas, and the kids have so much time off of school, that it didn't seem like something I should do. Even though we are so cash poor at the moment I couldn't being myself to take that project. Maybe I really am done with being an architect.

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

So today I feel a little bit better. It's obvious that I'm not cut out to be an architect, or I would be making more money doing it. It's not what I love to do. So now the question is what do I love to do? I was having a blast doing all of that research for my book. It was really fun and exciting and I seem to have lost my drive on that as I get sidetracked by other things day to day. I think I should really stop taking on new projects and just focus on my book and some sort of Internet something. I'd love to sell information if I could do it in a non-sleazy way. There are too many people out there now selling crappy info to less than intelligent people. I just want to sell people stuff that they need and that I don't have to work too hard at selling. If I have to convince someone that they need it then they probably don't need it.
Maybe I'm just eternally flaky and I'll never really be able to commit to any career or project. Or I could rephrase that and say that I just like to keep my options open. Basically what it comes down to is that I only want to do things that are fun, that make money and that will advance myself and my family. I'm really selfish that way.

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

I'm not an architect

I'm in a really nasty funk. I've come to the conclusion that I don't want to be an architect anymore. I still love houses and buildings, but I just don't want to deal with the people anymore. I was really drug down by the last few weeks. I got like 4 different phone calls for new projects and most all of them were not able to afford my fees. An architect is expensive. This is not a new idea. Everyone knows that. I don't care how small your project is I don't want to do it if I'm going to make less than $3000. I don't think that's being unreasonable. I don't know these people or how much of my time they are going to eat up, so in order to hire me you have to pay me at least that. So I'm so frustrated at my work. I don't like drawing anymore and every new client is so suspicious of me for some reason. Yes I'm young and I'm female and an architect, and yes I'm expensive. I've got to make a living. I don't think they realize that to spend 2-6 months on their tiny little project is worth $3000 of my time. I'm seriously giving it up. No more construction documents. I'll do floor plans and consult on site plans, but no more documents. I'm sick of it.
So on that same note. We are broke. We need money coming in from somewhere. I haven't made a decent living as an architect ever. I'm at a whopping $22,000.00 so far this year and I haven't been paid well for a project in a while. So I've got to wonder is it just me......is it an economic thing? People don't seem to be building large custom homes anymore, or hey are just not calling me.
So that is what has prompted me to look for something new. I love out other businesses and I'm looking another one still. Anything has got to make more money than me as an architect. Heck I could probably work full time at Dairy Queen and make more money.