Busy Summer
It’s been a busy year so far working multiple projects through design and permitting, but that’s starting to bear fruit in some very exciting ways!
In July we broke ground on a strawbale ADU (in the front setback!) in Walnut Creek. Really pleased with the way the final material palette has turned out as we wrap up the “For Construction” drawings. Much more coming soon!
Cork Exterior Cladding
For the Farm-Creek Residence one of the early options we looked at included using compressed cork as an exterior cladding panel. Cork comes from the bark of cork oak trees, native to the Iberian Peninsula, and can be harvested in sections without killing the tree. Most of it is used for wine corks, but a company called Thermacork takes the byproducts from cork stopper production that would otherwise be burnt to make building cladding panels.
On the Boards: Farm-Creek Site Plan
Our initial phase of design work is based on research, context, and testing ideas with you at the center of the design process. In the case of the Farm-Creek Residence this process is perfectly illustrated by the evolutions of the illustrated site plan from the analysis of the existing site, to the three initial options, through to our current site plan in the middle of Schematic Design. After studying three different initial options we took the best parts of several of them to create a concept for the home which sits comfortably between a restored creek habitat to the south and the working farm to the north. It extends the basic forms of the original house while completely transforming them.
On the Boards: Farm-Creek Renderings
Some projects are just so exciting that we have to share the progress renderings. The Farm-Creek Residence currently in schematic design is one of those. This combination of people and place hits the mark on so many levels: a renovation & addition to create a family’s forever home, on land mostly dedicated to farming which supplies the client’s farm-to-table restaurants with fresh produce, with a blue-line creek lined with heritage oaks running across the southern edge of the property.