[FAQ Series] How to approach, work with, and help your Architect

We are going to start a new blog series about Frequently Asked Questions. These are compiled from Google search suggestions, so we know that a lot of people have the same questions in mind. Today’s entry is about what it’s like to be a client - and how you can approach, work with, and even help your Architect help you.

• Approaching an Architect - When and How?

  If you have renovations or a new project in mind, it’s a great idea to get in touch with an Architect early for a couple of reasons.

  Firstly, the project process is long - and the work is quite relational. You need to find someone that you trust, and that can take time. I always encourage potential clients to ask around. Meet your Architect or Designer. Learn about what they stand for, what they’re passionate about, how many projects they do at a time or in a year. What drives them? How do they see their role?

  Secondly, depending on fame or circumstance the Architect’s capacity to start work can vary. Some may have a waiting list, others may (hush hush) not want to reveal the capacity for an immediate start. Again, this may mean that you’ll need to talk to multiple Architects and Designers to find someone who can work to your timeframes.

  Thirdly, projects do take time. If you’re embarking on the concept process when you already have a need for change or space, or if you’re starting a project because conditions are favourable in the market, you’re probably already tracking several months or half a year behind where you need to be. Rushed projects generally don’t bring the best outcomes.

  For these reasons, we strongly advocate coming up with a Vision for your property early. This may be a high-level design exercise, but what you want to make sure is that you foresee how your home may evolve or change with your family, and that each change or intervention contributes to an eventual outcome. It means that you’re already primed to take the next step when the need arises.

  How would you get in touch with an Architect? Just give them a call or an email! Each studio’s on-boarding process is different. Some may have “gatekeepers” (ie. you don’t get to speak directly to the boss until you’ve been filtered through) or charge an initial consultation or briefing fee.

  As the Director here at Ever Studio, I’m always available and happy for a chat - and I’m even the first one you’ll see when you walk in our door! It’s in our DNA to be different - and we put caring for people and clients at the forefront of everything.

  Give me a call on 07 3726 5430, send me an email (billy@everstudio.com.au) or use our Contact form to reach out!

• Getting Prepared

  Clients approach us with vastly different levels of preparation. We’ve seen anything from “we don’t know what we want - show us what’s possible!” to scrapbooks, magazine clippings, multiple Pinterest boards, drawn plans of varying levels of quality, written reports and visual briefs.

  Personally speaking, I believe it’s generally a good idea to be prepared - but the important tip is that whatever you do, it’s best to hold things loosely with open hands.

  Keep in mind that there’s a separation between a list of rooms and areas, and the functions or qualities that you are trying to achieve. This is especially relevant in our suburban Australian context, in which we build some of the world’s biggest homes. Culture teaches us that we need more rooms for more functions. In reality, the Architect’s skills are helpful for “doing more with less” - to create enriched spaces, not just single-function rooms. And so qualitative discussions about how you think life will happen for you and your family, the things that bring you joy, even the feelings and atmosphere you want are often far more helpful than a rigid list of rooms and areas.

  This is not to say that having a list of rooms isn’t a good thing - only that holding it loosely is the key. Walk with your Architect as the project takes life - perhaps there’s a better way to meet the functional need.

• The First Meeting

  Different studios will approach this first meeting differently. I’ve heard of small firms who invite potential clients over for dinner, architects who provide free “sketch sessions” with butter paper (hint: ideas that come in an hour are probably not that resolved), or more formal meetings at an office with a prepared questionnaire.

  For us at EVER, what we like to do at these meetings is two-fold. Firstly, we want to listen - to learn about you, to hear your ideas and vision, to understand what makes a home special to you. That’s why we like having initial chats on site - we can see how you live, subconsciously take in your decor and preferences, even your taste in books and music etc. We just want to get to know who we’re designing for. The first meeting is just a start, but it gives us a glimpse.

  Secondly, it’s a chance for us to introduce our studio to you - what we stand for, our processes, how we approach projects, and explain how we charge for our work. Don’t worry, we’re not there to brag about ourselves. But we want to be clear about who we are, and what it’s like for you to step through a project with us, and what things will stand out about the project we’ll craft with you.

• Relating to, and interacting with, your Architect

  If you are wondering “how do I interact with an Architect?” - I think the biggest tip I can offer is to build a relationship of trust. This is not a blind trust (“just do what I say is best” - and some Architects can be guilty of this) but more a collaborative mindset. We love clients who are engaged and offer their input as the design evolves over time.

  It really helps us if we follow the structure of a project - for us, this means working from the big picture to the smallest detail. Feedback is appreciated and often helps to drive a better and more refined outcome. Make sure you understand (and ask the Architect to clarify if needed) what decisions you need to make at which point. As there is a “flow” from big to small (and this correlates with how we work with Consultants, and how a CAD model is built up over time), it’s extremely inefficient (and potentially costly) to make big changes to a project at a late stage.

  Finally, programming projects can be tricky for sole practitioner or small studios like ours. To be clear, we don’t mind if clients take their time to think through or consider changes or updates to their project - we want decisions to be thought-through to avoid having to step back to previous stages of a project - but giving an indication of when a project may come back online can be a small but surprisingly helpful gesture.

If you have a project in mind, we would love
to chat with you about how we can help.

Give our Director Billy a call on 07 3726 5430,
send him a quick email (billy@everstudio.com.au)
or click here to Contact Us today!