I have an iPad mini already ! But I simply love my Houzz App it's so much better , rewarding and more productive than face book And I spend many a night going through all the inspiring photos and I find myself feeling like a child in a candy store ! You seem to have thought of everything when it comes to making a house a home :) Love all the discussions and ideas from just normal people it's great fun ! One criticism when looking at pictures posted in the discussions is I can't expand them to see more detail . I'm sure this will be fixed ! Great work ! Love it love it love it !!!!

Hello Please make sure you design a floor plan that suits the orientation of your site, works in connection and flow, and creates spaciousness with decent storage, light and volume, and great indoor/outdoor connection. To be perfectly honest, it won't matter very much what you clad it in or what the roof is doing if you don't achieve this. I am so saddened to read on this thread that homeowners are having to do certain work to 'take back the reigns' from their designers. Architects and other professionals can forget that it's your home, your budget, your life. A professional should expand your ideas and add value to your plans and dreams for your home with their expertise. Unfortunately this doesn't always occur. Perhaps find a designer who can work collaboratively with you in this way. Even if you're building a small budget home, chances are you're still spending a big investment for you. It doesn't cost anymore to build a wall in the right place or the wrong place, and in my experience, the money you spend on the right professional saves you money in the long run. Invest in some advice upfront so you make a difference in the outcome you achieve. That's what helps you create a home that works and makes your life better, Regards Amelia Lee www.undercoverarchitect.com.au

When we were thinking of building about a decade ago, I bought some software and started playing around with it. It didn't take me long to realize I didn't have the knowledge to design a house properly - I couldn't figure out how to work with the terrain the house was going to be built on (steep, sloping block), I didn't know enough about the local building codes (height restrictions, bush fire protection measures) and I wasn't very good at figuring out how to take best advantage of orientation and views. My draft designs were bog standard and boring. We ended up finding a designer whose work we liked, and told him what we wanted - a 3 bedroom house, generous rooms, no wasted space, lots of storage, maximum natural lighting, energy-efficient orientation, open space living area, efficient (but not necessarily large) kitchen, decent deck. He produced a plan (and a little cardboard model) which pretty much exactly met our needs - we only had to make a few minor changes - and that was that. I think what I'm trying to say is that it's a good idea for you to know and explain what your needs and requirements are, but let the designer figure out how best to achieve them. That's what he's being paid for. By all means, give him plenty of input, but don't restrict him to tinkering with your design; let him produce his own.

There is something to be said for actually having to "make yourself" to work through/resolving the building slowly and manually "old school", without 3D "tools" as it forces you to really understand how it works simultaneously spatially and structurally. Visualising in 3D from 2D is a skill and if people don't have it naturally it can be developed, but if it doesn't exist you can't just expect a computer program to "sort that bit out" for you and continue on your merry way no dramas. Nope. The problem with the 3D thing is that sometimes it does "auto" stuff, & works it all out so quickly that it "conditions" the operator away from really having to slow down and think properly/deeply about what's happening. Again, this comes back to the (design) process being misunderstood and all messed up. 3D is a fantastic tool, great/wonderful for visualisation DOWN THE TRACK, however when it comes to the fundamentals of architecture & plan resolution and particularly residential/small scale, all you need is a measuring tape, pencil, scale ruler and some paper. Sure CAD makes it quicker and more accurate in this day & age and I admit I now design directly from/in CAD. But I use it like a pencil and it's essentially a more accurate "sketch" process translated into digital but still deeply deals with the fundamental function/zoning/scale/cost/context balance that allows the formal resolution to occur/progress at and in appoprriate time. There is WAY too much focus nowadays on "what it looks like" BEFORE the most critical stuff is understood, established and sorted. What is being lost and standardised/categorised with this era of visual focus is EXPERIENCE of space, which ultimately is what architecture is all about. It's a welding of science and art that is an art form within itself. When design is approached with a basic typological or cut&paste/elemental manner, that is only reinforced with computer programs, particularly in inexperienced hands, critical elements of space are not as effectively addressed and opportunities are missed or misunderstood. Not a good thing. "Form follows function" (thanks Frankie) and arguably the great examples of the craft of residential space were created without computers and have proven to stand the test of time. We may be able to do things quicker these days, but it doesn't necessarily equate to better nor enduring results. Not surprising really. End of rant ;) BTW The helicopter idea's not bad Retro ;)