We desire simple and familiar forms, well executed, meticulously detailed, and enclosing a modern floor plan. Simple forms lend themselves to cost effective construction, increased energy efficiency, improved reliability, and, we would argue, greater levels of sophistication.

A simple form need not be simplistic. Quite the opposite- it is the responsibility of the designer to develop sophisticated visual interest within the confines of a rigorously simple canvas.

To further describe our philosophy, we borrow a term from the automobile set; we draw an analogy for our design ethic to the “restomod.” In car culture, this term describes a vehicle from a bygone era with a familiar shape, and then modified to modern sensibilities, levels of performance, and comfort. We see our design work with buildings the same way, only in the architecture trade it is termed “soft modernism”. We employ the familiar building form, update it to reflect the fact that we live in the era of the “iDevice”, and apply a thorough design process to achieve occupant comfort with maximum efficiency. Rather than horsepower and minimal 0-60 times, our performance metric is minimized energy consumption and occupant comfort. Another thing we do share with our hot rod counterparts: the desire to be cool and leave people impressed.

The end result “fits” into the surroundings and contributes to sense of place, is comfortable and efficient, becomes a welcome addition to the existing housing stock, and in a subtle manner- lets both occupant and observer know it was designed and crafted carefully to reflect the spirit of the time in which it was built.