Each year, I like to share a few gift ideas drawn from discoveries I’ve made either in the past year, or in previous years. All of them I’ve personally tested and continue to find both useful and/or beautiful. I hope you and your gift recipients enjoy them as much as …
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Every year during the holiday season, I get emails from readers who are interested in purchasing one of my books for a friend or relative, but are not sure which one to pick. This year, I thought I’d take the opportunity to describe the differences, so you can decide for …
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Once in a while a piece of unexpected publicity arrives in my inbox or over social media that tells a story that no one else has considered until that moment. This is the case with fellow architect Duo Dickinson’s recent article, “The Impossibility of Equity.” I have known Duo for …
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This post is Part 4 of a 4-part series on the Not So Big Bungalow. If you haven’t already read the previous installments, Part 1 — Introduction, Part 2 — Main Level, and Part 3 — Upper Level, I would recommend doing so first, before reading below. The Not So …
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This post is Part 3 of a 4-part series on the Not So Big Bungalow. If you haven’t already read the previous installments, Part 1 — Introduction, and Part 2 — Main Level, I would recommend doing so first, before reading below. As in the previous post, in this post, …
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This post is Part 2 of a 4-part series on the Not So Big Bungalow. If you haven’t already read the previous installment, Part 1 — Introduction, I would recommend doing so first, before reading below. Designed for Practicality and Comfort The Not So Big Bungalow is 1,600 square feet, …
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I’ve always been fascinated by the success of the Sears Kit Homes of the early 20th century. And so, many years ago, I began scheming with Michael Morley—friend, colleague, fellow author, and an expert in Structural Insulated Panel (SIPs) construction methods—to create a smaller-but-better home for today’s homebuilding market that …
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When The Not So Big House was first published in 1998, I frequently encouraged my readers to work with residential architects to design their new homes and remodelings. But I soon realized that, at that time, it was quite difficult for homeowners to identify which architects specialized in residential projects. …
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Several years ago, I collaborated with my friend and fellow architect, Tina Govan, to design a house here in North Carolina, on a truly spectacular lakefront property, with panoramic views of the water and mountains beyond. The couple for whom we designed the house wanted a place that would work …
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In the mid-1990s, when I’d been working as a residential architect for more than a decade, I had an epiphany one day while driving though the suburbs of Des Moines, Iowa. I had started noticing that new houses were getting extremely large, and decidedly unattractive. For miles and miles, …
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