Week of April 19, 2009

Posted on: April 19th, 2009 | 5 Comments
  • Elizabeth Duggan Litch

    I have so often wondered why people can’t seem to even THINK about re-assigning rooms when looking at homes to buy!
    I have had the fun of adding on a one storey addition to a two storey 1840′s log home here in Ontario. It has been featured in magazines, and on TV.. and the Food Network used it for a big Christmas Special which ran this Christmas. The kitchen is part of the addition, allong with our bedroom and my studio. We are very fortunate to have been able to rescue the old house. Upstairs are three guest rooms and bathroom, downstairs the living/dining room, and my husband’s desk tucked into a corner…
    I look forward to following your site…. Saw you in the Globe! Thanks for doing this!
    Elizabeth

  • John Brown

    Elizabeth,
    You are absolutely right. The cookie cutter real estate industry sees houses as little more than commodities sold by the square foot. It is a case of “what you see is what you get”. Find the one that is the closest to your needs and put up with the things you don’t like or need and try to forget the things that are missing.

    Your suggestion is much better, to look for property with a “what you see is just the beginning” attitude. The slow home approach is to tailor your home to fit, in much the same way that you would tailor a pair of pants that you just purchased. The purchase of the home then becomes one of looking for potential rather than just a ready-made product.

    One of our goals with the site is to show people how to think like a designer so that they feel more comfortable with this process.

  • Paul Grissom

    John, I would love to see what you’d say about the typical kitchen in a typical subdivision home in the GTA. Even in some of the nicer overall plans I have wondered if the designer had ever actually used a kitchen!

    Following your site with interest since the Globe article.

    Paul

  • John Brown

    Paul,
    Unfortunately most kitchens are not done by a professional designer. Send me a plan and I will use it in an exercise!

  • Murray

    John:

    I’ll scan you a plan for a 1960′s bungalow here in Calgary ….