is where the heart is
I’ve had time to think about where I want to take the projects on thedimension.xyz and I’ve come to the realisation that the most important space is where you actually live. Mega airports and grand civic buildings are cool and all but trying to design and visualise them myself is probably not the best of ideas, especially when there are teams dedicated to their development. Not to say that they won’t be worked on, but rather put on the backburner for a later time and place.
Yes, I studied architecture ( to a degree 🙂 ) but I find the best way to learn is by doing it yourself and I’m lucky enough to have the opportunity to renovate/refurbish my house. So I’ve spent the past few days researching materials and products that would work well together.
Existing Space
Currently, this is what I’m dealing with. You’d be forgiven to think I purposely neglected the area just to make a more impactful before and after shot but it’s pretty much the state I found it in and regrettably it’s been in the same condition since. Honestly, I’d give it a 1/10 just because it exists and the pipes are connected and working. That’s about to change because it deserves a space I’m proud to call home.
Inspiration
A picture can paint a thousand words and nothing better communicates the intent, so I spent a few days trawling through image discovery sites and saved the ones I thought best envisioned what I could do with the spaces. Relevant tags are a god-send when searching for keywords such as “Modern minimal bathroom” and curated collections are even better. I feel like viewing a lot of content can spark new ideas that I wouldn’t have been able to come up with myself. Although, saying that, I don’t just want to replicate an image but rather take what I think works well and then mix and match certain elements with my own style. Everything’s a remix of a remix as they say.
The materials, colour scheme, fixtures and placement is what I was looking for and I became certain I was going to use concrete and wood the more I looked. Obviously I had a budget in mind, so being able to find thrifty alternatives to designer-price tag objects was an important part of this process. I realised a lot of the furniture, such as the kitchen cabinets, can be done yourself with a little bit of time, patience and an in-depth tutorial.
Measurements + Massing
Walked around with my laser and recorded the dimensions which I then converted into a simple 3D model with the walls setting the boundary and important fixtures modelled as basic shapes to get an idea of their position in the scheme. I found the measurements for most of the fixtures from the manufacturers documentation and I love when something just fits perfectly.
Detail Model + Visualisation
The bathroom is comparatively on the smaller side but it’s enough for a shower, toilet and sink to viably sit within. For the shower, I wanted it to be a “waterfall” from above which led me to a ceiling recessed shower head. As polished chrome reflects really well, this helps create an almost invisible effect that hopefully will bring back the focus on the water streams before being swiftly drained via the chrome shower waste directly below. The two recesses on the dividing wall will allow for soap and other toiletries.
The shower valve is a minimal 1 outlet made from ceramic and coated in black to contrast with the micro-cement plastered walls and centred both vertically and horizontally. The concrete sink will be placed directly opposite and in line with the shower to help create space when walking in. The tap is in the same style as the shower valve to help tie the elements together. The toilet is the most expensive part of the room and will be wall hung so that water can be wiped from underneath even if the floor is waterproof. The window can be open to allow for ventilation when things get steamy and is also frosted to help keep things private. Two wall mounted hooks beside the sink allow for towels and clothes to be hung when needed.
The kitchen is very simple in terms of fixtures as it really just consists of one large wooden unit made up of cabinets and shelving with holes cut out for a small sink and hob. The two towers on either side maximises usable space and frames the window in the middle.
Studio
[Unreal engine animation]
— UPDATE TEXT–
- Entrance
- Façade clean
- Door
- Kitchen
- Countertop
- Cabinet
- Sink
- Bathroom
- Wet room
- Sink
- Studio
- Sofa bed
- Workspace
- Cupboards
- Shelving
- Sound system / TV
- Garage
- Bike mount
- NAS
- Solar power station
Record of the process:
- Plan of action / Existing
- References
- Measurements
- 3D Design
- Renders / Animations
- Budget
- Timeframe
- DIY / Wood work / Electrical
- Photography
Final:
- TheModernHouse
- Would ya live here
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