Biophilic brutalism: Can Concrete and Nature Work Together?
I never thought I'd find myself defending concrete. Growing up, I associated it with ugly parking garages and those soul-crushing urban housing projects from the 1960s. You know the type…
Habitat for humanity restore design center: A Complete Guide
# Discovering the Hidden World of Habitat for Humanity ReStore Design Centres NEW_TITLE: How My Random Thrift Store Visit Changed How I Think About Sustainable Design You know how sometimes…
Restoration design: A Complete Guide
Last winter, I found myself standing in a gutted Victorian brownstone in Philadelphia, watching my client Susan cry over a pile of water-damaged plaster medallions. The previous owner had attempted…
Design restoration: A Complete Guide
Last month, I stood in what used to be a stunning 1920s craftsman home, now reduced to water-damaged drywall, warped hardwood, and the lingering smell of mold. The owners –…
Why We Shouldn’t Give Up on Old Buildings: What I’ve Learned About Restoration and Aging in Place
Last month, I read an article about a developer in Montreal who wanted to gut a beautiful Art Deco bank building rather than restore it. Got me thinking about how…
What I Learned About Healing Spaces from a Medical Waiting Room That Didn’t Feel Like Torture
Last month I had to take my wife to a new specialist about an hour from home. I was dreading it – you know how those medical office visits go.…
Why My Kids’ School Finally Gets It Right (And How Your District Can Too)
I never thought I’d be the parent who gets excited about classroom lighting, but here we are. Last month, I found myself sitting in my daughter’s third-grade classroom in Portland,…
Regenerative design: A Complete Guide
I'll be honest – the first time someone used the term "regenerative design" in a meeting, I had to Google it afterward. This was maybe three years ago, and I…
What I Learned About Biophilic Design After Turning My Kids’ Dark 1960s House Into a Nature-Connected Home
I never expected to get emotionally affected by architecture, but there I was last month in the Amazon Spheres in Seattle, watching office workers naturally drift toward the curved glass…
Why Some Spaces Make You Feel Human (And How to Create Them When You’re Broke and Live in a Box)
Okay, so there’s this thing that happens when you walk into certain spaces where your body just goes “oh, thank god” and relaxes in a way you didn’t even realise…