Designer Diaries: New Elementary School

I'm back with another installment in my Designer Diary Series.  This time it's to share a little bit about an elementary school I designed that is currently nearing completion.

In the early stages of the design process, I sometimes start with just a palette board.  I make up several paint palettes along with inspiration photos for the client to look over.  It's a nice way of getting them to chose a direction for their building, without overwhelming them with lots of design decisions all at once.


Here is the board they choose:

 { I've cropped off the titleblock @ the bottom of the board, that's why it looks a little funny }


At the next design meeting I came back with options for the finishes.  This is what they choose:

The image below shows a small portion of the school.  This is the floor pattern they chose for the corridors:

And here is a photo of the flooring being installed:

I know the quality of these photos isn't the best - this job is out of state so I haven't been able to visit the site to take photos.


The flooring is linoleum by Forbo.  Linoleum gets a bad rap because most people refer to sheet vinyl as linoleum.  Huge, huge difference - not at all the same thing!  Real linoleum has been around long before sheet vinyl and is manufactured of natural ingredients (linseed oil, resins, natural pigments, and jute backing).  Linoleum is definitely making a comeback and is once again popular.  This building will be LEED certified, so linoleum was the perfect choice for many reasons.  I've also specified Armstrong linoleum - both are great manufacturers.


This is the floor pattern they selected for the cafeteria:

Tile behind the drinking fountains:

I know, I'm sure this isn't exciting to you, but I just love seeing anything that I designed!  I wish I had more photos of the building to share.  So far, this is all I have!

These are a few of the fabrics I used on furniture throughout the building.  The top one is from Arc Com and the middle and bottom one are both from Momentum.  All three are Crypton - a high performance upholstery.

I just love this one:

And this one too:

This is a very small portion of the complete design.  Most people think that interior design is chosing colors and selecting patterns.  In reality, it is just a VERY small portion of the process.

Hope you have a wonderful Thursday!

Designer Diaries: Middle School Remodel

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I'm starting a new series on the blog called Designer Diaries.  From time to time I'll share a little peak into my work life as an Interior Designer for an architectural firm.

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First up, a Middle school project I recently worked on.  The project scope included remodeling the media center, locker rooms, and auditorium. 

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The portion of the building where the media center is located was built in the 1970s....and hadn't been touched since.  We gutted the space and came up with a different layout.

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Here's the floorplan:

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This is the carpet tile:

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The minute I found this upholstery I loved it with the carpet.  The upholstery is going on new lounge seating.

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{ Double Dutch by Designtex }

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These plastic laminates are being used on built in storage.

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As far as plastic laminates go, I am in love with this one...

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This is a very cool product called Lumicor.  I'm using it on the walls between the main media center and the computer lab instead of glass.  The product is made of resin and is translucent.  It's going to be really pretty.

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The Auditorium is in the original portion of the building - built in the early 1920s.  This part of the building has some really beautiful details and was originally built as the district's High School. 

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Right now the auditorium renovation is in progress and looks like this:

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They have demoed the old carpet and chairs and are in the process of constructing a new ramp up to the stage, building a stage extension, and painting.

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This is the carpet that will be going in.  I wanted to use a pattern that would be appropriate for a space this old.

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Here's the upholstery that will be on the auditorium seats and the paint colors:

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All of the decorative plaster mouldings will be painted this Pratt & Lambet metallic.  It's from the series Ovation and the color is Opulence.  This isn't a good photo because you can't even tell that it is a metallic!

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Not a great photo, but here's a peak of the painting.  The mouldings are really going to stand out now, before they were painted the same off-white as the walls and they were hardly noticeable.

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Here's the board I put together for the athletic areas of the building.  Maybe not the most exciting thing, but let me tell you, the coaches and P.E. teachers are really excited about their new spaces!

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The wall tile in the locker rooms was just installed and looks like this:

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That's the old tile floor in the photo.  It is being covered up with a poured resinous epoxy flooring.

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So, that's what I've been up to at work!  I'm really looking forward to seeing the completed spaces.