From Dreams to Drawings
Okay, your design team has been assigned. We’ve completed the Conceptual Design phase to determine your project’s scope and feasibility. You’ve got ideas, dreams, wants, and needs just bursting at the seams waiting to take their shape! Lights, camera, action – now it’s time for the actual designing to take place.
So, what happens next? Schematic Design! Sounds cool… but what is it?! It’s a multi-step process transforming initial concepts into living, workable design options. Our goals in Schematic Design meetings are to establish the overall direction of your project, understand your needs, identify potential obstacles and opportunities, and get a general overview of your project’s basic features and construction cost estimates. It’s fun, creative and intensive, and at the end of it, you should have a design that is starting to feel real. Cue goosebumps!
The Importance of Visuals
Sounds like an exciting whirlwind right? Let’s break it down some more. It’s time to dive deeper and develop your drawings. The Schematic Design phase is where your ideas start to come to life. Your visions are turned into graphic images. Because who doesn’t love a visual?! Your space starts to materialize, you can start to imagine and feel what it’s like to walk around and through it, (hello there, beautiful daydream!), but the fundamental details around building it have not quite been solidified yet.
The Schematic Design phase can be fast paced and fascinating. Together, we start with brainstorming, design generation, and working towards a more concentrated game plan. It’s the first major step where your architectural vision begins to take its form. Vivid ideas are fine-tuned on paper then turned into complex, beautiful, detailed drawings. This stage is crucial, as it sets the foundation for your project moving forward. No more fantasizing about the “what-ifs” of your space – it’s all happening.
Attention to Detail
Schematic Design’s most important focus is on translating ideas, dreams, inspirations, and requirements into physical layouts. It’s the plan before the (quite literally) groundbreaking construction takes place. It’s a pivotal time of exploring all the logistics. During this phase, our architectural team is hard at work behind the scenes transforming your visions and objectives into real life 3D drawings. Ultimately, their role and goal are to provide you, our valued client, with clear design documents and everything you need to feel confident and inspired to move forward. Everything needs to be just right. Think of a “stars aligning” sort of sensation, but in a design capacity.
It’s crucial to understand that our architect’s job is not only to provide gorgeous designs that you love, but also the essential information that you need to make life-changing decisions. Every meaningful space is created on a balance of form, function and human experience. That may have you wondering, “what’s my role in all of this?” Well, this is very much a collaborative process, and we want you to feel engaged every step of the way. All the little details, locations, arrangements, style, aesthetics, sizing, proportions, and so on should be understandable. No detail should feel like a mystery! With that in mind, it’s also your duty to give us clear feedback and make clear decisions, so that we can best support you during this transformation.
Teamwork Makes The Dream Work
The communication and tight knit relationship we build are going to be essential in helping this well-oiled machine run smoothly and for everyone and to remain on time and within budget. However, it’s also important to recognize change in design and construction are sometimes inevitable – the nature of the beast, so to speak. Your approvals are going to be necessary to keep progressing throughout the design phases and develop an outcome you love.
Overall, at the conclusion of the Schematic Design Phase, (which can vary on duration based on the complexity and scale of a project) you should be feeling over-the-moon happy with the layout, feeling of your project, and picture of your space’s future. We urge you to treat every phase as an independent, unique part of a grand adventure. Share your thoughts, fears, joys and let us guide you throughout this evolutionary journey. And of course, continued understanding of trade talk is going to be another important ongoing piece during this time to ensure we’re all on the same page with your vision. Check out our Learn the Melton Lingo page to learn more terms you’re going to use and hear during the Schematic Design phase. Remember, all questions are good questions!