Building your dream home

Originally published in the Ketchikan Daily News, January 2008; written by Tammy Dinsmore

Have you been thinking about building a new house? The Public Library is a great place to start for ideas for that home project.

“Architectural Inspiration: Styles, Details & Sources” by Richard Skinulis & Peter Christopher caught my eye recently. The Rainbird Librarian wrote about this book on her blog, but I just had to say a little more! Exterior and interior pictures abound with text explaining the different styles and materials used in the 70 custom homes featured in this book. Who knew that a staircase could not only be functional but be beautiful as well? One of the architects and designers who contributed to this book, Bruce Kuwabara, talks about the “cadence” of a staircase being “very gentle and graceful.” What is it that we see at the top and bottom of the stairs, just a wall, or a beautiful view? Each chapter covers different details of the home and at the end of these chapters there is a products section which shows many of the high-end materials used in these homes and where to find them. (If you’re looking for inexpensive, it’s not in this book.) I especially like the art & decorative glasses shown at the end of the “Doors & Windows” chapter. I’m trying to figure out where I could incorporate a small piece of it into my home. Lists of sources for architects, designers, products and services as well as a glossary of terms are at the end of the book. I have really enjoyed just browsing through this book.

In “House on a Budget: Making Smart Choices to Build the Home You Want” author Duo Dickinson showcases 19 homes that had to fit the following criteria: The homes had to be full time residences, the cost of the homes had to be competitive with spec-built homes at the time of construction, the homes were not owner built, and he wanted to know the final costs of each home. Some of the guidelines that the author offers are: to use standard materials creatively, (this may include painting walls finished with drywall in bold colors or arranging stock windows in a non-standard way.) Building to suit the site you have/buy, (Some of the building sites were very small or were steeply sloped, (Something we know about here in Ketchikan.) and others had existing building that couldn’t be torn down.) and taking your time, “The more time you spend figuring out exactly how your house will be used and the more time spent in “Value Analysis” (more bang for the buck), the less money ends up being spent.” Each home had its’ challenges, but whatever the challenge was, it was met head on by the owners, architects, contractors and builders and resulted in some really special homes.

Whatever your plans are, the Ketchikan Public Library has some great resources, from books of home plans to books on organizing your kitchen. Come in and check them out.