What I mean by simplicity is that there shouldn’t be a maze of hallways. There is more space wasted by designers adding halls to the plan than most any other cause. And rooms should flow together with one another with access to most all area’s of the home available to those rooms. Some call this method the open floor plan concept. The Kitchen should be serviceable enough for two or more people to freely move around the room and the dining / nook rooms shouldn’t be far away from it.
Be patient with your designer. It will pay off in the long run. There are times I have seen the owner insist that the work be rushed, sometimes ending in a catastrophe of an under designed home or one whose function is not what it should be. Communicate with them and let this professional know what you are hoping for so he or she can put your individuality into every room and then trust their training and experience.
Our home is our castle no matter how humble it may be. It is where we should spend the happiest and most memorable moments of our lives. Therefore it should be built to look attractive so that the father, mother, and the children can feel that there is really “no place like home”. Sounds corny I know, but you know it is true.
About the Author
Tim Davis is an Architectural Designer with 30 years experience. And he does not believe you should spend a fortune designing your home. His website is at http://customhouseplans.8m.com
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( 2.9 / 61 )Personally, I'm a man of few hobbies and plenty of interests. What I mean by that is I very seldom spend time just playing or tinkering. I guess that's called being goal oriented. Whatever it's called, I've tried a multitude of diversions like flying, reading, fishing, boating, farming, art, etc. and none ever seemed to fill the relaxation goal I was shooting for.
That is until I started doing carpentry. I started off just working with the basic tools like a hammer and saw. I had to build a book shelf so the family books wouldn't be cluttering the house. And it was a masterpiece to be sure if a square box with a shelf in the middle of the box can be considered a masterpiece. The thing is that I took note of how much I enjoyed this simple task and started looking for other things to build. I started asking my wife if she needed items built for the house and the "honey do" list started to compile. And with each project completed for my wife, I noticed the stress going out the window. And the cool part of it was that while I was playing with the carpentry tools, I was having a blast.
It's a scary thought guys, I know. A wife can sometimes make a to do list for you that would scare off even the bravest of souls. But that's how it began. But wives have buddies and if the word gets out, next thing you know other ladies and even buddies of your own are asking you to build things. Hey but that's OK, with the exception of my wife’s projects, I tend to pick and choose what I build.
My doctor was surprised at how my blood pressure has gone down as a result and my concentration has improved ten fold. It's possible I've even added years to my life just eliminating all that stress. It's not that I've stopped working and devoted all my time to the wood shop. No, I'm still a goal type of guy. I just have something I can look forward to after stress starts to build in my life.
Years have passed now since that first book case and I have built so many different things and accumulated so many different tools that I now have my own personal play house complete with all the toys. We are talking routers, various power saws, table saw, lathe, drill press, band saw, 6 varieties of drills, radial arm saw, power mitre saw, etc., etc., etc...
And just to let you know how diverse you can be with what you build, here's a list of just some of the things I've built over the years:
Water Wheels
Church Pulpits
Church Pews
Lords Supper Tables
Push Carts
Lawn Furniture
Gates and Fences
Car Consoles
Tool Boxes
And the list goes on and on.
About the Author
Tim Davis has created a very complete course on learning to draw mechanical drawings in a CAD program at http://draftingservice.us/m101/ You will also find some woodworking plans on the site, free to download. If you are looking to learn to read and understand blueprints the author teaches this at http://blueprints.8m.com. Free Woodworking Plans are available at http://woodworkingplans.8m.com
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( 2.9 / 60 )Everyone in the world speaks a language. The definition of language is the expression of thoughts in an understandable way. And if we want to be understood, we learn as much about our language as possible including learning other languages as well. Facts are that I really do not know too many people who prefer to be misunderstood. And to become more proficient, we read books, magazines, newspapers, and practice composition in order to become completely familiar with our language.
However, if we try to describe in words the geometry, appearance, and details of a fixture, machine, house or building, it can be down right impossible using just words in most cases. This is where we need to use another language called the “Graphic Language of Drawing”. So that when our words fail to give a complete or accurate description we look to literature that uses diagrams, pictures, and drawings to better explain the concept of whatever it is we are studying or attempting to build.
This is where drafters come into play. A trained drafter is able to draw an image from many different perspectives so that there is very few questions what a finished object will look like when fabricated. This professional drafter not only creates a pictorial representation of an object, but also gives dimensions and instructions that can be understood in any workshop or construction site.
In the past, the tools of the drafter were pencil, pen, paper, tee square or parallel bar, drafting board, scales, dividers, and templates, but for the most part, with the invention of computer aided drafting tools or CAD for short, the professional can create accurate drawings that can be easily understood by most anyone. That’s not to say that drawing on a drafting board is a lost art. It’s still very common today and a excellent way for the drafter to keep up his discipline and skills.
About the Author
My name is Tim Davis and I draw architectural and mechanical plans for a living. I also teach others how to draw house plans, site plans, mechanical and shop drawings and other types of drafting that I have been trained to do in a virtual classroom on the internet called 101 Info Dot Org at http://101info.org
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( 3 / 49 )Architectural details are drawings that made at a larger scale than the floor plans and elevations. They are used to accurately describe the various methods of construction. The scale of detail drawings vary according to the need. 3/4" = 1' - 0" is a good size for the general details like exterior elevations and wall sections while interior elevations are often made at a scale of 1/2" = 1' - 0". Full size details are drawn when absolute accuracy is needed for things like fine mouldings of a fire place mantel.
The smaller scale details are usually included in the main drawings while full-size details are furnished only to the professional worker who specializes in a particular trade such as the finishing framer, plumber, or H.V.A.C. installer.
The details for most any building consist of the following types of drawings.
A. Vertical wall sections describing all horizontal mouldings, the sill, wall thickness, method of framing the floor into walls, windows, cornice, and roof lines at the cornice.
B. Details on the exterior elevations that could not be shown properly by the 1/4" or 1/8" = 1' - 0" scale elevations.
C. Detailed elevations and sections of the various items in the interior of the house such as doors, fireplaces, stairways, ornamental beams, cornices and other decorative features.
D. Parts of the plan are detailed when necessary.
After the general drawings are completed, the full-size details are drawn, usually in the order in which the building is finished. So then the basement windows are almost always the first full-size details made for the better class of residence work, since these windows must ordered and then delivered before the basement wall can be completed. The interior trim, stair finish, etc., are drawn full sized lastly because that is the last work to be put into the home.
My name is Tim Davis and I draw architectural and mechanical plans for a living. I also teach others how to draw house plans, site plans, mechanical and shop drawings and other types of drafting that I have been trained to do in a virtual classroom on the internet called 101 Info Dot Org at http://101info.org
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( 3.1 / 51 )Drafting fields vary by the type of drafting they specialize in. The various fields are architectural, structural, electrical and electronic, mechanical or machine, boundary and topographical, general, illustrative, and tracing or reproductive. And each of these fields have their own methods of getting an idea across on paper with similarities that tie them together as a certain type of trained professional.
A good drafters qualifications are: accuracy, technique, speed, economy, and neatness and also a fluent grasp of how to draw in many of the various CAD programs on the market today as well as use of the drafting board. Like many fields, drafting used to be mostly a mans vocation, but no longer because women have entered the work force and showed that they can be just as useful and skilled as any man creating complex drawings.
Accuracy is the greatest of these qualifications. A mistake should be considered as a reflection of the drafters character and every effort should be made to create habits of doing the most accurate work possible.
Technique should be studied and developed thoroughly, because without technique the drafters work looks like it was done by an amateur.
Speed in drafting is the result of mental processes as well as manual dexterity or skill with the mouse and keyboard using CAD. It naturally follows quick thought when the subject is understood and technique is mastered. And with speed comes economy. Speed can be attained by close attention to what details, dimensions, and shading are needed and also what is not required.
And then neatness is the final form of efficiency in light of the other qualities. It should be developed into a habit, and will usually be noticed in the work of those possessing the other qualities.
About the Author
Tim Davis is a drafter who has mastered many different types of drafting known as disciplines. He teaches drafting at http://101info.org and is the webmaster of Drafting, CAD, & Design Articles at http://draftingservice.us/drafting/
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