FORM / STUDIO

How a projectmoves.

A house takes two years or more from first meeting to handover. This is roughly what those two years feel like, what we will need from you, and what you get at each stage. All the drawings below show one small invented house.

  1. 01 Observe2–4 weeks
  2. 02 Define2–3 weeks
  3. 03 Explore4–8 weeks
  4. 04 Resolve3–6 months
  5. 05 Realise6–18 months

01

Observe

2–4 weeks

We start by looking: measuring the site or building ourselves, visiting at different times of day, and reading the planning context. You will walk us through how you live or work now, including what irritates you, and we will ask about things you may never have thought of as part of a brief.

What we need from you
Two long conversations, one of them on site. A list of what you would be sorry to lose.
What you receive
Measured survey, site notes, sun and access studies, planning summary.
Observe: site survey with neighbouring buildings, an existing tree, a sun path and survey pointsNoon, JuneOak, retainAccess
Illustrative drawing
A stripped room with bare orange brick around a window and a radiator beneath it.
Measuring an existing room. Nothing here has been decided yet.

02

Define

2–3 weeks

Before we design anything, we agree what the project has to do. Rooms and areas get written down. Budget is discussed openly, including what it realistically buys. Priorities are ranked, because they will eventually compete with each other, and it is better to know the order in advance.

What we need from you
Honest numbers. A decision on what comes first when things cannot all be had.
What you receive
A written brief, an area schedule, a realistic budget framework and an outline timeline.
Define: an area schedule drawn as rectangles sized by the floor area of each roomLive34 m²Cook18 m²Eat14 m²Store4 m²WC4 m²Sleep16 m²Bath8 m²Sleep12 m²Work12 m²122 m² target, one storey preferred
Illustrative drawing
A drawing of a floor plan on a timber desk beside a calculator and laptop.
An early schedule beside a plan sketch. The numbers and the drawing are worked on together.

03

Explore

4–8 weeks

We usually show two or three genuinely different approaches, as sections, card models and rough plans. They are meant to be argued with. By the end of this stage, you should recognise the building, and you should know why it is that shape and not another.

What we need from you
Reactions rather than approvals. Touch the models; tell us where you would sit.
What you receive
Sketches, card models, massing studies, early material ideas and a concept report.
Option A: illustrative axonometricMassing option A: one long gabled volume.Option B: illustrative axonometricMassing option B: an L-shaped plan with flat roofs around a terrace.Option C: illustrative axonometricMassing option C: two offset volumes joined by a low link.
Illustrative drawing
A pale card model showing a tilted roof, a long stair and pale green water.
A card model at 1:50. Cheap to make and easy to cut into during a meeting.

04

Resolve

3–6 months

This is the long stage. The drawings get very detailed, and most of the decisions get made: structure, insulation, windows, joinery, every junction and every socket. Permit applications go in during this period. You will see real samples, in real light, at your building rather than in our office.

What we need from you
Decisions on samples. Time for a permit process we do not control. Some patience.
What you receive
Permit drawings, technical package, specification, coordination with engineers and tender documents.
Resolve: a plan with poché walls, dimension lines and door swings4.863.403.74
Illustrative drawing
Material samples including grey metal and veined white stone on a pale surface.
Samples laid out for a client meeting. Metal, stone and paint viewed side by side.

05

Realise

6–18 months

We stay on the job. We visit weekly, answer questions, check samples and adjust the drawings for what the building reveals when it is opened up. This is when things go wrong and get fixed. Having the same people who drew it standing on site makes a real difference at that moment.

What we need from you
Fortnightly walk-throughs if you like them. Fast decisions on the few things that need you.
What you receive
Site visits and reports, drawing revisions, cost tracking, snagging and a handover file.
Realise: a wall detail showing brick, cavity, insulation, block and lime plaster, with a floor build-upBrickCavityInsulationBlockLime plasterOak boardsHeating screedSlab
Illustrative drawing
A room under construction, with metal studs, exposed ceiling and leaning plasterboard.
First fix. Last chance to move a socket before the walls close.

Timings are illustrative, and vary with the building and the permit authority. There is no fixed package: some clients join for one stage only, others for all five.

Start with stage 01