editor’s letter
Welcome
Architects can get a bit of a raw deal sometimes. We want them to pack our projects with creative flair, yet often balk at new ideas they present or the thought of having to go through multiple design iterations to get the house we want. Perhaps it’s a symptom of our fast consumerism: I’m paying you £10,000s for this, so why can’t you get it right first time?!
Communication is an issue on both sides, too, and expectations need to be managed. We, as self builders and renovators, should be taken on a transparent journey from A (the brief ) to Z (the final design), with clear steps along the way and cost checks built in. On the flip side, if we’re coy on budgets or shy about what we do and don’t like, we’re basically tying one hand behind a designer’s back.