The search for an architect has begun...

Building your house from scratch allows you to express your taste. Another delightful perk would be hiring an architect so that together you and him can build the design you like. Whatever your design taste is, you and the architect must be able to work together with minimal fall-out.

When we started the search for the arguably most important figure in the journey, we kind of knew what we wanted. That made the investigation a little easier in that we could focus on candidates that we thought could deliver. The Internet surfing began on a clean slate. There were no referrals nor famous architects that we liked to check on. In fact, our budget was more of the shoestring type so that cancelled out the latter from the get-go.

Searching for an architect that could do cement-rendered flooring should not be that difficult. Finding one that could do that and a lot more so that the overall concept fell into place was not easy. That much my other half could share.

Flooring that’s at home in a factory, exposed cable conduit and cornice-free, bare ceiling were more of what we so craved for. Basically, everything looking industrial. It wasn’t that straightforward to begin with but my other half held on and persevered.

After several hours of page returns, she finally found one that looked promising. Actually, make that very promising.

His design style was under-construction. In other words, the end product will not look finished. He seemed to fit the bill. Apart from the desirable style, his architectural approach was one that’s self-sustaining, friendly to the environment and above all, design does not have to cost. We liked what we had seen so far.

Remember to decide on the style you want. Establish a tolerance point on how much you would allow it to stray. Have some budget in mind. Do check out the names given to you by friends and relatives but don’t stop there. Make your visit to the Internet more efficient and effective by entering the right key words. Bookmark what you liked seeing the first time round because you can lose them. Most importantly, allow yourself the time to carry this act out.