What is a drawing? + Reckless reno update

Every Tuesday I stand up at my networking meeting and tell everyone that I do drawings for people who have trouble envisioning their future space, or maybe want to “try” some ideas before making a decision.  But what does that mean, really?  A “drawing”?  What is it?  The best way to tell you is to show you.

Below is the before photo of a client’s bathroom.  In this case, the client toyed around with expanding the shower while also keeping a bath tub, but a smaller one.  So, in the case of this client, the “drawing” was all about being able to visualize the options.


Sometimes you have an idea that will technically work, but once you’ve seen it, it no longer appeals to you.  In this case, removing the half walls on either side of the tub would gain a few inches for the shower, but not enough to be worth it.  Also not worth leaving the toilet so awkwardly exposed.

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So we tried it a different way, with no tub at all.

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This ended up being exactly what we were looking for which means my next job is to turn it into an actual plan with dimensions and notes for the contractor.  This helps to eliminate misinformation and miscommunication.

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In the case of this client, I loved how close the final product came to the drawing.  I still swoon over the floor.


Next, is a kitchen client who wanted to see some options, but also wanted to be able to see, in 3D, some of the big changes they were wanting to make.  Things like taking out an entire wall and moving a doorway.  Construction on this project hasn’t started yet, so there are no after photos.

Here is the current space being viewed from in the dining room. Note: A big ole wall is in the way.


Now here is the 3D perspective view of the future kitchen.

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Here you can see the current sink and stove which stay right where they are in the new plan.  However, you’re going to see a major difference when the refrigerator moves the back wall, and the large built in pantry goes away.  In addition, the kitchen expands into the current “breakfast nook” with a bank of cabinets under the wall of windows.  Note: I’m not good at taking before photos.  They’re always crooked!



Now the future space…

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I currently charge between $350 and $500 for renderings and floor plans, which includes 4 revisions.  Not every project requires a drawing or a plan, but I would say that a large portion of them do.  If you want to have some certainty in your decisions, seeing it in 3D can give you that.

Now on to my reckless renovation update!


We did some stuff, ya’ll!  BAE (My business administrative executive) scraped the ceiling in this entire portion of the house and put sheetrock back where it was missing.  I then painted the walls this not quite black color.  Eventually the pretty much black will be mostly covered by whitewashed cedar planks so only a bit of that awesome darkness will creep through.  I am soooo not looking forward to taking up that 1984 tile.  Whoever put it down did an excellent job.  30 years later, that stuff does not want to come up.

If you’re embarking on a project and would like Love Of Function (that’s me) to help, feel free to fill out my form telling me all about it!


My closet removal project: 1

This weekend my husband and I did something that many would consider irresponsible, reckless, and just a little crazy.  We took some walls out of our house.  On whim.  With no solid plan in place.  That’s just more or less how we roll.  We’ve been talking about removing both of our entry closets since the day we bought our house.  On Sunday, my husband grabbed a sledge hammer and decided the talking was over.  We’re doing this.  It won’t be fast, and we’ll be doing it all ourselves.  My one and only goal is to get something, anything, accomplished with this project every week.  I’m going to keep a strict tally on how much it costs, and I’ll report back every Wednesday.

Without further ado, here is what we started with and where we’re at now.

This is a panorama from the hallway to the front door.  From left to right, we have the AC door, closet 1 door, and closet 2 door (the one I made into a pocket library).
As you can see, we don’t’ have much of an entry.  This is looking straight on at closet 2 (pocket library).
When you open the front door, you walk right into the side of closet 1.  This is the biggest change that I wanted.  I want the front door to open into a visually appealing space.  Not a wall.

Here is what we’ve done so far.

Closet 1 gone.
All closet walls gone!

Most people would clear the closets out before they start tearing out walls and they would be right to do so.  That’s my goal for this week.  After I get all the stuff cleared out, I’m going to rip up the carpet, then maybe attempt to break up some of the tile.  I’ll tell you next week what my plans are for the space and some of the materials that I want to use.

Week 1 costs: $0.00