Posted in Design Projects, tagged arch, curved gluelam beams, process, small buildings, Treasure Island, value, volunteer, whimsy, woven on March 15, 2026| Leave a Comment »
This project was completed in 2007 as a volunteer project for TISC, a community boating program on Treasure island.
They needed a place for the students to change into sailing clothing and the budget was tight.
They had these old concrete block walls and asked if I could turn them into changing rooms.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, chicago faucet, green, harvest, heat pump hot water heater, houses, John Mcbride, kitchen, McBride Construction, natural stone counters, process, remodel, salvaged fir, sanco2, skylight, small buildings, small houses, stone countertops, wood on March 13, 2026| Leave a Comment »
This was a very typical job here in Berkeley. So many older houses have strange, bad additions at the back of the house. Perhaps when they were built people still had garbage dumps in their backyards and had no interest in connecting their living space to the yard. These guys had a badly built 1950s era closet tacked on to the back of their kitchen that contained the laundry and a bunch of other stuff. We moved the laundry and all the storage to the middle of the house and moved the kitchen to the back, adding a dining nook and a half bath and a very small extension to the back bedroom.
The owner is still finishing up details like the nook and the pantry so I will hopefully have one more update on this project.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged Accessory Dwelling Units, Berkeley, bright colors, cabinets, color, details, Emeryville, energy efficiency, framing, Limeplaster, process, skylight, small buildings on December 1, 2025| Leave a Comment »
We have been busy with all sorts of great projects the last few months. Here are a few snapshots.
Mudroom Bench – Very similar to one we did 10 years ago, but customized to perfectly fit the new space: narrower on one wall than the other. The lid is solid ash and the rest is painted. I need to get some photos of the blue interior. Thanks to Kelly Best and McBride Construction for the excellent craftsmanship.
The slab was poured and beautiful saw cut control joints added. Now the structural framing is underway. The tolerances are very tight in these small living spaces. Every inch matters. I was delighted to discover that the concrete work and framing has resulted in walls that match my drawings to the 1/16 inch.
Finally did a photoshoot at a recently finished Accessory Dwelling Unit in the Berkeley Hills. Below you will see the photographer, Lenny Gonzalez, and the photoshoot models Eowyn & John.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged accessory dwelling unit, ADU, Berkeley, color, Lime Plaster, process, small buildings on June 4, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Here are a few exterior shots of the integral color plaster walls. Action shots of the plastering team at work courtesy of Michael Scott.
Interior and detail shots will hopefully be forthcoming, (hard to get photos in such a small space with ongoing work and protection in place) but the exterior is really looking good.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged accessory dwelling unit, ADU, Berkeley, eaves, housing, process, small buildings, wood, WUI on January 22, 2025| Leave a Comment »
The owner took these photos for me of our little ADU taking shape. In the first photo you can see our 4×6 rafter tails with a curve. These will get gyp sheathing above with non flammable (Hardiboard & Boral) material on the outside. No venting. (Roof sheathing is kept above the dewpoint with rigid insulation on top.) The lower eaves that are less visible will be enclosed completely. The last photo is john rabbeting one of the exposed fir beams for the interior.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged framing, kitchen, process, vaulted ceilings on April 3, 2024| Leave a Comment »
The clients sent me these photos from their recent visit to the project.
The view to the south is hard to beat!
Posted in Design Projects, tagged houses, Islanders, metal, process, remodel, steel, structure on March 26, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Justin Prevadoros, the builder for our Galiano Island project, sent this great photo of his crew testing the steel beam that will span the living room and support a dual purpose hearth & bench.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged ash, details, kitchen, process, wood on March 15, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Weve done a few of these in fir for interior and exterior, but this is the first one in ash. It will support a sitting area at the end of a kitchen island. Ill post photos after it is installed.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, foundation, houses, process, victorian on October 20, 2023| Leave a Comment »
It feels good to see this house sitting on a solid foundation after 100+ years.
It will have a new Accessory Dwelling Unit and improved workshop below along with new windows and siding throughout when all is finished.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, blacksmith, botanical, collaboration, craftswoman, details, hand forged, iron, patterns, process, stair, steel staris, whimsy on June 17, 2021| Leave a Comment »
I never managed to get any photos of this project….but it was a tiny addition and rearrangement of the south end of a house on two levels to better connect to the yard and maximize the south light. The centerpiece was a stair with botanical railing and thick wood treads. The blacksmith, Shawn Lovell recently gave me some progress photos that she took. Thanks Shawn! I’ll take a photo of the organic handrail she made for our place and post that next.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged accessory dwelling unit, ADU, Berkeley, details, green, lighting design, process, small buildings on June 15, 2021| Leave a Comment »
First here is a 3d model we built as a schematic design tool. A few things changed and not all the details are there, but you can get a sense of the overall layout.
This one was a rebuild of an existing garage. (We had to rebuild it to meet the energy standards for habitable space, but we had to keep it the same as the garage in footprint, height, and roofline. ) The owners wanted to keep it simple…and kind of traditional. We think it turned out well.
The heating is a Fujitsu minisplit, the insulation is beyond code including slab edge insulation, lighting is all LED, high efficacy, & high CRI. A spot HRV keeps the air fresh even when the owners are out of town.
Posted in Design Projects, tagged Berkeley, green building, process, small buildings, Strawbale on May 10, 2021| Leave a Comment »
I’ll just share the McBride Construction Photos of the sandy colored concrete sills on the strawbale:
www.instagram.com/p/COfuDyWH_s_/
deedsdesign 