365 intentional acts of kindness, please join me #rocktownresilient #365actsofkindness

I have decided that this coming year I am going to do 365 intentional acts of kindness. Please join me in making our world a little brighter for others. #rocktownresilient #365actsofkindness

This year has been filled with a lot of negativity and challenges. On a personal level, I know I am blessed to have enough, maybe even more than enough. I did not go hungry. I have a home. I have stayed healthy. While work slowed tremendously for a few months our small business is surviving. While 2020 was filled with negative things, there were lots of silver linings and blessings.

The opportunity to work from home, spending more time with my girls this year, is incredible. I am still able to serve my clients and be with my family more than I ever imagined possible. The interactions I have had with friends this year have been special, whether through zoom or distanced in-person. Not having the ability to see anyone anytime makes the few meetings much sweeter. There have been so many positives in this year.

Finding ways to support others this year also has brought me incredible joy. Rotary Club of Rockingham County has not had in-person meetings since March and many of our service projects were cancelled. However, that did not stop our #serviceaboveself. I was fortunate to be able to deliver meals once a week to First Step on behalf of our club for a couple of months. I participated in a food drive for Our Community Place, cleaned up a highway, picked up trash along blacks run near Purcell Park, helped hand out food to Harrisonburg school families, and planted tulips at First Step and NENA Community Center. I supported local business by eating at locally owned area restaurants once a week at least and showing love to the servers and delivery drivers.

I also wrote positive online reviews for local companies, donated to local fundraisers and food pantries, purchased music and swag from local bands, and sent notes of appreciation to essential workers. I have tried to remember every day to wish a Happy Birthday to friends on Facebook and have sent out more thank you notes and gift cards this year than any other year before. I helped install solar panels at Eastern Mennonite School in a solar barn raising project. I found places to help others by creating online resources for home schooling, researched and published tips to make buildings safer, and created stress relief coloring pages. I also created a monthly young professionals networking group and hosted monthly education sessions for other architects. In order to support the local arts community I designed an outdoor stage that was used by both EMS and Harrisonburg High School.

I had not thought about all the good that these actions were doing for me until I watched this Ted talk that Nadia posted to Facebook.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78nsxRxbf4w&feature=share&fbclid=IwAR3rtqNqS3d2l8nIkZZmQ-Awbaaa3YUc8fmb__LETCW5JcCPD–GiLi1xPo

So now after seeing this video, I am going to be intentional this coming year about putting #serviceaboveself. I will pledge to do #365actsofkindness over the coming year. Please join me and help spread kindness through the world and bring yourself happiness through action.

#rocktownresilient #365actsofkindness

Energy-efficiency home hacks

Energy-efficiency home hacks

Here are some energy-efficiency blog posts I have written over the years. I hope these will help you narrow down those vampire loads, cold room mysteries, high energy bill conundrums, and generally help you save money, live more comfortably, and improve your indoor environmental quality.

Ready for winter? Check your attic.

Tips and hints at what to look for above your living space that could be impacting your wallet and your comfort.

attic nest

Top 10 things to do this fall for your home and health

I hope you already crossed some of these off the list, but if not, get them done now.

Crossroads Farm Insulation

Simple energy fix for your home that you can do

Air leaks are a major source of discomfort and wasted money, seal these holes and improve on both.

energy audit light switch

Make your home comfortable this winter

Learn what I did at my house when we moved in to improve performance and comfort. I am saving between $25 – $35 per month in energy bills.

Check out your dryer vent to help save electricity

It can save electricity, improve performance of your dryer, and hopefully prevent a fire – check out this post to learn more.

Quality matters for insulation installation and maintenance

Ever put a second blanket on your bed in the winter, think about how the same concept works on your home energy bills.

Ice on the roof shows clear signs of energy loss vs energy-efficiency

Check out the roofs in your neighborhood on those snow days to figure out how you are doing compared to the neighbors in comfort.

broadway snow

Cold weather problems in your home

Find the problem areas and fix them to save money now.

Is your home comfortable? Energy audit follow up.

Where are the issues that need correction in your home?

Look for air leaks if your house is cold

Air leaks exist in every house, sealing them can improve indoor environmental quality and lower energy bills.

Deferred maintenance can destroy a building, call us to help correct the problems

The older we get the more problems we have, in our buildings – I am fine, not sure what you were thinking about.

Little things to make your home better

Thinking of making some upgrades to your home, remember these items.

Recessed lighting could waste energy and comfort

Recessed lighting is usually installed wrong when it comes to energy usage.

Simple changes around your house will save you money

Caulk is the answer, find out the question here.

Is your crawl space working properly?

A crawl space should not be forgotten space, it is critical to a home’s performance.

crawl space

How much insulation should you have in your attic?

Getting the insulation right in your home could be the key.

Heating and cooling supply vents are almost never installed right

Learning what should happen is key to figuring out what needs to be fixed.

What is the best water heater for efficiency?

I was surprised by the result.

Harrisonburg Custom Home

Help my small business survive

I need your help. If I have designed a project or answered questions for you – custom home, renovation, addition, business, school, church, energy-audit, phone consultation – would you please write an online review for me? Help my small business survive by taking a couple of minutes to let others know how we helped you.

GOOGLE

FACEBOOK

HOUZZ

As a small business owner, things are scary right now. We are surviving, in fact, we are busy, for now, and I hope this will continue. I am seeing a large influx of inquiries coming from out of town potential clients. They are reading the online reviews, checking out our website, and then deciding if they should call or not. The more positive online reviews I have on Google, Facebook, Houzz the better my chances to winning their projects.

Gaines Group Architects

So many of you have already written reviews for the firm and I greatly appreciate it. I was on a call with an Alexandria, Va. based family last week and they were quoting reviews on our website as the reason for calling me. Your words are helping us to survive during these uncertain financial times.

If writing an online review is not your speed or if you have not asked us to do any design work, answer a home question, provide a free energy-audit, you can also support us by liking or following our social media pages. Also, every blog post you click and read makes our SEO go higher in google’s search engine – a huge benefit when someone is searching online for an architect.

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Houzz

Thanks for your support!

Kelton Station Apartments, Williamsburg: under construction

Adrienne and her team, led by Ray Gaines are working on luxury living communities around the commonwealth. One that is now under construction is Kelton Station Apartments, a 204 unit Earthcraft Multifamily project. Located in Lightfoot, just north of Williamsburg, Va, this community is anticipating opening in early 2021. The project contractor is KBS.

I asked Adrienne to describe the project and process for the design: Given the beautiful weather in that part of Virginia, we really focused on creating spaces for enjoying the outdoors.  These units have larger decks than most of our communities, and they are all screened to create a more comfortable living space.  The clubhouse contains a large wrap-around front porch, and a large rear screened porch that overlooks the pool.  Amenities such as the open air grilling pavilion, the fenced dog park, and the covered bike storage buildings further encourage outdoor enjoyment.  

kelton station

This is our first multi-family project in Hampton Roads. With most of our luxury communities, there has been a struggle to keep the site accessible due to the slopes from our central Virginia hills and Shenandoah mountains.  With this project, our site was so flat that the challenge became creating enough slope to keep the water flowing to the correct places, and away from our buildings.  It was really interesting for us to have to think about site planning in a different way.

kelton station

This project was really exciting for me especially because my family lives in this area.  My niece would deliver project updates every time she rode by in the car.  I surprised the contractors a couple of times by knowing what was going on on-site before we had gotten their updates because I had an excited 7-year-old call to tell me about what new equipment had arrived or that there were new walls going up.  

kelton station

This is just one of many Earthcraft multi-family luxury living communities in process from the Charlottesville team. If you have a multi-family project in mind, reach out and we may be able to help.

kelton station
Design for Connection

Design for Connection

Design for connection allows human beings to have a sense of belonging through the spaces they inhabit.

As human beings, we need a sense of belonging, connection, we need to gather. Social connection can lower anxiety and depression, help us regulate our emotions, lead to higher self-esteem and empathy, and improve our immune systems. As I think about the projects I have worked on over the last few years, many of them have a common theme of providing a place for connection. In this time of distance I am realizing how important design for connection is for me, my clients, and our community.

Natural Chimney Stage

Designing a performance stage that is centered around Red Wing Roots Music Festival is clearly a design for connection. The stage is the base for bands to bring in their fans around the common interest of their performance. The connections that happen in this space are between the musicians and the audience, but also the lighting and sound engineer and band, the photographers, the promoters, and of course nature. How this venue works for all those connecting through the space sets up a basis for success. This space at Natural Chimney park is designed for connection.

Eastern Mennonite School

We can see how movement, light, and sound amplify the experience in a live production like Eastern Mennonite School’s musical Les Misérables on the stage we designed – with huge help and inspiration from Ms. Anderson that had a vision. However, the most important aspect of this stage was that it provided connection for students in a safe way in a time where distance is required. It allowed them to connect with the community through sharing their talents. It gave connection opportunity through a space of performance.

It is not just large outdoor spaces that have these positive outcomes of providing connection for community, it is also private spaces that allow for gathering safely. A rooftop deck provides privacy, views, and needed ventilation for groups to connect while distanced in a more intimate connection setting.

Habitat Porch

Thinking about connection, while designing this Charlottesville Habitat for Humanity house a few years ago, found a long front porch as the right solution. While designing and learning more about the Habitat mission of providing home ownership I realized that one key element with these homes is building a sense of connection through community. Connection comes through spaces designed to facilitate coming together. Instead of two independent porches, I took the design a step further and connected them across the front of the unit with a built-in bench between, a place for connection for neighbors.

In less public spaces I also design for connection. A cozy living room / dining / living area with built-in seating options allows for connection within the home. The colors, textures, and light offer a calming space that allows for focus on those around you sharing life.

farmhouse living room

The idea that through design we can build a better community, our firm motto, is not just a macro idea about the larger community. It exists in every farmhouse, business, stage, school, church, and deck we design. This year more than any other I am realizing the importance of the work I do to design for connection. While I might be hired to design a living room addition, my responsibility is to design for the connections that space will facilitate in the future.