Mentorship in Action at The Gaines Group

by Lindsey Kohler-Austin | Mar 20, 2026 | Leadership, Mentorship

Mentorship requires opening up your daily life to eager, curious minds. Firm members at The Gaines Group consistently adapt their job shadow programs to fit the specific goals of each student—whether that student wants to verify their passion for architecture or simply figure out if the career is wrong for them before they pay for college tuition.

Charles Hendricks frequently challenges his mentees to design a custom home using SketchUp. However, the goal is never just to create a rendering. The exercise forces students to learn the realities of the industry: wall thicknesses, manufacturing specifications, building codes, all while keeping a design cost-effective.

When a high school senior named Chloe joined the firm for a semester, she already knew she had a passion for interior design. To tailor her experience, she was paired with Jarod, the firm’s interior designer. Jarod shared his daily routine, answered specific industry questions, and discussed his own educational background.

The Architect’s Guide to a Spring Reset: Beyond the Broom

by Lindsey Kohler-Austin | Mar 18, 2026 | community, Indoor Air Quality, Not used, resources

As the sun begins to linger a little longer over the Blue Ridge and the first hints of green emerge in the Shenandoah Valley, our focus naturally shifts outward. Here at Gaines Group Architects, we believe a home is a living system—one that breathes, protects, and evolves with the seasons.

While “Spring Cleaning” usually conjures images of junk drawers and dusty baseboards, we like to view the vernal equinox as a vital moment for home stewardship. It’s the perfect time to ensure your sanctuary is performing efficiently, sustainably, and beautifully for the warmer months ahead.

1. High-Performance Hygiene: Check Your Seals

In our region, the transition from winter’s bite to spring’s humidity can be tough on a building’s envelope.

The Window Audit: Don’t just Windex the glass; inspect the tracks and weatherstripping. Dirt buildup can prevent a tight seal, letting your expensive conditioned air escape.
Airflow Integrity: Replace your HVAC filters. After a winter of closed doors and running furnaces, a fresh filter is the simplest way to improve your indoor air quality. Remember, the air leakage in your home might actually be making it dirty by pulling dust and allergens from your attic into your living spaces.

2. Protecting the Valley’s Heritage

Many of our favorite projects involve historic Harrisonburg gems. If you live in an older home, Spring is the season for a “check-up”:

Masonry & Mortar: Walk the perimeter of your home. Look for “spalling” (flaking brick) or cracked mortar caused by the winter freeze-thaw cycle. Addressing these small gaps now prevents significant water damage later.
Gentle Restoration: When cleaning original wood or stone, skip the harsh chemicals. We advocate for pH-neutral, eco-friendly cleaners that preserve the patina of historic materials rather than stripping them.

Historic Renovation Charlottesville Architect

3. Water Management: The Architect’s Priority

Architecture is often in a battle against water. To keep your foundation dry and your basement healthy:

Gutter Cleaning: Falling debris from winter storms can clog your drainage system. Ensure your gutters are clear and, more importantly, that downspouts are directing water at least five feet away from your foundation.
The Grading Check: Take a look at your flower beds. If the soil has settled and is sloping toward the house, spring is the time to regrade it to shed water away from your living space.

4. Biophilic Refreshes

A “clean” home should also be an inspiring one. As the Valley blooms, bring that energy indoors:

Lighten the Load: Swap heavy winter drapes for breathable linens. This doesn’t just change the look; it changes the thermal gain of your rooms.
Indoor Air Gardens: Visit the Harrisonburg Farmers Market for native plants. They act as natural air purifiers, reinforcing the “biophilic” connection between our built environment and the natural world.
When choosing supplies for your spring refresh, opt for No-VOC options. We’ve often asked, ‘Is your home making you sick?‘—and reducing chemical off-gassing from cleaners and paints is the best place to start.

Stewardship is Design in Action

Spring cleaning isn’t just a chore—it’s an investment in the longevity of your home. By treating your house as a high-performance system rather than just a collection of rooms, you ensure it remains a place of comfort and sustainability for years to come.

Need a hand reimagining your space for the new season?

Whether it’s a sustainable renovation or a custom new build, we’re here to help you design a home that works as hard as you do.

Be the Person You Needed When You Were Younger: The Power of Mentorship

by Lindsey Kohler-Austin | Mar 13, 2026 | Leadership, Mentorship

We all remember what it was like to stand at the edge of our futures, unsure of which path to take. The question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is a heavy burden for a high school or college student trying to map out a career they have never actually experienced.

Looking back, many of us can pinpoint the exact moment a professional took us under their wing, answered our questions, and showed us the ropes. They were the people we needed when we were younger. Today, the most impactful thing we can do as professionals is to become that person for the next generation.

At The Gaines Group Architects, mentorship is not just a nice addition to the work week; it is viewed as the key to a healthy profession. Being a “Citizen Architect” means giving back, which is why the firm actively supports organizations like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Harrisonburg-Rockingham County and regularly hosts high school and college students for job shadowing and internships.

Our Process: Designing a Fully Custom Home

by Lindsey Kohler-Austin | Mar 11, 2026 | Custom Home

Every home we design is fully custom and tailored to the individual client. No two projects are the same because no two people are the same.

Our process is structured in clear phases that guide a project from the earliest conversations through final construction. Each phase builds on the last, ensuring that your home is thoughtfully designed and carefully executed.

1. Schematic Phase

(Average of 25% of the design time)
Conversation-driven and focused on the big picture

This is where we begin by getting to know you. Before drawing plans, we focus on understanding how you want to live in your home. We want to create spaces that support your values, dreams, and goals for life.

Initial Meeting Topics

•What kind of life do you want to live in this home?
•What are your values and priorities?
•What safety and health considerations need to be part of the project?
•How you want the space to function?

These conversations guide the early concepts and preliminary layouts. Rather than starting with a predetermined plan, we begin with your lifestyle and translate that into a design vision.

Why Custom Instead of “New Construction Plans”?
Many homeowners start by searching online for house plans and then hire a drafter or builder. While this approach results in a new house, it rarely produces a home that supports the life you want to live.

Custom design allows us to focus on the details that make a home truly personal, including:

•Personalized floor plans
•Healthy, energy-efficient, and durable spaces
•Framed view, Connections to nature
•Comfortable lighting, Adaptable Spaces
•Quality materials, Functional and practical spaces
•Thoughtful and beautiful finishes
•Spaces designed around your daily routines

Custom homes are not just about appearance they are about designing a home that works naturally to support your way of living.

2. Design Development

(Average of 30% of the design time)
Refinement and coordination

During Design Development, the initial ideas become more defined and buildable. This phase transforms early concepts into a coordinated design.

We develop:

•Detailed floor plans
•Structural systems
•Exterior elevations
•Building sections
•Interior design coordination
•Material direction

This is the phase where we consider how the home works structurally, how loads are carried, how spaces span, and how the building comes together as a complete system. More in-depth meetings take place during this stage to refine decisions and ensure the design reflects your goals.

3. Construction Documents

(Average of 35% of the design time)

Technical precision

Construction Documents are the technical drawings used for permitting and construction. This phase provides the clarity needed for a smooth building process.

At this stage, the design is:

•Fully dimensioned
•Carefully noted and specified
•Coordinated with structural and engineering systems
•Prepared for permitting and pricing

These documents serve as the roadmap your builder will follow throughout construction. Clear, detailed drawings help prevent confusion, reduce costly changes, and ensure the home is built as intended.

4. Construction Administration

(Average of 10% of the design time)
Oversight during construction

Our involvement continues after construction begins.

During construction administration, we:

•Visit job sites
•Answer contractor questions
•Help resolve unforeseen conditions
•Ensure the design intent is maintained

We act as your advocate throughout construction, helping guide decisions and protect the quality of the design.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How does the process work?

Our process is organized into structured phases that move the project from initial vision through technical documentation and construction oversight. Each phase builds clarity and confidence as the project progresses. The process blends our years of experience and design training with many conversations with our clients as we learn their values and vision. We work collaboratively with our client and their builder to find the best solution for the dream projects.

How are costs set?

Cost vary project to project. A more complex foundation or roof takes more time to design both aesthetics and structure and with that costs more for instance. We work with each client to develop a good faith estimate for design services up front and update our clients through continued conversations along the design process. The construction costs start out very high level based on square footage and as we develop detail in our drawings your builder can start estimating the build budget with more accuracy.

What is the timeline?

Each project timeline varies depending on size, complexity, permitting requirements, and construction conditions. We work with you to establish realistic expectations from the beginning. Designing and building a custom home takes time and should be an enjoyable process.

Is everything custom?

Yes. Every home we design is tailored to the individual client’s life, values, and goals. No two homes are alike because no two clients are alike. We want to help you find your dream home solution for your land.

Architect vs. Design-Builder: Who Should Design Your Custom Home?

by Lindsey Kohler-Austin | Mar 4, 2026 | architecture, Building Science, Charles Hendricks, Charlottesville, Custom Home, Harrisonburg, Harrisonburg Architect, Interior Design, Roanoke, Roanoke Architect

Building a custom home is one of the most exciting—and stressful—projects you willever undertake. As you start planning, you will quickly run into a major fork in the road: Should you hire an architect, or should you work with a builder that offers in-house design services (often called a design-build firm)?

Both avenues can lead to a finished home, but they offer vastly different experiences, priorities, and results. Let’s break down the value of each approach, what can go wrong, and the fundamental differences between the two:

The Builder-Designed Home (Design-Build):

In this scenario, you hire a single company to handle both the design and the construction of your home. The designer usually works directly for the builder.

The Value Added:
• Streamlined communication: You have one point of contact from the first sketch to moving day.
• Cost-centric design: Because the builder is involved from day one, they design
strictly with their own construction costs and preferred materials in mind.
• Rolled-in fees: The design fees are often rolled into the overall construction
cost, which can sometimes make the upfront design phase appear cheaper.

What Can Go Wrong:
• The “cookie-cutter” risk: Builders prioritize efficiency. Their designers often rely on modifying existing templates rather than starting from scratch, meaning your “custom” home might just be a tweaked version of something they’ve built ten times before. It is not a custom solution to allow for the life you want to live.
• Conflict of interest: When the designer works for the builder, their ultimate loyalty is to the builder’s bottom line, not necessarily your grand vision. They might steer you away from a brilliant architectural feature simply because it is outside their standard practices.
• The “fast-track” illusion: Design-build firms often tout faster timelines by starting construction before the house is fully designed. In reality, rushing the design phase rarely speeds up the total construction time and often leads to expensive mid-project changes.

The Architect-Designed Home (The Collaborative Approach)

In this approach, you hire a licensed architect to design the home and advocate for your vision. While some assume this means the builder is kept in the dark until the end, a modern architectural process is highly collaborative. We bring a builder into the process early, but they work directly for you, the client.

The Value Added:
• Uncompromising customization: An architect starts with a blank piece of paper, your lifestyle, and your specific plot of land. The home is tailored precisely to how you live, the direction of the sun, and the topography of your lot.
• Real-time, accurate pricing: By bringing a builder to the table early in the design phase, you get the best of both worlds: uncompromised architectural design and realistic, ongoing cost feedback from the people who will actually build it.
• Built-in efficiency: We work through complex buildability concerns during the design phase. Solving these issues on paper ensures a highly efficient building process once ground is broken.
• Your personal advocate: During construction, the architect works exclusively for you. We visit the site to ensure the builder is executing the plans accurately and that the design intent is maintained.

Dispelling the Myths:
• The “Bidding” Myth: We rarely put our projects out to bid. While traditional bidding seems like a way to save money, it rarely adds value for the client and often sets up an adversarial relationship between architect and builder. Hand-selecting a trusted builder early creates a unified team focused on your home.
• The “Early Construction” Myth: Just like a design-build firm, architects can issue early construction sets to get dirt moving. However, we are honest with our clients: this doesn’t actually speed up the overall construction timeline. Taking the time to fully detail the design upfront is what truly ensures a smooth, timely build.

What is the Core Difference?

The easiest way to think about it: A builder designs primarily to construct efficiently based on their standard practices, while an architect designs to inspire, solve problems, and reflect your unique life.

Which Should You Choose?

If your priority is a hands-off process and you are happy adapting your lifestyle to a somewhat standard layout and limited material choices, a design-build firm is a practical route.

If your priority is maximizing a unique piece of land, achieving a highly specific aesthetic, and building a one-of-a-kind home with a unified team of experts dedicated to your vision, hiring an architect is the clear choice.