It can be rewarding to renovate or remodel an existing facility for a new purpose. However, everyone is aware that renovation rarely goes as planned. The crew should appreciate the opportunities older buildings offer and grasp the difficulties of renovation as architects and interior designers.
Fortunately, architects may use their most coveted talent—their capacity of imagination—to help residents, communities, and government update old buildings. Architecture companies are frequently invited on board when cities are looking to address massive, unused structures to envisage how such spaces may be reformed to serve the community. These architects may then imagine a location that completely catches the imagination of everyone concerned after taking suggestions from neighborhood communities and organizations and taking into account the pre-existing infrastructure.
Architects may create enthusiasm and change the dialogue from viewing a building as an eyesore to viewing it as a valuable asset with plenty of promise. Their strategies can then persuade diverse local interests to concentrate their efforts on realizing a single, shared vision. Since your mission is to give life and renew an old building, you should do the same to your architectural practices. Times when architects had to draw, erase, and draw again are gone, using architectural rendering services is much easier in helping you bring your vision to reality.
If you’re in the process of upgrading and modernizing a historic property, or perhaps simply considering starting your own renovation project, read on.
Increase the character
Remodeling is an environmentally friendly option from a sustainability standpoint because of the embodied energy of an existing structure, and renovations can spur the rehabilitation of nearby structures or even a whole commercial district. When assessing an existing building for a new use, place an emphasis on increasing the building’s fundamental character and seek for ways to implement energy-efficiency measures to enhance the structure’s aesthetics and practicality.`
Buildings that are historically significant or have a distinctive style may be more difficult to transform into modern copies of themselves. In these circumstances, architects attempt to redefine and rebrand the exterior appearance by paint, appropriate exterior material substitution, and the insertion of human/pedestrian-scale components, such as street-level awnings. The inside then becomes the center of remodeling, which can either compliment or contrast the outside.
Obtain as much information as you can on the property.
Ask the owner, the former owner, the city, or the county for any existing drawings. In the absence of plans, an architect can visit the site and record the current conditions. Have a comprehensive inspection done to check for any issues that need to be fixed or that have been put off for maintenance.
Knowledge is power – Invest in professionals if you’re unsure
It’s understandable that people feel frightened by historical structures and the design process because they differ greatly from modern buildings. However, intimidation can quickly give way to knowledge. Investigate the history of the structure, pinpoint the distinguishing characteristics that make it special, and create a design that preserves these qualities while modernizing the surrounding technology and infrastructure.
The features that distinguish buildings and serve as markers of their time periods are things like colorful tiling in a midcentury home or wavy glass windows. Uncertain of the nature of or how to use those particular features? Hire an experienced professional. Their insights can help shape an old building while not losing its historical value.
- Keep the historic bones, but let them adapt to the 21st century
Emphasize the preservation of more adaptable features, such as the original design of a house or fine woodwork or flooring. Then, while still paying respect to the historic components, add the modern touches—the upgraded electrical systems, the furniture that provides life to your area and makes living there a fact. That could entail, for instance, carefully placing new heating and cooling registers and grilles or bringing in furniture that complements the home’s layout while yet reflecting how you live today.
- Play up that distinction
Playing up the property’s history and unique features is one of the finest ways to make an older home appear modern and fresh. The ideal starting point for any design is when you can identify and appreciate the unique features of a building from its design era. However, your own furnishings and finishes can also add that distinctive touch, so it’s not just the old home that can.
Whatever appeals to you, whether it be modern, rustic, antique, or contemporary, buying with love and quality can help you create a style and aesthetic that is entirely individual and true to you. The ability to combine the ancient and the new in such a unique way will endure for at least the next hundred years.