Custom Motorhome Design

Some architects today are interested in tiny houses or mini-apartments.  The RV industry has been producing tiny houses for years, some of which people live in full time. I have an RV.  As an architect finding a suitable RV can be problematic, not the least because most RV interiors can be best described as "tacky".  So this is a design of a motor home for me if I could have a custom one made.

Most RV's are designed to sleep lots of people and therefore some things have to be multifunctional, usually compromising any one function.  An example would be dinettes.  For a dinette to be convertible to a bed usually results in it being very uncomfortable as a dinette because the seat cushions and backs have to be flat.  A growing segment of the RV market will be retirees who do not need to sleep 6-8 people.  Other design problems are small kitchens with no counter space for meal preparation (especially when your housing 6 people), and impossibly small showers.

This design is essentially a 152 sf tiny house.  The main seating area is at the back since in most situations you back into parking spaces.  This way you get the best view and privacy.  The bed is a loft easily accessible up stepped storage cabinets.  The kitchen has a long counter.  The bath is nearly all shower with a Plexiglas divider protecting the toilet and towels from water spray.

The idea is for this design to be made out of readily available RV parts and components.  It is a mobile tiny house that is very livable -- especially for one person.  Anyone want to have one made?

Click here to see an alternative to this design with a rear bath.

Class"B" designs can be seen here and here

See the article about this design on DoItYourselfRV.com.

Co-housing Manor Outside

Please see posts below for plan and description of design concept.  The two auto court yards accessed through porticos provide a central space for the residents to cross paths as they come and go from their units.  The Verandah also overlooks these yards so that impromptu gatherings can happen as people go about their day.

Co-housing Manor Inside

Please see post below for the plan and a description of design concept.  Each townhouse unit has private outdoor terrace space.  And each have two story high living rooms that give a feeling of spaciousness despite the small room footprint.

Co-housing Manor Plan

Ground Floor Plan

Second Floor Plan

Co-housing Manor is a design exercise looking at a different form of housing for today's Baby Boomer generation that wants to downsize and simplify from the large homes they raised their families in.  In many ways they still need the large homes after their kids have grown and moved away.  They need the number of bedrooms for when the next generation comes to visit.  They need the large kitchen and entertaining areas for family celebrations and holidays. The three car garage also has become a large project or hobby space that is difficult to give up when downsizing. And often an adult kid may need to come back to live at home when economic hardship or divorce happens.

Family members often like to be in closer proximity to each other.  Like in the case of an elderly relative that needs to watched over, or the need to take care of a house while someone is traveling for extended periods.  The expense of gas and frustration of traffic at certain times of the day can limit the ability of family members to travel across town or between cities to be supportive of each other.

Families today also are comprised of close friends that they feel the same level of care for as actual relations and are an integral part of their lives.

Co-Housing Manor is a way for a close group of people to live together in a supportive way and still maintain a level of privacy and autonomy.

It is five independent living units that share larger common amenities that are difficult to give up when moving to smaller homes, as well as allow the supportive family environment that close proximity allows.  There are five living units ranging from 638 to 1729 square feet.  The total building area is 8900 square feet giving an average of 1,800 sf per unit.  So it allows you to downsize to about 1,500 sf yet retain the large public areas that would be common in a house of 8 to 10 thousand square feet.

There is a 19' by 32' Great Hall that can be used for large entertaining such as holidays or family celebrations like birthdays or weddings.  It can also be available to invite the wider neighborhood in for community interaction.  There is a likewise large outdoor covered gathering space for more casual or impromptu socializing. Supporting both spaces is a large central kitchen which can have larger capacity appliances for use of residents and offers more space than in their private units for projects that need larger layout counters.

There is a guest suite attached to the common area to accommodate visitors that allows both they and you privacy that is difficult when you have downsized to a condominium.  

There is a separate garage that can be set up for a shop or be used for extra storage of sports equipment or hobbies that would not fit within the single garage provided each unit.

There are five two story townhouses at each corner separated by garages so they are very private and there is no chance of noise transmission through common walls.  The rooms are on the small side, but there are large master baths and walk in closets normally found in larger homes.  There is a second space that can be used for home office, guest room or media center.  A studio apartment on the second floor can be rented out or used for an adult child that has moved back, or for a person that can act as a caretaker for the complex.

Click here to see exterior views.

Click here to see interior views.

Click here to see another Co-housing Design Concept

Contemporary House Plan 1 Evolution

A design should be flexible enough to accommodate different lifestyle changes that occur over the time a person lives in a building. This post shows how those changes can happen in the previously posted Contemporary House Plan 1 without any change in the buildings footprint. No matter how carefully a house is designed for a particular client, changes in their life over time may necessitate modifications to the building. This design allows a house to start out as a 1,600 sf plan and expand up to 2,600 sf within it's foundation. This is important if the house is on a tight site where local zoning regulations may preclude, due to setbacks or site coverage limits, the ability to expand or add on.

This example converts the garage space into a family room by opening to the kitchen and the rest of the ground floor as well the interior courtyard. A "catch all" storage room is retained for stuff usually stored in a garage, such as garden equipment or snow tires. Upstairs, two bedrooms are created that share a full bath along with an additional storage closet. This would be a very cost effective remodel to accomplish since it involves very little site work, no breaks in the exterior skin (other than two windows), and does not involve disruption of the main living areas in the house.

Portland River House Renovation 2

The interior of this riverfront home in Portland was designed to display the client's eclectic art collection that included brightly colored paintings and prints. Neutral wall colors with rich wood cabinetry and a bronze fireplace chimney compliment the dramatic artwork. Fortunately the house faces north providing abundant north light for viewing the collection. Interior design was done by Rose Capestany of RCI Interiors, Seattle, Washington.

Hawaii House 2

Plan © 2010 MCM Architects ALL RIGHTS RESERVED







Designed to sit on a steep hillside overlooking the ocean, this home has large open terraces looking out to the ocean view on one side and a rich shaded water garden environment on the opposite that is protected from the wind. Each room is a separate building linked by covered walkways that travel along an inner waterway that has a lush rock garden backdrop. Two Bali's sit in the waterway as places to get away to read or nap in the cool shade. The linear plan is organized with the living room in the center and rooms for the owner on one side, and areas for guests on the other. Downstairs on the owner's side (not shown) is a personal gym and wine storage/tasting grotto, downstairs on the guest side are additional guest rooms.

The roofs are designed to be a large umbrella over the home. A continuous row of horizontal windows and/or louvers elevate the roof off the walls, emphasizing the open air quality of the house, as well as providing natural ventilation. The structure is post and beam with modular wood paneling infill. Ceilings have bamboo matting inset between rafters. Local lava rock is used as a base to the building as well as for freestanding walls that block the view into the house from uphill neighbors.