OPERA Architecture's Profile

Love the idea!!!

Sorry, Flash Site so link does not follow throught.

http://www.luceplan.com/

Then go to Products < Collections < Solar Bud

love it!!! i'm building my own this weekend.

haaaaaaaaaaa

AWESOME VIDEO!!!!

We love your place it's like a sweet hotel. Let us know the next time you guys are out of town ;) We'll be happy to house sit!

Good Luck!!!

Wende,

The graphs and the stats presented are fantastic!!!

Few thoughts regarding some of the issues:

1. Counting the votes:

If the formula for adding the votes is truly I P-N, then that means that an apartment which voters pick as an "instant finalist" has the same value as an apartment that voters picked as "cool has potential."

For example, if for one apartment the votes add up like this:

(I=176 P=24 - N=5)= 195 Total votes

And on another apartment:

(I=24 P=176 - N=4) = 196 Total votes

It just doesn't seem right than an apartment that voters picked as an "instant finalist" can be beat by a "cool has potential." Furthermore, the "Not my things" should not be subtracted since other contestants can rally with their friends against another contestant's apartment.

The formula should be something like this:

(1.5I) (1P) (.5N) = Total Votes

otherwise the rating system for voting doesn't mean anything.

2. Profesional Designed Entries:

If you're going to call this contest "Smallest Coolest Apartment," then it should be open to anyone who's thinks they have the smallest coolest. Otherwise AT should come up with a different title for this contest.

-Gregory

saya* - the width of the entertainment center is 9'-0". your first instincts say that it should be 3 doors at ~36" each. but for us that was not as cool or as functional as one door, so that everything would be accessible with only one move. essentially we made a sort of frame/truss out of wood, very simple. it actually used less material than 3 doors. then, we wrapped frame with the fabric and stapled it, that simple. a touch latch releases the door at the center, with 2 magnetic latches at either end to keep it balanced. a stay-down bracket keeps it down and euro-style inset hinges keep it connected to the box structure.

let us know if u need anything else,

-Kelly & Gregory

Hi All,

Thank you for commenting good and bad. Well, specially the good!!!

Don’t discount your local cabinet makers for custom designs. We found a great cabinet maker that specialized in traditional style cabinets and was excited to work on contemporary type details. Another reason for elevating the wall at the base was so, the hidden door, when shut would sit at the same level as the panels; this way you wouldn’t have a weird jog, making it obvious where the location of the door is.

Be sure to post some pictures if you make a similar style setup at home!!!! All you need is fans, the speaker cloth allows for ventilations, it’s like a mosquito net, so keep it up against the wall, and purchase some DC power because they are very quiet.

The floor is Graniti Fiandre, see our resource comment here:

http://la.apartmenttherapy.com/la/small-cool-2007-entries/9-kelly-gregorys-lil-italy-conversion-021186

Jennifer in SF, Thank you for the backup, we could have used you in the small cool apartment contest!!!

-Kelly & Gregory

Hi All,

Thank you for taking the time to comment and review our home. We’re absolutely overjoyed with the level of conversation, engagement, and the great criticisms; this makes this entry all worthwhile. I nearly fell of my chair from laughing, when we were reading some of your comments. We love the dialogue and discussion, please give us more!!!! We apologize for the late response we’ve been without DSL since Wednesday and we’re at Kinko’s typing this!!!

Bellow are answers to most of your comments and questions along with some our tips.

The Wardrobe ||||

The wardrobe wall doors where made from the economical contractor closet doors that can be found at your local home depot. We simply ordered the frames without the mirrors and installed in its place etched glass. They help create a sense of a larger room with transparency, form, and length, while allowing free flowing access to the ELFA system beyond. It’s a cheap way to get the Italian door look but for a fraction of the cost. We did the similar thing with the bathroom door. We bought a sliding shower door that can be found at home depot, etched the glass and hung it on the wall outside the bathroom.

Who are you?

The space is certainly not made for everyone. We tailor the space to our specific life style and needs. Something to consider when starting designing your own space, start by figuring out what type of person you are. Are you neat? Or are you messy? Most likely if your messy you would be better off by having a lot of concealed storage so you can hide your mess and if you neat then you can have it exposed, since you would take the time to make sure it’s properly arranged. Kelly and I are somewhere in between.

Case Study:

A case study just means that we’re using the space to learn from, it’s an experiment!!! It’s always been a dream of mine to have my own business. So we improved our space and did the things that most people would not want to try in their own space. This was instrumental in helping me make the leap to start my own business only 6 months ago.

The Floating Bar-

The Floating bar creates a 5’-0” cantilevered counter allowing the space to remain free flowing. It was constructed out of 3” tube steel frames and were bolted together on site with T and L brackets at all the corners.

Furniture and Décor:

We definitely need furniture that’s one of the reasons we entered this contest. Kelly and I have moved and lived in various apartments and lofts in the 10 years we’ve been together. Every move required new furniture and ebaying the old because the things that fit in one apartment did not fit or look well in the next. So in this last move we decided to build specifically for the apartment because we can’t seem to take it with us anyway. This way we can sell it with the place!!! We promise that if we win the prize we’ll buy some better stuff. As far as the bed goes, we’re waiting to save a little cash to have the bed frame built-in to the multipurpose wall; we’re planning on having it tie-in with the headboard on the wall.

The Tweaked Floor \\\

The Angle of the floor was laid out by snapping a line from one corner to the other corner of the longest space we have, it forces you to perceive the space in its longest length making you think that the space is really larger that what it is. We originally, considered making the Kitchen and Bathroom stone and the rest wood, but in small spaces if you break the floor plane with a transition you’ve bound the size of the room. By having one continuous floor surfaces it allows one room to flow into the next giving each room a bit of the other making every room feel larger. The floor was a little more expensive than wood but if you consider that it’s essentially maintenance free and it will last the lifetime of this condo, it was a simple decision.

The Cost ;)

We have a confession to make… WE DON’T HAVE ANY MONEY!!! Unless you consider being your 30’s and eating PBJ’s for lunch an extravagant expense. We saved, scavenged, and went into debt to do this remodel. When we moved in, we saved money by not buying any new furniture, we lived with one light on a cord that we would plug from room to room as needed. We didn’t spend on anything and lived here through the entire construction process to save money. It took 9 months of absolute hell to get here with drywall dust and a wet saw as decoration. We’re extremely resourceful and bargained for everything you see in the photos. Kelly is a CPA and monitored every one of our pennies in our 5 gallon savings jar.

The Lounge XOXO

A Ligne Roset Smalla day bed sofa set’s the space off as multi functional with its simple adjustments converts the space into a lounge or guest quarters. It’s AWESOME, the arms move up and down the backs move up and down, it’s totally flexible and allot of FUN!!! Rainy days in San Diego aren’t that often but on those days we flip the sofa back into a day bed and grab our pillows from the bedroom and cozy-up with some popcorn and few good movies.

Miscellaneous:

Shades came with the condo; we’re waiting till next Christmas for new ones.
We don’t have pictures of the kitchen and bath, but if you vote for us and we make it as a finalist!!! We’ll make sure to include a few.
There is no base where the wall meets the floor. We just grouted the joint; stone tiles don’t expand as much as wood so it’s not a problem. But if you want the same look in wood we recommend that you use cork as a spacer instead of covering it with base.
We would have loved to have a recessed track but it’s a concrete ceiling.
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Sorry for the long comment but we wanted to take the time to reply most of your comments since you took the time to write them.

Lot’s of love with a bit of luck too.

Kelly & Gregory