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Interior Architecture / Renovation

Youd&rsquo like a change of decor or more space? Whatever the reason for renovating your home, you can do it without too much hassle or spending a fortune.  Here are a few tips to help you.

A light face-lift is often enough to give the impression of having a brand new house. If you feel a little lost or lack inspiration, a decoration coach is the solution for you. The boom in decoration has made this sector of professionals more accessible. A simple visit, at about 150 euros per hour, will leave you with a host of good ideas.  The decorator will suggest what changes you can make: a new colour scheme, how to rearrange the furniture, what you should replace first, etc. Then all you need to do is follow their excellent advice.

You want more space? Old houses and flats don&rsquot always correspond to our contemporary life style. We prefer open-plan kitchens and large living areas rather than a series of small rooms. Knocking down walls is the best way to modernise volumes.  You don&rsquot need planning permission unless you live in a listed building. For a flat, you only need the approval of the other owners. The opinion of an interior architec  is often necessary, particularly for determining load-bearing walls. In old buildings, a lot of walls that were originally only partitions become load-bearing with time and removing them can bring the building down! If there is a problem, the architect&rsquos insurance will look after the consequences. To destroy a load-bearing wall in complete safety, the expertise of a structural engineer offers the best guarantee. He is the most competent when it comes to designing the steel member (channel or universal beam section) needed to reinforce the structure.

Even if we&rsquod love to have large volumes, it's not always possible and we sometimes have to find other solutions to fit everyone in and accommodate their particular needs.  Creating an extra room then becomes a necessity. Once you have found where to put it, nothing could be simpler. Dry or wet walls? Dry walls are the easiest to install. They can be erected in just a couple of days without a builder or carpenter. Plasterboard is a better choice than cellular panels which don&rsquot provide sound or heat insulation. Another alternative is the Fermacell fibre-reinforced gypsum board or plant-fibre reinforced clay board.  These are not only environment-friendly but also energy-efficient. Replacing part of the structure with glass panels will makes it visually more attractive and increase the volume by adding light. The other advantage is that using a metal frame will create a very stylish industrial look.

You want to create more space and not chop it into pieces? That is the obvious advantage of having an individual home. Rather than a traditional veranda, why not choose an eco-friendly extension? These prefabricated solutions can be added to the existing building or installed in the garden in next to no time. Wooden constructions such as the Ikos product range will turn an ordinary house into a contemporary designer home. If you live in a housing estate, of course, you&rsquoll need to have the approval of the other owners, who are frequently reticent about this type of construction. But the environment-friendly aspect can help to obtain planning permission when needed (over 20 m² in France).

Sustainable renovations can also attract tax incentives. With the new measures adopted in France in 2009, the cost of renovations can be written off as well. So there is no need to hesitate any longer, start renovating now!

News...

| The Serpentine Gallery in London invites a well-known architect every year to design an experimental pavilion in just six months. French architect Jean Nouvel has been chosen for 2010, the 40th anniversary of this enterprising modern art institute. | To absorb the sun better, Viessmann is launching two solar collectors with an optical efficiency of 80% which convert the sun&rsquos rays into useful heat: the Vitosol 300-T and 200-T available in June. | Verda are outdoor wood specialists that combine sustainability and design to offer innovative products to enhance the outdoor environment. |

National Design Triennial: Why Design Now?

On view May 14, 2010&ndashJanuary 9, 2011 at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, New York Why Design Now? is the fourth installation in the National Design Triennial exhibition series launched by Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum in 2000. The Triennial provides a sample of contemporary innovation, looking at what progressive designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, and citizens are doing in diverse fields and at different scales around the world. Included are practical solutions already in use as well as experimental ideas designed to inspire further research. A few projects will provoke controversy, answering some questions while raising others. Each one&mdashfrom a soil-powered table lamp to a post-petroleum urban utopia&mdashcelebrates the transformative power of design.

Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, New York