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Inspired infusion

Q: We have just purchased an eight-year-old adobe-style townhome outside Santa Fe. The inside is very nonspecific (a plain canvas), and we would like to infuse it with the Southwestern beauty that it is surrounded by on the outside. We were thinking about installing faux viga beams and a gas kiva fireplace. Any tips, pros, and cons for these ideas would be much appreciated. Any other cost-effective decorating ideas would also be great.
—Elizabeth McDearmid, Pompano Beach, Florida

A: Your home’s interior is a space where you can express your personality and create a place that is a reflection of yourself and what you love. Even if you didn’t opt for a home with existing Southwestern features, you can retrofit rooms with regional elements. To achieve the best possible results, Patti Harrell Hoech, owner of Patrician Design in Albuquerque, says to think about context. “Make sure the beams and kiva go with the home’s architecture,” she advises. If the home has a different architectural style, the elements will look out of place.

Faux beams can be an effective treatment, but they can also look like an obviously faux addition, if not used properly, Hoech says. The trick to getting it right is paying attention to the surrounding spaces. If you add vigas to one room when adjacent rooms have the same ceiling height, the beams will not be believable as an architectural feature. If you have higher ceilings in one room, however, you can use the vigas there and they can be a more authentic-looking element.

Likewise, when considering adding a gas kiva fireplace, make sure it goes with the architecture. A number of businesses in central New Mexico sell prefabricated or manufactured kivas, such as Adobelite (adobelite.com), Grand River Supply (grandriversupply.com), Santa Fe Kiva Fireplace Mfg., Inc. (santafekiva.com), and Southwest Kiva (southwestkiva.com).

Paint is a powerful design change that is quick as well as inexpensive, Hoech says. When choosing colors, think about your furnishings, and take cues from existing materials, such as the flooring. Also consider which colors make you feel good and what you want to emphasize, she adds. Think about the colors themselves, as well as the specific shades and the rooms’ lighting. These factors all work together and must add up properly.

If colorful walls are your style, don’t be afraid of selecting different colors for rooms next to one another. Use these spaces to your advantage by choosing colors that work well collectively, and avoid colors that look too similar when viewed together. “You lose the opportunity there,” Hoech says.

Those in search of a Southwest-style color scheme can find inspiration from the natural surroundings. “I do think we can draw a lot from the indigenous landscape,” Hoech says. Sand colors, sage, and yellows are an example of a palette taken from nature.

This can be punctuated with spicy hues such as cayenne pepper red—but again think about context. Red could be a good wall choice if you are picking up the color from a rug in the room, for instance. The colors you select need to work within the framework of your home.

Another cost-effective way to change your home’s appearance is to take a fresh look at what you already own, Hoech says. Give new life to existing pieces of furniture by trying them out in another room or using them for a different purpose.  

New Mexico home building, from architects to adobe
Q:I am currently living on the East Coast but own land south of Belen, New Mexico. I plan to build a home there and have some questions about the process. Can I find an architect who will also do the building? Would this be advisable, and would there be a cost difference in using the same architect/builder? Is it advisable to have the plans done, look them over for a time, and then start the building? I had met with a builder at the time I bought the land several years ago, and he stated that the price of adobe construction was twice the cost of building frame/stucco. Is this true?
—Bill Sawyer, New Bern, North Carolina

A:You can find architects who are also builders, though they are less common than individuals performing one job or the other. A person using the title of “architect” in New Mexico must be registered with the New Mexico Board of Examiners for Architects (NMBEA). To become a registered architect, an individual must meet a number of requirements, including standards for education and experience, examinations, and holding a professional degree from an accredited architecture program, according to information from the NMBEA.

Craig Gosling, AIA, an architect and president of Builders West, LLC, in Corrales,
suggests contacting your local Home Builders Association to gather names of architect/ builders in the area. (See the National Association of Home Builders’ website at nahb.org to find the builders association in your region.)

Working with an architect/builder might narrow your pool of prospects, but it can offer advantages, such as helping to streamline the home-building process. In general, choosing an architect is beneficial to a project, according to Gosling. Architects have a particular ability to make a house speak to its location, resulting in a one-of-a-kind, site-specific design that meets your needs, he says.

With this in mind, also know that some designers are trained as architects. Jim Beverly, a professional home designer based in Placitas, New Mexico, is not a registered architect, but he graduated from architecture school. Beverly says to consider your prospective home designers’ skills and backgrounds, as well as their titles.

Hiring a designer/builder is an additional option. However, you don’t have to choose someone who does both jobs. Beverly notes that bringing in another professional as part of your home-building team can be an asset, whether that person is an architect or a designer.
Pricing varies among architects, designers, and those who also build. At Builders West, LLC, Gosling says he does not charge for designing the homes he builds. Therefore, depending on whom you work with, you might save on design plans by hiring a company that provides both services.

If you hire a separate architect and builder, it’s common to have a design fee of a certain percentage of the total construction costs. (Gosling says 8 to 10 percent is a typical estimate for architects’ design services.)

Meanwhile, fee structures vary from designer to designer, but most charge either a price per square foot or a flat fee, according to Beverly. Make sure you understand what you are getting, whether that is a set of plans or an involved collaborative process working with a designer. He adds that architects’ fees might include project management and contract administration, which contributes to their higher costs.

Once you have your home plans designed, Gosling suggests making sure you can picture what the home will look like. He says one of the ways he helps clients accomplish this is with furniture templates. Clients measure key furniture items and determine how they can be arranged within two-dimensional plans. This can be particularly helpful when a piece of furniture is going to be the focus for a room. If a client is having a difficult time visualizing the plans, Gosling says he might also build a model.

Whether or not you decide to hire an architect or designer who will also construct your home, choose your building team carefully. Beverly says it’s smart to speak with previous clients, learn how the designer or architect works, and see the individual’s built projects. He also suggests looking at the drawings so you will know what he or she will provide and so you can study their detail and precision.

Gosling advises selecting the person who best meets your specific needs and with whom you can communicate well. “Interview at least three architects,” he says. “Then go with the person you feel more comfortable with. And don’t let that be price-driven.” For a further discussion of this topic, see “Suit yourself” on page 60.

Building in the Southwest can raise questions one might not consider as often in other regions, such as the option of adobe construction. Quentin Wilson is an adobe construction instructor at Northern New Mexico College in El Rito, New Mexico. He also is president of the board of directors for the Adobe Association of the Southwest. According to Wilson, the wall budget is approximately 7 to 11 percent of the total cost of a house. Therefore, choosing to build adobe walls rather than frame walls could not double the cost of the home. Many factors go into the total price of building a home, Wilson explains, and the walls do not determine the total budget.

A simple frame house becomes more expensive with high-end windows and doors and other premium building materials. This also is the case for adobe, Wilson says. All of your choices add up to determine the cost of the house. “Look at every line item of the budget,” Wilson says, as you evaluate the price of adobe compared to other wall systems.

The price of adobe varies depending on where you are in the state, Wilson adds. He suggests having a preliminary set of designs made and getting them priced, and finding a builder with experience constructing adobe homes.

If you choose to have an adobe home built, Wilson says you will enjoy a number of benefits, including a home that will last longer and has thermal mass, which helps regulate the temperature inside the home. In addition, you will be choosing a building material that has strong ties to the culture of New Mexico. “It’s a cherished part of the New Mexico psyche,” Wilson says.

Too-modern metal
Q: I’m getting maple cabinets with stainless appliances, light greenish granite counters, a stainless sink, and chrome faucet. What type of knob or pull would look best, color-wise? They all seem cold or too modern. I have a 55-year-old house at the beach.
—Susan Bowden, La Jolla, California

A: The cabinet hardware that looks right for your kitchen will be up to you, but a few shopping guidelines can help. Bob Chapman, president of Santa Fe Hardware, says if the hardware looks cold and modern, you might be referring to chrome handles or knobs. Chrome has a blue tinge that makes it look colder than other finishes and lends to its modern appearance. You might be happier with something in satin nickel or stainless steel, which has a warmer tinge, Chapman suggests. Satin nickel is the hot finish right now, he adds.

Chapman says it can be helpful to bring in a drawer front or cabinet door when you visit a store to look at knobs and handles. You can usually try different styles on your own cabinet to get a better sense of how it will look in your kitchen. Keep an open mind while shopping for cabinet hardware. Sometimes a style you think you’ll like will look different when you put it on the cabinet, Chapman says, and sometimes a piece you wouldn’t give a second look turns out to be the one you love.

Kitchen revision
Q: We are purchasing a Southwestern-style home with custom tile work on the kitchen and dining room counters and backsplash. While the tile is beautiful, the colors are typical turquoise and pink or salmon, and I’m having trouble figuring out how to incorporate my dark blue Polish pottery and other kitchen decor that is mostly dark blues and greens. I hate to tear out the decorative mosaics on the backsplash, but I would like to find a way to either replace the turquoise and pink tiles or perhaps paint over them. The kitchen cabinets also have a little too much of a decorative Southwestern flair for me. I would like to retain the integrity of a Southwestern feel but perhaps find a way to update it. Can you provide some suggestions for how to redo my kitchen without tearing it all out and starting over? —Marybeth Parker, El Paso, Texas

A: Curtis Cottrell, owner of Cottrell Custom Builders, Inc., in Albuquerque, says he often has clients who want to work with existing elements in the kitchen. While this is frequently an option, he says the risk is that the final product will look patched together, rather than the updated, cohesive, and functional space you have in mind.

He does not recommend replacing specific tiles or painting over them. Replacing individual tiles can damage the integrity of the countertop, Cottrell says. You risk creating cracks in the surface that could allow water to seep into the countertop, which could cause tiles to pop off or allow the formation of mold.

According to Cottrell, some companies paint over existing tile using an epoxy paint. He warns that the paint can wear off, and you will likely be able to tell that the tiles have been painted over. Cottrell estimates that the life of this sort of paint job is four to five years.

Roberta Hanson of CounterPoint Tile in Santa Fe also discourages against painting over countertop tiles because the surface is a work space and frequently encounters water. She says removing individual tiles is also difficult because tiles do not always come out one at a time.

One option for getting a new countertop without removing the old tiles is to add a new foundation over the existing tile countertop, then tile over the new surface. Attempting something like this would require some experimentation, however, Hanson says. This would also raise new questions about the weight of the countertop, and the resulting counter would have many layers of different materials. 

“It seems less problematic to rip it up and put in new tile,” Hanson says.

If you are going to be spending money to update the countertop and backsplash, Cottrell also recommends a complete replacement. A new tile backsplash that incorporates the colors you want will complete the look.

Tile covering a countertop should be a sturdy, high-fire tile, Hanson says, and backsplashes offer the possibility of using additional types of tile because they are not an active work space.

If you do not want to replace your cabinets, you could consider refacing them. This would allow you to choose a style that better suits your taste. Cottrell notes that refacing cabinets is generally 75 percent of the total amount you would spend replacing them.

You could also have the cabinets replaced, which is more expensive but offers the advantages of getting updated features that function better, plus the exact style and finishes you want. If you replace these kitchen elements, Cottrell adds that you can often get the benefit of a warranty.