christopher fye + associates architects + planners

07/18/2023

Well, it's certainly been a whirlwind these last couple months of moving, re-orienting, maybe sorta slowing down a little? Took a couple shots of our "new" studio (being the refreshed studio we built back in 1992). I will say that we still have some boxes here and there taking up too much room in this much reduced space (the downtown offices were around 2,500 sf, now we're down to under 600 sf!). But, this will give you a sense of where we are now. Feel free to message us if you wanna stop by, or if you're thinking about design/re-design of your home/office/yurt 😉

07/02/2023

Farewell downtown studio, you have served us well for nearly a quarter of a century. So much light, so much space, so much good work produced here.

Designing now our new quieter professional life. A few select projects, more time traveling, sailing, hiking, grandparenting!

05/24/2023

The big news around here is . . . . semi-retirement! We just closed on the sale of this fabulous old building we rehabbed beginning in 1999. We're moving the offices back to our home studio this weekend, Memorial Day weekend, 23 years to the date that we moved into our beautiful second floor loft studio, after several months of interior demolition, design and finishing.

We have loved this space so much, the staff camaraderie in our open floor plan; the way the light at early winter sunset would bounce off the buildings to our north and make a long streak of light all the way to the back of the building; how winter snowstorms swirled around our north-facing bay windows and felt like living in a crystalline snow globe; the exposed brick walls - especially the one that revealed itself to us during demolition as an original painted advertisement on the wall of the building that used to be the neighbor to ours; the re-use of the gorgeous woodwork and built-in cabinetry; the restoration of the original light well which allowed sun to pour into the lobby of our offices; the deck at the south side of the offices where the full sun produced delicious tomatoes and peppers and perky flowers in our urban garden; and the light, oh, the light.

After 35+ years as professional architects, it's time to slow down a bit. We look forward to balancing this new way of life with select projects, a lot more travel, and a lot more time with grandkids. The doors at 105 W. Main will no longer lead to christopher fye + associates architects + planners, but our doors on Harlem Avenue will be open wide to a few new projects.

08/04/2022

So, what does the architect do as vacation comes to an end? Visit an architecturally important building of course! This one, the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln, NE. The first (and maybe only?) state capitol designed not in the US capitol style but in a decidedly Art Nouveau style.

"Cathedral-like" Chris repeated a number of times, The architect, Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue, as it turns out was known for his church design, but won the competition to design the 3rd NE capitol. No typical rotunda here, but oh what an amazing 14th floor rotunda!

03/24/2022

A couple views of one of our projects under construction. This one is an addition and remodeling at Lake Carroll, Illinois.

01/12/2022

Wow, just realized that we'll celebrate 35 years in business later in 2022! Incredible.

01/12/2022

Architects can do amazing work for residential clients, but the best work they do is well-fed by clients' own ideas, goals, and lifestyle choices - that's what informs great design that works.

Years ago we developed a piece entitled "Thinking about Residential Design" to give to clients to help them work through their own thoughts and decision-making (and budget!). Much like this article states, it's so beneficial (and, let's face it, cost-effective) to bring to the design table the way you really live, the things that bug you most, the dreams you've held for your best home.

The best design is a result of collaborative effort.

Architects tell how to create a plan for a house that will help you and your family live better

06/21/2021

Here's an interesting piece from Houzz. It's very informative and pretty much spot on, but here in Illinois it is not required to have a structural engineer review or sign off on architectural drawings. Architects are highly skilled in structural design. We here at christopher fye + associates architects + planners do all of our own structural engineering - especially in residential projects. We call in structural consultants more frequently on large commercial design projects when their expertise is at a higher level or is particular to the specific project design.

Second, the question at the end of the article "Can you afford to hire an architect?" Well, frankly, if you can't afford to hire an architect, you probably can't afford to build a new home or remodel. Especially with the extremely high cost of construction today, it's important to factor in the experience and expertise of architects into your overall costs. Architects tend to be - truly - the least expensive partner on the job and yet the value they bring is immense.

Now's a good time to design for spring ground-breaking of a new home, or for autumn remodeling of your existing home. Give us a call.

Learn what architects do and how they charge for their work

02/25/2021

Our small firm has always paid our interns. Always. Even the one summer we had four working at the same time (delightful chaos!). Even when we were struggling (often!). The internship is mandatory for budding architects, it's not a choice. Paying them is, however. We can't believe this is still happening - it so devalues that person and his/her education and desire to grow into the profession, but it also devalues the entire profession. This is a practice that needs to go. Now. This piece from Life of an Architect speaks to that, but also important to us is this quote from the article:

"Design and creativity have an inherent price. It takes work, time, and effort, even for those who make it look effortless. Good design is not quick. Ever. It develops over time. The skills to make it seem quick also take time. A single creative thought sparks many more ideas until they can eventually generate a cohesive idea. This takes time. I believe a true designer is always at work. They design constantly. They design the world around them as they move through it. So design is always a work in progress. Not everyone is capable of such a creative process and therein lies the intrinsic value of it; The value of our professional skill and knowledge."

So. Damn. True.

Since it is getting time for college career fairs and planning for the summer, at least in the academic and graduation sense, I wanted to touch on the subject of Unpaid Internship Positions. Also in our current tough economy (and in the past for sure), I have had plenty of discussions among my colle...

02/18/2021

I believe we've been hired for each of these reasons over our nearly thirty-four years as professional architects, especially reason #2 (we are great problem-solvers!), #4 (so many decisions to be made whether remodeling or building new!), #7 (we're experts at historic preservation and renovation), and #10 (dream homes are so very special - we ensure you get the home of your dreams for your needs and your budget).

We've been called in a number of times too to evaluate a piece of land to help determine solar gain, siting of the home, road and utilities placement, etc.; we've also helped people decide the wisdom of a potential purchase of a property by an on-site analysis of structure, existing conditions, potential remodeling/addition costs or return on investment (all falling under #3).

Did you know that we offer an Initial Consultation? A small fee (credited to your account when we enter into design contract) gets you a couple hours with the architect to explore your needs and wants, determine feasibility, and help you decide if you want to work with us or not. Low investment, high gain!

Ready? Give us a call or message us. We'd love to work with you!

https://www.houzz.com/magazine/10-times-to-hire-an-architect-stsetivw-vs~115894514?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u15575&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery5_6&newsletterId=15575

02/16/2021

This cool light event happens at this time of year, mostly. And it changes and morphs, sometimes extremely bright, sometimes muted. But never have I seen it quite like this. And coming through the north windows of the architecture studio! (I'm facing north in the photo) It's so great to see sunshine in this amazingly cold weather!