Blog
Learn more about architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture from the B&V Team.
Our blog is a friendly resource for anyone wondering how to approach their project, seeking answers for their design questions, or simply eager for a peek inside our world.
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The Business of Design
Career Path of an Architect (And, Beyond)
What are you going to be when you grow up? Does it come as a surprise that a lot of architects wonder this constantly? The education and on-the-job training that the architectural profession requires trains you for all sorts of other professions that require creative problem-solving. So, what are you going to be?
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Arts & Culture
Work by Claudia Hollander-Lucas in the “By Others” Gallery at Board & Vellum
The Capitol Hill Art Walk is coming up again, and here at Board & Vellum’s By Others gallery, we are hosting a show by artist Claudia Hollender-Lucas. Read our Q&A with her to learn a little about her work and her process ahead of the August 9th opening reception.
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Landscape Architecture
What’s Blooming Now: Moon Gardens in July
How much do you love a moon garden? When designing your landscape, don’t forget you can plan not only for the experience of the garden in the day time, but also the late night hours! These blooming plants are great candidates for a beautiful (and great smelling) night garden.
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Other Tangents
Use Your Words (Even When You Can’t)
Even in a profession where we quite literally draw pictures to communicate, words are incredibly important, too. Use them carefully, and precisely to get the job done right, and don’t forget that words can communicate very differently if they are said out loud versus written down, and there’s a time and place for both.
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The Business of Design
Five Ways You Can Create Great Work Culture
At the end of June, we attended the 2018 Seattle Magazine's Best 100 Companies to Work for Event, in the top 10 for small business for the third year! We are excited, of course, but it takes a lot of work to create work culture like this. Here are 5 ways we help cultivate our work culture.
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Landscape Architecture
What’s Blooming Now: June in Seattle
June in Seattle is also known as “Juneuary,” thanks to our famously rainy early summers. But there are still plenty of flowers to enjoy at this time of year, and you could argue they look even better glistening with raindrops. Read on to learn about the Japanese Snowbell, the Pacific Mock Orange, and Creeping Honeysuckle.
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Other Tangents
Channeling Experience: Storytelling in the Spaces We Design
Although we humans have invented new ways of sharing knowledge beyond the sharing of stories to one other over the firepit, storytelling is a key part of our culture. (Who doesn’t love a good story?) But beyond the stories we tell out loud, there is storytelling in spaces we design, too.
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Ask a Designer, Custom Residential
What’s Harder: Designing a New House or Remodeling an Existing Home?
Remodeling vs building new: is one harder than the other? It’s very difficult to compare the two, as it’s not apples to apples. While they do share some of the same approaches, they are different challenges that require careful thought. Here are a few of the things to keep in mind when remodeling your home.
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Landscape Architecture
What’s Blooming Now: In Seattle, Dogwood Trees!
Are you wondering: “What are those trees blooming in late spring, with large flowers in shades of pink or white?” They might be dogwoods, a powerhouse of landscape design that has a number of great cultivars and varieties. Here are a few of our favorite dogwood varieties, along with some details about their care and preferences.
Learn more.Or, if chronology isn’t your thing…
Here are a couple of posts to get you started. Of course, it’s hard to choose, so feel free to poke around; we hope to have a little something for everyone. And, if you have a burning question you’d like us to cover in a future post, please let us know!
Considering a project, or curious about something?
Say hello, and send us your questions via the form below. We’re always pleased to make new connections, and eager to get to know you, your project, and your goals.
Honored as a finalist for residential landscape design.
Our team includes LEED-accredited professionals.
Our team includes certified Passive House consultants.
A Certified LGBT Business Enterprise Since 2016.
Honoring companies that lead in promoting equality.