Frame colour – RAL 5007

As per the planning application, the triple glazed windows are going to be framed in a grey / blue that ties in with the current grey / blue colouring of the current (original) Silver Spray building:

Silver Spray from the road (Google Earth)

The front garage and sign are a lighter blue than the blue on the building:

Silver Spray sign

DSCN0492_600w

The surrounding houses have also gone for shades of blue:

Neighbouring blues

By going to Silver Spray and comparing the colours to a RAL colour chart, the colour that seems the best match is RAL 5007.

It’s hard to show this on a screen, as different monitors and different graphics cards will show the same colour differently. But here are some attempts. The first is from a Google image search on “RAL 5007”.

RAL 5007 image search on Google

Then from a window company (http://www.plastixal.pl/www/fr/425,palette_de_couleurs.html) that shows different painted frames (well the corner, so the colour impact is bigger than it’ll actually be !).

RAL 5007 for glazing frames - 03

RAL 5007 for glazing frames - 02

RAL 5007 colour swatch

 

 

Lights in cross beams (if have cross beams)

Looking at this project on Houzz
– http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/4878646/

I thought that if the proposed Glulam beams are going to drop below the ceiling height, then the way they have done the lights in between the beams looks great.

I think I’m biased to a clean line (no visible beams) though.

It, in part, works because they have lots of beams closely spaced to each other.

 

Vertical slats for the staircase

Vertical slats to let the light come down the stairwell from the skylight and south facing window on the top floor.

I want the vertical slats going to the floor or the ceiling. So like this for at the bottom:

vertical wooden wall on the stairs

&

vertical wooden wall 08

The top / cap to the vertical slats to be capped with a hand rail, as shown below:

vertical wooden wall hand rail cap

The slats give a continually different view / aspect.

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/2576588/list?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u111&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery3

 

Frame the sea view ?

How about, as suggested ages ago by Jo Brannan, reducing some of the north, sea facing glazing (glass windows, doors, panels) to have more of a frame on the view.

Yes it’s great to have some rooms where it’s full whack the view, where the end side walls, roof and floor are the frame.

But maybe some other rooms have less glazing. Walls are also much more thermally efficient and cheaper for the heating efficiency of the building.

This extreme framing (ie mostly wall Vs small window) works to amazing effect.

The above photo is from www.houzz.com

For this endless ocean view, instead of the windows going floor to ceiling, the designer chose to pull the focus tight by using a smaller window. The minimally framed window creates the look of art on the wall and brings your attention to the balance of sea and sky and the subtle gradient of color.

It seems almost any frame, can end up adding to the view:

Guest room tips from Houzz.com article

“Impress Your Guests: 8 Tips for Gracious Guest Rooms”

from http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/2522280/list?utm_source=Houzz&utm_campaign=u109&utm_medium=email&utm_content=gallery19

An assortment of books. – nice idea

A folding luggage stand. – not so sure

  1. Piles of pillows. – yup
  2. Hooks and hangers. – nice idea
  3. A coffee bar. – not so sure, come and socialise !
  4. A well-outfitted bed side table. (water glass, small bowl for things) – nice.
  5. Fresh flowers. – depends
  6. Robes and slippers. – not sure about the slippers

Side Slot Idea

As an alternative to a corner window for the top floor home office, a different idea, that could make the top half of the office floor look as if it’s lighter, but it floating, is a side slot:

 

This idea could be extended / used on all 3 floors of the building or just the top office.
– if used on all 3, the slot could be the longest / deepest on the top office floor.

A corner slot would mean less glass, which means better insulation (walls are better than windows for insulation) and lower cost.

 

(The pictures are from houzz.com.)

Corner Window Idea(s)

There is an idea to reduce the bulk / the massing of the top floor by putting a corner window on the NE corner.

So I’ve had a look at corner windows and found these on houzz.com

In the above building the corner window isn’t floor to ceiling and still seems to massively reduce the impact there would be if there was a solid corner.

A similar corner window would still allow the current block top floor where there isn’t a roof “cap” that extends beyond the walls.

Viewed from inside, this corner window isn’t floor to ceiling.  Neither is the image above.
Both seem to work well.

Looking at another Houzz.com corner window gallery >>

Again, the window isn’t floor to ceiling, but close !

On the top floor this could then have a column, before a (from inside) a, to the floor door that opens out onto the terrace.

Having supporting columns at or near the corner seems to work well too !

Corner columns can also be fine.
Look at this corner from the outside and inside (season shift):

and this corner window, with a corner frame piece on, what looks like an office building.

26 May 2012 Additions:

This image is interesting, not only for the corner window, but also for the lounge where there could be a problem getting triple glazing to the height, so a top window band strip might be a solution.