By Danielle Schroeder

Throughout the years, homes have become spaces with intelligent technology. Complete with thermostats that can be adjusted on a phone to virtual assistants making the grocery list, these innovations can be helpful with gadgets for nearly every room of a house.

By Phillip Gibney

The color and material selections of a space is about more than how it looks. It reflects the charisma of the occupant and how we feel in the room. Whether the occupant is serious and formal or loose and relaxed, crafting a design to the client’s desires while maintaining functionality is an art. In a world with an endless and ever-changing selection of colors, materials, fixtures, furnishings, and more, perfecting a design requires high attention to detail. Design trends are constantly evolving. The fundamental concepts of color theory and how material and color selections affect our emotions have stood the test of time. This serves as a guide for crafting the perfect space. 

by Kerry Hansen

Hallie O’Higgins, a senior at Boerne-Champion High School in Boerne, Texas earned a gold medal in a national Interior Design competition. This year the event, put on by the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), took place in Nashville, TN. 

Hallie has been involved with the interior design program at Champion High School since her freshman year. She was first introduced to Chief Architect during her sophomore year. Hallie credits her love for architecture and design to Chief Architect. “Once I began using the software, I discovered a love for architecture. Designing functional floor plans and decorating multiple spaces became so enjoyable with the Chief Architect software.”

by Kerry Hansen

Feng shui is a tradition that originated in ancient China. It is the practice of being mindful of the spaces in the home to create a more peaceful and nourishing life.

Feng shui is a tradition that originated in ancient China. It is the practice of being mindful of the spaces in the home to create a more peaceful and nourishing life. The goal is to harmonize individuals with their surrounding environment through spatial arrangement and orientation to optimize the flow of energy. Energy flow, also known as Chi is the life force that runs through each individual and their space. Chi means energy or air. In feng shui, ensure that the five elements, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood interact in harmony with each other and maintain the flow of energy. Chi, like all energy, is constantly evolving, shifting, and flowing. It cannot be created or destroyed and should be able to flow freely around and through the home.

By Phillip Gibney

Your clients want to see more than a floor plan and elevation, right?  Renderings help; but, what about a 3D model they can experience and virtually interact with?  Export and share your designs using the Chief Architect 3D Viewer.  With the 3D Viewer, they can view the design and model on their phone, tablet or computer – it’s a free app we developed exactly for sharing your designs with your clients.

By Kendra Dorosh

Dreaming of renovating your home, but not sure what to expect? Thebuild.tv by Anthony Carrino may just be the new series you’ve been waiting for.

By Kerry Hansen

Like many, when we learned that after nearly 90 years, the iconic School of Architecture at Taliesin would be closing its doors later this year, our hearts skipped a beat. Frank Lloyd Wright is one of the founding visionaries of Modernist architecture and a towering figure in American culture. For a first-hand perspective on the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture at Taliesin West, we turned to Michael Rust, an architect based out of Chandler, Arizona. Rust, a member of the Taliesin Fellowship for over a decade, was the recipient of the third Master of Architecture degree ever issued by the prestigious school. Michael’s architecture is featured on the cover of Chief Architect Premier X11 and X12, and atop our booth at the International Builders’ Show.

By Kendra Dorosh

Each year, I’m intrigued by all of the blogs, social media posts and emails that flood my feed featuring the hottest trends for home design. We’ve seen it all, from floral everywhere to gray everything. Are these trends something that most designers track and incorporate into their latest work? Are we driving ourselves crazy trying to stay on top of the latest trends, or is it a necessary component of keeping a competitive edge in the market?

By Kerry Hansen

The maximalist interior of the Mondrian Doha Hotel’s rooftop pool.

“There are three responses to a
piece of design – yes, no, and WOW!
Wow is the one to aim for!”

Milton Glaser

By Kendra Dorosh

What are the biggest challenges your business will face over the next year? If you said finding skilled labor and completing projects on time, you aren’t alone.

With housing starts at a high and labor shortages expected to continue, we set out to identify the biggest challenges that businesses are facing in the coming year and what they’re planning to do to address them. We heard from 35 building industry professionals who provided us with a pulse on what they are preparing for in the coming year.