Ho Ho Ho!! Its that special time of year when you can let that special architect in your life feel appreciated….or at least buy him the correct type of pencil. Architects are a difficult bunch to shop for. If you are like most people, you know that shopping for an architect isn’t any fun because we are generally self-righteous about quality and routinely look down our noses at mass-produced items. They already have the black roll neck jumper, black rimmed glasses (whether they need them or not) most high-tech pencil known to man, so what is the well intentioned gift giver to do? I`ll tip my hat to Bob Borson and his blog Life of an Architect.
Here are the goods! Feel free to send this post to your loved ones with my blessings, hard to go wrong with the items I culled together this year.
Aerobie AeroPress
Without coffee architect would simply not exist. It is the fuel that powers the creative engines. As coffee connoisseurs become more particular about their blend this one cup brewer is an ideal present. The history of the AeroPress is almost as fun to read as the AeroPress itself is to use, especially considering the AeroPress is the only non-sport/toy product Aerobe makes. We love this portable, single-cup maker. The shorter brewing time and disposable paper filters may be a cause for concern to some, but filters are widely available in several-hundred packs, and the fact that the AeroPress uses air pressure to extract more flavour from the (relatively) finely ground coffee in the chamber makes for a more well-bodied cup.
Sennheiser RS 170 – www.lyrichifi.com/contact-us.
I’m a big fan of listening to music when I’m wanting to concentrate and get my head around a design. I know sometimes my music choices are not welcome around the office or I may be listening to a sneaky Taylor Swift track. Wireless headphones come in many shapes and sizes but few offer as pleasing a home cinema-centric performance than the RS 170. This wireless headphone system comprises of a pair of wireless headphones and a multi-purpose transmitter which also functions as an ‘easy-charge’ cradle and docking station. Enjoy rich, full sound from your home theatre system without shattering windows. This audiophile-quality wireless headphone system supports up to 4 receivers with bass boost and simulated surround sound.
Viaduct Bound Large leather notebooks and journals – http://www.viaductbound.com
The best thing about this beautiful present is that it is in the C60 brand colours. Viaduct Bound studio overlooks Tassagh Viaducts, Co. Armagh where sisters Aileen and Mary Boyle produce their hand crafted leather journals using traditional book binding techniques. Soft leather bound book in luxury calfskin bound with waxed lined thread. 112 leaves of fine 100gsm acid free cartridge paper.
Ideal as a travel journal, notebook and for sketching. And they can be refilled so you get to keep and age the beautiful leather.
Retro 51 Tornado Pencil Bocote
This is a cool looking pencil and Retro 51 is a sweet brand. This mechanical pencil is 5 inches long and has a 1.15mm lead (which is approximately the size of a regular pencil lead). The lead is advanced with a simple twist of the top, and there is a huge eraser. The body of the pencil is turned from a solid piece of Bocote wood – the graining of which varies from pencil to pencil – making each one unique. Included with this pencil is twelve 1.15 HB lead refills, and six refill eraser tops.
Slinky Science – Young Architect
Draw, design, and build – Who knew architecture could be so easy?
Everything you need to plan, design, and build your own professional 3D model building is here, waiting for your creative hands to get to work. Grab one of the six large pieces of paper and start thinking about what your dream home will be.
Use the nine room templates to draw out the basic structure – Put the living room here, the kitchen there, the dining room over here, and the bedroom and bathroom there and there. Once it’s all square, trim, and proper, mark where all the doors and windows will be and then use the three furniture guides and coloured pencils to start furnishing the whole place just the way you want.
And remember! It’s your dream home – You can design it any way you want!
Monkey 47
After coffee hard alcohol is second on the list of preferred drinks. But of course it can`t be just any alcohol. I’m a big fan of gin and discovered this little beauty. An incredibly fun gin that serves the purpose of getting sozzled better than all others. Haling from the Black Forest in Germany, the name comes from the number of botanicals that go into this unique gin, and the fact it’s bottled at bedtime-inducing 47% proof. Palate-wise it’s complex (there are 47 tastes in there!), woody, spicey, fruity and herby. Pretty much everything a gin can be.
Toys – Architects a fun people. Let me repeat. Architects are fun people, and we like to have smart toys on our desk to remind ourselves of this fact. Things that serve no purpose than as diversion follies whose singular role is to keep your brain from creatively locking up.
Areaware Cubebot Medium
Architects like books … a lot. You can’t go wrong with getting your favorite architect a book as a present, giving them a way to sign it as theirs is also very cool. Here are a few that will definitely put a smile on their tired architect`s face. I actually have most of these books so can recommend them as essential reading.
Suck UK Origami Sticky Note Pad
This is a little something for those dull moments at the office. Recycle your old sticky notes and turn them in to fun 3D models! Each pad has instructions for 10 different shapes, including: pig; penguin; boat; crane; butterfly; squirrel; lily and water bomb.
Architect’s Pocket Book
If your architect doesn`t have this already then this is a must buy. If he has it then he`ll be love the fact he now has two copies. This handy pocket book brings together a wealth of useful information that architects need on a daily basis – on site or in the studio. It provides guidance on a range of tasks, from complying with the Building Regulations, including the recent revisions to Part L, to helping with planning, use of materials and detailing.
The Passivhaus Handbook: A Practical Guide to Constructing and Retrofitting Buildings for Ultra-Low Energy Performance (Sustainable Building)
An essential guide for anyone wanting to realize a supremely comfortable, healthy, and durable home with exceptionally low energy costs, this book brings together current thinking and best practice in Passivhaus design. This type of design focuses on getting the building fabric right, to achieve ultralow energy consumption in the most cost-effective manner. The approach is relevant to a wide range of building types and climates. Whether you are building an extension, retrofitting your house or starting from scratch, and whether you are new to low-energy design or already have some experience, this book will help you navigate around the potential pitfalls and misconceptions.
The Architect in Practice: 10th edition
The Architect in Practice was first published in 1952. Originally written by a quantity surveyor and an architect it has remained, through its nine editions, a leading textbook used in the education of architects world-wide. While the format of the book has developed, the message and philosophy remains the same as the original: to provide the student of architecture and the young practitioner with a readable guide to the profession, outlining an architect’s duties to client and contractor, the key aspects of running a building contract, and the essentials of management, finance and drawing office procedure.
101 Things I Learned in Architecture School
101 things I learned in architecture school is a book that students of architecture will want to keep in the design studio and in their backpacks. It is also a book they may want to keep out of view of their professors, for it expresses in clear and simple language the things they tend to make murky and abstruse. These 101 concise lessons in design, drawing, the creative process, and presentation–from the basics of how to draw a line to the complexities of colour theory–provide a much-needed primer in architectural literacy and make concrete what too often is left nebulous and open-ended in the architecture curriculum.
Iggy Peck, Architect
Meet Iggy Peck—creative, independent, and not afraid to express himself! In the spirit of David Shannon’s No, David and Rosemary Wells’s Noisy Nora, Iggy Peck will delight readers looking for irreverent, inspired fun.
Iggy has one passion: building. His parents are proud of his fabulous creations, though they’re sometimes surprised by his materials—who could forget the tower he built of dirty diapers? When his second-grade teacher declares her dislike of architecture, Iggy faces a challenge. He loves building too much to give it up! With Andrea Beaty’s irresistible rhyming text and David Roberts’s puckish illustrations, this book will charm creative kids everywhere, and amuse their sometimes bewildered parents.
I hope this helps make your architect`s Christmas the best yet. Merry Christmas!