The Big Book of Small House Designs: 75 Award-Winning Plans for Houses 1,250 Square Feet or Less

The Big Book of Small House Designs is a collection of more than 500 drawings illustrating all aspects of 75 small homes of various styles, from a New England farmhouse to a sophisticated steel frame to a Santa Fe ranch. Each design includes detailed floor plans, section drawings, elevations, and perspectives, as well as a description of the materials used and landscaping around the home. Keeping in mind that a chief priority for a small home is often energy efficiency, most of the plans incorporate some energy-efficient element. There are dozens of plans suitable for every environment and climate in the country. The designs are all a direct result of several international competitions that solicited from architects the best homes of 1,250 square feet or less. Contact information for the architects is provided in the back of the book.

This text features 500-plus drawings illustrating all aspects of 75 small homes of various styles, from traditional to extremely modern, most from the U.S. Distilled from several competitions held among architects and designers, all the designs emphasize economy of space and energy efficiency. Each design includes detailed floor plans, section drawings, elevations, and perspectives; some include descriptions of setting, intended purpose of the home, materials used, and recommended landscaping. No subject index.
Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

75 award-winning plans for your dream house, all 1,250 square feet/116 square metres or less.

Editor and professional architect Don Metz is a partner in the architectural firm of Metz and Thornton. He started his career in the energy-efficient house design business in 1972 with his award-winning Winston House. He was the consultant for the book The Underground House Book by fellow Storey author Stu Campbell. Don also wrote Superhouse and edited Storey's New Compact House Designs, and edited The Compact House Book. Metz has also written two novels, Catamount Bridge and King of the Mountain. He lives with his wife in Lyme, New Hampshire.Owner of the architectural firm BarnOwl Designs, Catherine Tredway is an award-winning designer who has been helping clients create their dream cottages and leisure-time homes for 15 years. She teaches courses in landscape design and architectural preservation.Kenneth R. Tremblay, Jr. is a professor at Colorado State University. He has also written the book, Social Aspects of Housing and Beyond the American Housing Dream. He lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.Lawrence Von Bamford is a professor at Colorado State University. A resident of Loveland, Colorado, he is also the author of Design Resources and A History of Contemporary Architecture and Design.