Name: Eric and Lauren Wendlandt, framework design, inc.. The house is named Vivienda Moderna (Spanish for modern dwelling).
Location: Westside neighborhood, Kansas City, Missouri
Types of spaces: 3,675sf landscaped area, 475sf permeable paving, 375sf decks/balconies, 500sf future rooftop garden/patio
How did you do it?: Lauren and Eric designed and built Vivenda Moderna themselves, with the help of some very dedicated family, friends and subcontractors. It's their residence, office, and workshop and also home to one other business and residence. Here, just in time for Outdoor Month, they take us through a sneak peek of Vivienda Moderna's outdoor spaces, with landscaping that's only about 6 weeks old...
Our style: Classically modernist, with a little eclecticism, mixed with sustainability (reclaimed materials).
Inspiration: Sustainability, inside/outside connections, outdoor living, drought tolerance
Favorite Element: Eric & Lauren - The neighborhood! It fits our modernist eclectic style. The architecture and people are so diverse. It’s a very small town, with big city urban literally across the street. Lauren - The front deck and stairs. Eric - the front deck which we’ve named our front porch. It’s nice to sit there and chat with the neighbors.
Biggest Challenge: Getting everything done, while not compromising (too much) on quality AND staying on a budget. We still have a lot to do, but we just have to be patient.
What Friends Say: Everyone in the neighborhood has been very supportive, which definitely keeps us going. We’re always being stopped by people walking or driving by to tell us that they’ve really enjoyed watching our progress and that they love what we’ve done with the landscaping. We like being part of the neighborhood, so that makes us feel good that they are happy we’re here.
Biggest Embarrassment: Lauren - falling out of my truck while unloading rock. Eric – Lauren usually does enough embarrassing things for both of us!
Proudest DIY: Seeing the plants and trees start to flourish and take off, especially seeing the first blades of grass emerge from the dirt. There’s something new everyday!
Biggest Indulgence: All our plants. We just needed to put down grass seed to satisfy city requirements, but wanted to create a nice, drought-tolerant garden in memory of my grandmother, who was a master gardener.
Best advice: “Nothing worthwhile is ever easy.” One of the guys working on rebuilding the stone wall out front told us that when we were exhausted and totally out of energy. Lauren’s grandmother told us, “Do what you have to to finish it.”
Dream source: Sunset Garden Books, Nelson Family (Family Tree Nursery), Funny Grandma (Lauren’s grandmother who was a source of knowledge and inspiration regarding plants)
RESOURCES
Plants: Family Tree Nursery
Materials: House of Rock, Johnson County Building Materials, Craigslist for finding old barns and rock foundations to reclaim, our own rock foundation we found when excavating
Underground Cistern: Roth Fralo (1500 underground cistern for reclaimed rainwater)
Lauren and Eric moved in only two months ago and they're still finishing construction. So, we'll give them a chance to settle in but you can bet we'll be back with a House Tour sometime in the near future! In the meantime, check out their design work at framework design, inc. and their previous (also DIY-ed) home in San Diego (a 2007 Small Cool semi-finalist).
(Thanks, Lauren and Eric!)
Must-See Small Cool Homes: Week Two
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Shaw's Original Fir...
How to Cook Moist & Tender Chicken Breasts Every Time
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
It's really great to see both the xeriscaping and mixed use of the building - I wonder if they are going to use the space on the ground floor for their own business or try to rent it out?
I'm hooked. It's great. Let's see inside!
Viva Architectura!
Personal, inventive, polite and honest. And that is only the exterior.
Gorgeous! I love the look of the exterior and the landscaping -- when do we get a sneak peek inside?
I like their advice: “Nothing worthwhile is ever easy.” So true! Beautiful house!
I love everything with one exception: the naming of it. For whatever reason, I'm profoundly irked by the fact that they chose to new construction.
Of course, that may have something to do that it should be "Vivienda" with an "ie" not "Vivenda."
I'm hoping that the typo is AT's and not theirs!
That should've read "chose to NAME new construction."
That typo was mine... : )
i hope they did not knock down a preexisting building
For such a modern building, the size of it isn't overbearing. I certainly wouldn't want to live in it, but I wouldn't mind living next door. Maybe.
Gorgeous! But yikes, how do they do those stairs during icy winters?
Love the grassless garden and the green window frames.
to bepsf: The ground floor has a garage, apartment and a space that is rented out (to a wedding cake maker I believe). Framework's office is on the second floor and the residence is on the second and third floors.
to brockton triangle: I'm about 99% it was an empty lot.
to alaricus: Its large but it does have a residence, apartment, office and leased space. The scale pretty much fits in with the neighborhood.
Happy to see my friends (went to college with Lauren and Eric) doing so well. Can't wait to see it again in person now that its mostly complete.
I've been following the progress on the framework site for a while now... Looks great guys - keep up the good work!
Thanks so much for all the comments. It's great to get feedback and always gives us a new perspective! We've tried to respond to some of your comments below...Feel free to let us know if you have other questions or comments. We'd love to hear them!
Regina & Apartment Therapy_Thanks for the opportunity!
bepsf_Our art and architecture firm will have an office on the second floor. We plan on leasing out the ground floor commercial space. We'd love to use the building as a co-op/design center of all sorts.
modtramp_the name of the building is "vivienda moderna". We do agree, that traditionally, historical/older buildings have had names-that's partly why we named it! Many of the materials we've used are recycled, so we feel like there is an inherent history to the project. We also like the idea that buildings are named; they embody and project spirit and feeling. The naming of the building not only came from a new take on an old fashioned idea (shopkeeper style programs), but is also a nod to the current neighborhood and our western inspiration_we started designing the building when we still lived and practiced in the San Diego area.
brocktontriangle_at one time there was a beautiful mansion (and later boarding house) built in the late 1800s It unfortunately burned down in the late 1960s. (You can see an image of it on our site http://www.frameworkdesign.net/viviendamoderna.html# )
The lot had been vacant for the last 40 years until we purchased it in 2007. When we excavated, we found the original rock foundation and several old brick chimmneys buried several feet down. We saved the material and reused the rock and brick to develop the landscaping.
idoprint_We did use the stairs through this winter (without a handrail) and because of the Southern exposure and the large overhang, they don't get too encrusted with ice or snow. We designed the building using universal accessibility guidelines and so there is a small, residential elevator which provides access to the multiple uses and different spaces. Beyond providing weather friendly access, this also allows our older family members the ability to still come and visit. The elevator is a "green" model which helps to generate some of it's own electricity as it moves downward. The local company will use it to showcase the installation to potential clients.
Thanks to everyone who has commented so far! We're still working on the interior and plan on finishing it in about 20 years. We're hoping we'll have enough to photograph though and send to AT for this fall!
Beautiful design!
I'm very fond of the design of the home but the landscape could use a few thing to bring the design more in alignment with the character of the building.
The house has some very bold modern moves - translating these into the landscape would have made the design more coherent. Large drifts of native plants in rectalinear arrangements would have helped. The materials palette also stirs feelings of cognitive dissonance - railroad ties and sugar kettles are at odds with the smooth materiality of the building.
I do have to commend the architects on their use of native plant materials. Preserving the tree was also very smart.