today has been a rather short day in the office. usually from wednesday onwards... most of my days are spent out of the office and on site. now tell me how the heck do i have time to draft my drawings?!

anyway... well morning site meeting was a nightmare. watching the client banging the table and threatening to sack anyone and everyone who makes the slightest error is really very stressful. then in the afternoon met my other client and his wife to review the landscape proposal. the contrast between a big time developer and a private owner is very telling. developers is all about just getting the job done as early as possible yet still must be able to achieve top quality works. with private owners however, its about trying to satisfy their own ego and the amount of emotional energy put into it is unjustifiable.

so anyway... i must say that my trees and flower knowledge is almost close to zero. well... the only knowledge i have is knowing how to differentiate a Frangipani from a Busheda, which isnt very hard... a bougainvillea between a orchid. har! but i'm so honored that the client, despite my lack of knowledge in plants, still respects my ideas and decisions in every aspect.

the wife obviously knows far better stuff about plants than i do. after the meeting i went home to google all the plants she had mentioned... its gonna be a long discussion with the landscape specialist.

a picture of a Cochlopermum, also known as a buttercup tree. well i agree with the client that its a much more unique and sculptural tree as compared to the common Plumeria trees. the flowers are huge!

on Friday well be heading to Bulthaup to finalise on the kitchen system. i had to reassure the client that using the wood finish for the cabinets is a way classier choice than the stainless steel finish. it was a hard one because i personally also love stainless steel. i think the tricky part is having to deal with natural materials. no architect can truly control mother nature. i guess while we're there... we might as well stop by Xtra to check out some furnitures, if all can be covered then... i might not need to go furniture shopping with them over the weekend. Apparently its the best time to buy furnitures because of the clearance sales...

and i've set my eyes on the Jesse range...

i think for this beach house... i'm gonna go for the warm gray/ natural modern theme. those timber boards would be so perfect for this house... and at my wits on experimenting with the timber... trying all sorts of method to get that washed out rustic effect. i've tried white wash... acid wash... grey wash... i think the timber specialist is getting rather frustrated as well.