Holiday decor ideas

Tips the season to fill your home with festive décor!

1. Light Candles. Without causing a fire hazard, fill your home with candles to soften the ambiance. Vary the sizes of the candles for depth. Use tall and tapered styles, short votives, star-shaped and colorful candles galore. Choose one scented candle, such as gingerbread or pine, and fill your home with the scents of the season.
2. Add Sparkle. Bring a sparkle to your guests’ eyes by bringing sparkle to your home!  Hang silver and gold ornaments and reflect their shine with mirrors to bounce the sparkle throughout. Add white lights to trees and plants galore, wrap your staircase and illuminate a border around doorways.
3. Dress Up Tables. Perfect for entertaining, your holiday table should make a statement. Dress up your wine glasses with bows or holiday-themed wine glass charms. Cover your table in a bold holiday color, and add a patterned table runner. Tie napkins with gold tassels. To really wow your guests, craft a tall centerpiece of greens and poinsettias.
4. Adorn Your Mantle. Using your antique statues, manger characters or your other prized holiday décor, create a scene on the mantle to anchor the focal point of your room. Create visual interest by varying sizes and shapes of figures. Finally, bring it all together with softly draped garland or ivy.
5. Utilize Festive Foods. Go Green with your holiday decorations by utilizing nature’s bounty. Fill a vase with limes, lemons or oranges. Add cloves for a more rustic look.

LEED tips

Why Take the LEED Green Associate Exam?

While working on a variety of alternative energy and energy efficiency projects during a summer internship in the conservation department of a small town, my employer suggested that I look into the LEED Green Associate as a way to boost my career in a tough job market. I was intrigued and decided to pursue the Green Associate to learn more about LEED and the growing field of green building.

IMHO, there are two primary reasons to consider taking this exam:

1) Professional/career investment
2) Education about LEED and sustainability

My employer believed that becoming a LEED Green Associate would give me an edge in applying for jobs in the sustainability field and I found this to be true when I began my job search after I graduated in the Spring of 2011.

Many job applications asked for green credentials and some specifically asked for a LEED Green Associate. I found that it almost always came up in interviews, and I believe that it impressed employers that I had shown a dedication to the industry beyond my collegiate studies.

Exam Eligibility

There are eligibility requirements with the LEED Green Associate exam, however there are three paths to fulfilling this eligibility, and any one of them will do the trick:

1) Education: Take a class that addresses green building principles
2) Job: Work in a “sustainable field”
3) LEED Project: Work on a LEED registered project

I qualified for the exam by taking a two-day LEED Green Associate Exam preparation course. At the end of the class, we all received PDF Certificates of Completion. The Certificate was my proof of eligibility and it was very easy to upload it to my application with GBCI.

☆ Exam Tip:

Initially, I mailed my student transcript to GBCI so that I could qualify for student pricing on the exam... But after 3 weeks, I still had not seen my pricing updated on my GBCI profile. I subsequently called them and found out that they do not receive physical mail (even though their mailing address is posted on the website). I don’t know if this is permanent or not, but I do not recommend mailing anything to GBCI! :)

Studying Techniques

I took the two-day class in August 2010 (four months before I took the exam). The class was 7 hours a day for two days. I thought my instructor was great and that the time was used effectively. However, since I already had some knowledge about LEED and green building from my coursework at Cornell, I didn’t think it was crucial to my success on the exam. For someone new to LEED, I would recommend more extensive preparation, such as taking a class; however, if you’ve worked on a LEED project, I don’t think it’s worth the price (in my case, $595).

☆ Exam Tip:

Regarding exam eligibility, it turns out that I did not even necessarily need the 2 day class to be eligible for the exam. My coursework at Cornell would have most likely fulfilled my eligibility for "taking a class that addresses green building principles". That said, the LEED Green Associate study guide was helpful in preparing for the exam. The catch here is that the study guide the class provided might have been gibberish without an instructor’s explanation. There was a lot of abbreviated text and graphics that I wouldn’t have understood without her guidance. So, if you decide not to take a class, make sure that your study guide or other study tools are thorough and easy to understand.

Study Guides:
I found the study guide to be absolutely essential to my success. Ironically, I didn’t use any of the LEED primary references (which are provided as study tools by USGBC) because our instructor told us that the study guide was much more concise and effective. A study guide is a very efficient approach, akin to being given a map to navigate a city you've never been in before.

As I mentioned above, I needed an instructor’s guidance to help me understand the guide, but once she did, I found it to be a very valuable resource. I only studied the information in the study guide, and only 2 questions on the actual exam were not covered.

A good study guide will save you a great deal of time and effort. I highly recommend investing in one and you can find an excellent selection here.

Index/Flash Cards:
I made index cards that covered all of the material I found in the study guide. I reviewed them until I had memorized all of this information. This is my favorite way to study for any test and it worked very well on the LEED Green Associate exam.

Practice Tests/Exam Simulators:
After memorizing all of the information, I took practice tests over and over until I got every question right. I found that the questions on all of the practice tests were very similar to in the questions on the actual exam. In fact, some were a bit more difficult than the actual exam questions.

I had never taken a test in a testing center before taking the LEED Green Associate exam. If you’re in the same position, I highly recommend taking practice exams on your computer using an exam simulator.

The exam simulator allowed me to mark questions that I was unsure of and get comfortable with the timing of the exam (2 hours) via the timer in the corner. To make it even more realistic, take out a notepad and take the practice test in a quiet area. You will have almost complete silence and a whiteboard for the actual exam.

When to Take the Exam:

I took the exam during the Winter Break of my senior year of college, so I had plenty of free time to study. If you are a college student and have the opportunity to take the exam during one of your breaks, I would highly recommend it. Even if you work or intern during the break, I found it easier to focus on studying for the Green Associate without having to also study for my other 5 classes!

☆ Exam Tip:

The instructor told us to take the exam soon after we completed the course, so the information from the course was fresh in our minds. I did not do this. I took the exam about 4 months after I completed the course. If, for whatever reason, you are unable to take the exam with the information fresh in your mind, I found it was easy to jog my memory using a study guide. Whether you are engaged in online or traditional classroom training, use a study guide and take notes in it during the class so that you can easily understand what is meant by the information.

How Long to Study:
Length of study is very much an individual thing, but I studied for about 6-8 hours a day for 6 days leading up to the exam. In retrospect, I may have studied too much for the exam. However, since the exam is relatively expensive (GBCI charges a $50.00 application fee, an exam fee of $150 for USGBC members and full-time students and $200 for all others) I wanted to be positive that I would not fail and have to retake it.

Since I studied so much, the test only took me about 30 minutes to complete. The two questions that I missed were not covered in my study guide (we had been warned that there might be one or two questions that would not have been covered in the class). While it was better to be too prepared than under prepared. I think about 30 hours, or 5 hours per day, would have been sufficient.

Test-Taking Strategies

The LEED Green Associate exam is administered by Prometric, an international testing center company. Prometric has testing facilities throughout the United States and other countries. When you first arrive at the Prometric testing center, you will be asked to take everything out of your pockets and put your personal things in a locker.

They do not want you to bring anything into the testing room except a pencil and a piece of blank paper. You may use this blank piece of paper to do a brain dump if you need to. In other words, you'll have time at the beginning of the exam session, before the exam starts, to write down important information that you need to remember, but may be afraid you'll forget during the exam.

The test-taking strategies I used were the same as I used for every multiple-choice test, which are:

Process of Elimination: Write down A, B, C, D, and E on your piece of paper. Cross out the ones you know are wrong, and then decide between the ones you think are right.

Use the Test itself as a Tool: If two questions are on the same topic, sometimes you can use the information in the prompt of one question to help you answer the other question.

Mark Questions You Are Unsure of: Mark the questions you are unsure of and go back to them later. I find that when I spend too much time on a question I don’t know, it makes me nervous. Prometric allows you to go back and revisit questions that you may have had trouble with. If you're unable to answer a certain question, you may find that later questions may jog your memory on an earlier one. Plus, it’s a much better use of time to answer multiple questions that you know the answers to than to labor over one question.

Credential Maintenance Program (CMP)

I applied for the LEED Green Associate exam about two months before I actually took it. When you apply for the exam, you agree to GBCI’s Credential Maintenance Program (CMP), which specifies that a Green Associate needs to complete 15 hours of continuing education (3 LEED-specific) every two years in order to maintain his or her credential. Otherwise, you have to retake the exam. There are many ways to fulfill "non-LEED-specific" CMP credits as well as LEED-Specific CMP Credits.

I honestly forgot about this requirement until I saw articles on LEED CMP on green-buildings.com – probably because I was so concerned with earning the credential that I hadn’t thought about what I needed to do after the exam. It's somewhat confusing determining what qualifies as continuing education for GBCI CMP.

☆ GBCI Credential Maintenance Tip:
The original authorship option is excellent for learning and retaining new information about green building because writing requires my full engagement. 500 word articles earn me 3 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for LEED CMP. You can learn more original authorship/publication on Green-Buildings.com here.

Key Takeaways

1) Take as many practice exams as you can. Review your incorrect answers carefully and re-take them until you answer every question correctly.

2) Use a study guide. While USGBC lists their “Primary Reference” materials for the exam, this material is too broad and unorganized to be helpful. Using a study guide will save you time, energy, and confusion.

3) If you are a student, take advantage of your breaks to prepare for the exam. You will already be in “study mode”.

4) Do a "brain dump" before the test to write down any key information you want to have handy during the exam. Use the exam questions as a guide for answering other questions. Revisit questions that you're having trouble with, Prometric allows you to go back and review everything before submitting.

5) There are many ways to maintain your credential under the LEED Credential Maintenance Program. One way to do this, which is free, helps you learn while also promoting your expertise in green building, is original authorship.

5) Earning your LEED Green Associate credential will likely give you an edge in applying for jobs in the sustainability field.

The Top 10 Least Popular Green Building Strategies in LEED

USA Today staff writers Christopher Schnaars and Thomas Frank released their list of top 10 least popular green building options. They created the list by analyzing over 7,100 LEED certification projects and finding which of the optional credits were least frequently achieved.

1. 10% of materials such as beams and doors are reused or salvaged
2. Reuse existing building elements
3. On-site renewable energy
4. Use rapidly renewable materials such as bamboo
5. 5% of materials such as beams and doors are reused or salvaged
6. Reuse 95% of a building exterior
7. Use on-site renewable energy
8. Boost energy performance 42%
9. Reduce use of potable water in wastewater
10. Reuse 75% of a building exterior

Some of the items on the list were similar or repeated, most likely because of the varying credits across the LEED rating systems. However, the list has some important takeaways.

First, on-site renewable energy is often avoided because, according to USA Today, "technologies to capture this energy aren't cheap". This, paired with only 9.9% of projects choosing to "boost energy performance 42%", shows that a building's energy sourcing and consumption is one of the most difficult and/or expensive strategies to achieve LEED certification.

This is concerning, because buildings make up 39% of the United States' energy use, and 79% of the nation's electricity consumption. Green buildings are meant to address this problem by improving reducing the need for grid-source electricity and fossil fuels through efficiency and renewable energy production. The fact that green building project teams avoid these tactics shows that LEED's rubric for "green building" may not adequately address this issue.

While LEED v4, the new version of LEED due out in 2013, will not adjust the on-site renewable energy credits very much, it will allocate more points to the energy efficiency category, making it a more desirable strategy for project teams. Hopefully, this will increase the number of project teams who achieve a 42% improvement in energy performance.

Another trend in USA Today's list was that reusing existing building elements was an unpopular strategy. Buildings account for 40% of raw materials use and 30% of waste output, so it is important that green building incorporates responsible material sourcing, recycling and disposal. However, the reason that many projects avoided these optional credits is because it "only works for the right kind of project", according to the article. If there is no existing building to reuse, then project teams cannot achieve these credits.

LEED v4's Materials and Resources credit category will change significantly, because it will include "Building Product Disclosure and Optimization" credits. These will encourage more responsible sourcing of building materials, and hopefully reduce raw material use.

Top 10 Green apartments in NYC

More and more NY apartments for rent and for sale are coming on to the market in green buildings, designed, constructed and maintained in an environmentally conscious manner. But are all NYC green buildings equal? Of course not.

Here's a look at the Urban Edge list of the Top 10 Green Buildings in NYC, usually LEED certified (from basic to Platinum), always engineered for the most efficient use of energy, water, and other resources; built with sustainable, recycled, and/or local construction materials; and maintained with an emphasis on health and well-being of the residents.   

1. The Toren

   This spectacular new luxury tower, located in the heart of Downtown Brooklyn, has 240 condo units in all sizes, including more than 40 reserved for tenants with moderate incomes, chosen by lottery. The attention-getting, stripey Toren was not only one of 2010 fastest-selling new buildings—no surprise, with amenities such as attended parking lot, private movie theater, swimming pool, and bi-level roof garden with matchless views of the Manhattan skyline--it's also on target to receive its LEED Gold certification this year.   
   
   

2. The Verdesian

   Situated on the northern edge of Battery Park City—and, so, as close to the energy and nightlife of Tribeca as it is a part of all those lovely riverfront parks— The Verdesian is a 26-story rental building with a focus on both the comfort of its tenants and the health of the environment. The Verdesian has all of the extras you'd expect from a contemporary luxury building (children's playroom, bicycle storage, maid and valet services, floor-to-ceiling windows), but the rental tower also includes some far more rare, green amenities, such as central air-filtration, a natural gas-fired cooling system (which contributes to an astonishing 48% lower peak electric demand), and an insulating, pesticide-free roof garden.
   
   

3. The Visionaire

   Also in Battery Park City, the Visionaire is Manhattan's first (and, so far, only) LEED Platinum Certified residential property, a 34-story condo building whose curving glass and terra cotta façade dominates the southern end of the community. The Visionaire's luxury amenities are legion, including sky-lit swimming pool, playroom, valet parking, bicycle storage (a key feature, what with the Hudson River Park right there), and in-residence washers and dryers. But the Visionaire is also healthy for you, and the environment, with features such as a central water filtration system, efficient elevators with regenerative drives, central cooling that releases no ozone-depleting refrigerants, and construction with 50% recycled materials.  
   
   

4. Observatory Place

   East Harlem's striking, LEED Certified Observatory Place is an 11-story condo building marked both by its enviable list of amenities as well as its commitment to a more sustainable, environmentally healthy lifestyle. Observatory Place offers residents private balconies and terraces in most of its 38 units, bike storage in the lobby, and a rooftop retreat with gym and garden, all combined with such environmentally-friendly features as a green roof, the use of sustainable, health-conscious building and maintenance materials, and other energy-efficient touches.
   
   

5. The Kalahari

   Located in Southern Harlem, just a few blocks from Central Park, the boldly-designed Kalahari condo complex features a pair of 12-story structures with entrances on both 116^th and 115^th Streets. The Kalahari has been LEED Silver Certified and boasts such luxurious and environmentally-sound amenities as on-site Zip Cars, bamboo flooring, fitness (with squash court!) and meeting facilities, the usage of renewable sources (solar and wind) for 25% of its energy, green roofs, ionic and plexi air filtration, and recycled building materials. 
   
   

6. The Edge

   Towering over the Williamsburg waterfront, The Edge is one of the premiere condo developments in all of Brooklyn, featuring not only to an unparalleled package of luxury amenities, but also a commitment to environmentally responsible living, and is seeking LEED Silver Certification. Among the highlights for residents of the Edge: on-site hybrid Zip Cars; pools, multi-function team-sports facilities, steam bath and spa treatment rooms; sustainably harvested wood for floors and cabinets; screening room, playroom, game room, party room; roof terraces with heat-reflective pavers.
   
   

7. Markham Gardens

   Staten Island's greenest community has to be Markham Gardens, a lovely 12-acre site with 290 rental units (from studio to four-bedroom apartments) set among tree-lined walkways, landscaped communal areas and pretty, three-story houses with both front and back yards. Located near the Staten Island Ferry in St. George, and designed and constructed to receive LEED for Homes certification, Markham Gardens makes for an excellent, affordable alternative to the suburbs. 
   
   

8. Greenbelt

   Situated near Williamsburg's McCarren Park (as well as eveythinf else thayt makes living in Williamsburg so appealing), the Greenbelt condo building is LEED Gold Certified, offering residents both satisfying sense of environmental responsibility, as well as greatly reduced living costs by using a tremendous 40% less energy and 30% less water than comparable homes. Wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling windows; rapidly renewable bamboo flooring as well as 40% recycled building materials; and a striking, contemporary design all add up one the borough's most coveted green addresses.
   
   

9. Dinkins Gardens

   The David and Joyce Dinkins Gardens is an unassuming but intelligently designed green building, featuring 85 units of affordable housing in northern Harlem, just across the Hudson River from Yankee Stadium. Built entirely from non-toxic, recycled and locally-made materials, Dinkins Gardens also helps its residents keep their energy usage (and, therefore, their energy bills)  low with a insulating green roof, south-facing solar shades, and energy-star appliances and light fixtures.  
   
   

10. HL23

    Located in West Chelsea, nestled right up against the justifiably celebrated High Line, HL23 is not only a true stunner of a building, it's also in the process of receiving its LEED Gold Certification. With only 11 full-floor condos in the entire bending, folding building, HL23 may not be the most inclusive of NYC's new green properties, but for those fortunate few, you can bet that this unique, museum-quality, almost-avant-garde structure will make for quite a environmentally-conscious home.

Top 10 interior designer of West Coast

Barbara Barry, Los Angeles

Design tips: 

• Purge. It's always good to pare down.
• Think in color blocks.
• Lighting is everything.

Orlando Diaz-Azcuy, San Francisco

Design tips: 

• Drapery only when necessary.
• Buy the best of what you need and can afford.
• Accessories and art give character to any interior.

Illya Hendrix and Thomas Allardyce, Los Angeles

Design tips: 

• Expose yourself to new objects and ideas. For example, think about combining Anglo-Indian Colonial furniture with Chinese Ming tables.
• Remember the importance of day and evening lighting.
• Maintain authenticity with historically correct moldings, panel designs and floor plans.

Kerry Joyce, Los Angeles

Design tips: 

• Nothing says old money like an antique rug. Never use a reproduction.
• Beware of faux finishes and loud colors.
• Leave the patina of age on an antique. Never overly restore.

Neil Korpinen and Rick Erickson, Santa Barbara

Design tips: 

• Reference the architecture on any given project.
• Use custom paint colors.
• Use unexpected colors or patterns in drapery.

Sandra Lindsay, Seattle

Design tips: 

• Tailor furniture and fabrics to your lifestyle.
• Incorporate collections that reflect your personality.
• Select items that are lasting in style and color.

Melinda Sechrist, Seattle

Design Tips: 

• Use usual items in unusual ways.
• Avoid the impulse buy.
• Achieve scale in a room.

Madeline Stuart, Los Angeles

Design tips: 

• Use materials that age gracefully.
• Linen, velvet, lacquered brass and terra cotta look better over time.
• The easiest mistakes are the ones made on paper. Plan methodically.

David Reed Weatherford, Seattle 

Design tips 

• Be willing to accommodate the long-range picture.
• Design to fit the budget.
• Listen to the client for what he says but also for what he doesn't say.

Craig Wright, Los Angeles

Design tips: 

• Always have one great room that guests can see.
• Build a room around a central feature like a fireplace or an antique rug.
• Try to create rooms that have an entrance and an exit.

LEED Green Associate Exam prep.

LEED Green Associate Study Resources

Candidate Handbook: Primary References

Green Building & LEED Core Concepts Guide, 1st Edition (USGBC, 2009)
(available at www.usgbc.org/store)

Green Office Guide: Integrating LEED Into Your Leasing Process, Section 2.4
(USGBC, 2009)

LEED 2009 for New Construction and Major Renovations Rating System (USGBC, 2009)

LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance Reference Guide, Introduction
(U.S. Green Building Council, 2008)

LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance Reference Guide, Glossary
(USGBC, 2008)

LEED for Homes Rating System (USGBC, 2008)

Cost of Green Revisited, by Davis Langdon (2007)

Sustainable Building Technical Manual: Part II, by Anthony Bernheim and William
Reed (1996)

The Treatment by LEED® of the Environmental Impact of HVAC Refrigerants (LEED
Technical and Scientific Advisory Committee, 2004)

Guidance on Innovation & Design (ID) Credits (USGBC, 2004)

Guide to Purchasing Green Power (U.S. EPA, 2004)

Credit Interpretation Rulings (www.gbci.org)

LEED 2009 for Operations & Maintenance Rating System (USGBC, 2009)

LEED 2009 Minimum Program Requirements (USGBC, 2009)

LEED 2009 MPR Supplemental Guidance v1 (USGBC, 2009)

Design presentation board

Presenting Your Work Professionally: Construction

There's nothing more likely to cause a string of sleep-deprived nights for a design student than the final presentation in a design studio. Design studios are meant to simulate working on a project from beginning to end--minus construction. Likely, you've been working on the final project for the entire term. Maybe you've got a fabulous design idea and equally fabulous drawings to back it up. All of that work, unfortunately, will not be as impressive as it should be if you march into your classroom and tape the drawings to the wall using Magic Tape on the day of the final. You've put so much effort into producing beautiful drawings, they deserve to be presented with style and creativity.

Plan to devote around seven or eight hours to putting together a top-notch presentation. When you've spent upwards of 60-80 hours on the project itself, this really isn't a significant percentage of time. It can, however, be made to seem that way, especially if, like most college students (including myself), those eight hours spent on presentation take place the night before it's due. This time allows for mounting of around eight drafted drawings (floor plan, reflected ceiling plan, various sections and elevations), several rendered perspectives, and ten to fifteen product images, as well as construction of your presentation boards, including a high-quality materials board.

Most of the pointers in the following paragraphs are lessons I have learned the hard way. The rest are errors I have seen people make. What I'm giving you is a prime opportunity to learn from my mistakes.

The First Rule of Presentation: Craft Counts

No matter how inspired your ideas are and no matter how technically accurate your drawings, shoddy craftsmanship can ruin your presentation. Even if your review board or professor is satisfied with your project, crooked edges, torn or wrinkled corners and angles that are not square will be a distraction. The best way to ensure that your boards and drawings are clean and straight is to use a cork-backed metal ruler and a sharp knife when cutting edges. Never use a dull blade to cut thick surfaces, and be aware of where your hands are. Even small Exact-o knives can make deep incisions when driven with enough force. (One of my professors used to say that anyone who had blood on their presentation boards would get an 'F'!) Most importantly, NEVER use scissors to cut your materials. Believe me, I tried it in an act of desperation after all my blades had broken one night, and my project (a sourcing project on decorative paint) was marked down for it. No matter how straight you think your cuts are, professionals can always tell.

Wise Use of Adhesives

The other mistake that often detracts greatly from a project is poor use of adhesive. Unless the paper you've used for your drawings is extremely thick, they can bubble no matter what kind of glue you use or how thinly and evenly you distribute it. To be on the safe side, try to avoid the use of thick white glues like Elmer's or clear craft glues unless you're attaching pieces which are tagboard weight or thicker (ie, bristol paper is okay, heavy drawing paper is not). If you find you must use one of these glues to attach something thinner, use pindots of glue and spread them toward the edges of the paper.

Another way to safely use glue is to invest in a high-quality spray mount. I say "high-quality" because I know exactly what will happen if you buy the cheap stuff: papers will fall off, you'll try applying more adhesive, the entire project will be sticky--but not quite sticky enough to say together--and the presentation board will stain from too much glue. (That, by the way, was a lesson learned from a precedent study of a Frank Lloyd Wright house.) If you do choose to use a spray mount, be aware that there is a weight limit to what the mount can hold. Also, be sure to use in a well-ventilated area, because another lesson I learned was that too much spray mount can not only give you a light head but also an inflated opinion of your project.

As strange as it may sound, I eventually ended up relying more on double-sided tape than anything else. I found that it solved the problem of bubbling paper from glue, and if you use double-sided foam tape, you can attach even heavy pieces of stone or tile to your board without worrying about it coming apart. One warning I have about double-sided tape, however, is to make sure that you don't overlap your pieces of tape. This will create bumps on the surface of your drawings and give away your "secret." Another danger is that you must have a steady hand to use double-sided tape, because unlike glue or spray mount, once you've put the drawing down, it's difficult to reposition. If you use good craft and care with double-sided tape, however, you will achieve higher quality than with glue, and you will save yourself time.

No matter what type of adhesive you choose, remember to apply it all the way to the edges of the drawing and, if the image is large, in the center. The less edge space that is not adhered directly to the binding surface, the better.

A Visually Compelling Presentation Board

After all the time and effort you've put into your project, you want it to stand out on presentation day. There are a variety of ways to go about making your presentation boards unique and eye-catching, but the most common and successful are through the use of color, composition, and dimensionality.

Color

At some point during your education, you will take a color theory course. This course will prove invaluable to you, not only as far as good design goes, but also when it comes to your interior illustrations and your presentation boards. Another lesson I learned from the previously-mentioned Frank Lloyd Wright project is that deintensified, analogous colors do not a compelling presentation make. Choose an appropriate but eye-catching background color for your presentation boards, and use the same color and texture throughout the project. This will aide in tying your presentation together. I have a personal affinity for black, but I've seen other colors used just as effectively--taupe, navy, white, even red. After you've chosen an appropriate background color based on the colors of your finishes, you'll want to select a few accent colors. You'll use these in framing your drawings, for your labels, and in other applications. Also, be sure that the accents are appropriate to the project, but do not be shy about taking risks. The colors you choose don't necessarily have to "match;" often contrasting colors work better. The important thing to keep in mind is that the colors you use add to the expression of your design as you see it.

Composition

Sloppy composition of your boards can ruin a presentation just as easily as bad craftsmanship. Composition, or the arrangement of your drawings and images on your boards, should always be at right angles, and while many people can eyeball their measurements, it is usually best to take ruled measurements for precision's sake.

When composing your boards, try to keep in mind your basic principles of design. Unity, variety and balance are key. Try to unite your boards through color and style and then add variety by differing the size of your drawings. For example, on one board you might place one large drawing and three smaller ones. In this way, you avoid a static composition caused by same-size items arranged on a board in a regular, symmetrical grid. Usually, an asymmetrically balanced composition will be more visually interesting than a symmetrically balanced one.

Dimensionality

One element that will make a presentation board stand out like no other is 3-dimensionality. Flat boards can give the impression of a flat and uninspired design. A simple 3-D affect can be achieved by first mounting your drawings or images on a piece of foam core. (Found at art stores, this is the material that has a layer of styrofoam between two layers of thick card paper. It is sometimes called Sturdy Board, Foam Board, Fome-Cor and various other trade names.) After you've mounted the drawings, cut both the image and foam board to the desired size at the same time. Do not attempt to cut the image first, then cut a piece of foam core to match, because the size will never be exactly the same. After you've mounted your drawing on a small piece of foam core, you then apply it to the presentation board the same as you would a loose drawing.

Another way to achieve dimensionality is to use a mat cutter (used to cut picture mats, this is a small mounted blade that can be used to cut clean, mitered edges) and cut holes in your presentation board, then mount the drawings behind. You must have sufficient space on the edges of the drawings for this method to work.

More dramatic methods of achieving dimensionality will give the effect of floating planes superimposed on one another. Mount the drawing on foam core as before, then use anywhere from one to six or seven smaller pieces of board to stack the drawing away from the presentation board. In this way, some of your drawings can be three or four inches away from the board. This method works best when used with a very progressive and creative design scheme. If you choose to "float" your drawings, think about which images are farthest away from the surface of the presentation board. There should be a reason for those drawings to be given special emphasis; they are the upper stories in a project, the images that communicate the most about the project, etc.

Reproducing Your Drawings

You probably don't want to mount your original drawings on your presentation board, since the reality of slipping knives and wrong measurements becomes much more critical when you don't have another copy. I also find that design students normally use vellum or tracing paper for their drawings, and these types of paper should hardly ever be mounted on final presentation boards. It's impossible to glue them without warping the paper, and tape will show through its translucent surface. You will want to make high-quality reproductions of your drawings. For this, Kinko's is your friend. If there isn't a Kinko's in your area, find a local copy shop, preferably one that's open 24 hours. (Trust me, you'll need it. I sometimes wonder if the night staff at the local Kinko's gets lonely because I don't come in there anymore.) I only recommend Kinko's because, though fairly expensive, I always found the staff to be helpful and accommodating, especially when I came in feeling my most harried.

Another type of establishment to seek out is a print shop. This is the place you'll go when you have a drafting class to have your blueprints made. However, blueprints tend not to be a very attractive means of reproducing your drawings, unless you desire the raw aesthetic particular to the medium. However, most print shops also make brownlines, which are extremely beautiful, if very expensive. (I spent around $60 on ten 24x36 pages.) Brownlines are reproductions of your drawings made in sepia ink on heavy cream/brown speckled stock, and look fabulous if your project needs something other than the standard black-and-white copies to express your design intentions. Treat your brownlines carefully, because you won't want to trot out and have them redone if you ruin them.

Materials Boards

The highest quality materials boards consist of neatly-prepared finishes and materials which are attached to a sturdy board, such as foam core or mat board which has been backed with corrugated cardboard. One effective way of displaying textile upholstery is to cut a small piece of foam core, attach some polyester batting to one side and then 'upholster' the piece with the fabric you've chosen. In this way, you communicate how your choice would actually look in an interior application. This, of course, only works if you are allowed to cut your sample, and it is large enough to wrap around the corners.

Again, I emphasize that good craftsmanship is essential. Paint chips should always be cut just as you would a drawing or image, and carpet and flooring samples should be clean and as rectilinear as you can find. Many students attach stone samples to their boards, and ideally these should have clean edges as well. If they do not, it is important to measure the border between adjacent samples from the point on the sample that protrudes the most.

Usually, one materials board is sufficient for a project. More finish samples will only cloud your ideas. Sometimes, however, a series of smaller materials boards representing different rooms or schemes might be preferable. Remember; use your judgment. The materials are only one part of the design process and should not dominate the project presentation.

Labeling your Presentation Boards

After all of this effort and care, there is still one pitfall which can easily ensnare you. Most likely, you'll be required to label all of your drawings, images, materials and the like. If this last detail is overlooked or done poorly, the quality of your boards suffers.

There are three main ways to label your boards. The first, which works best if your background color is light, is to go to a copy shop and have your labels printed on clear vinyl with a sticker back. Carefully and neatly cut the labels from the sheet and apply directly to the board. (Use your blade to cut this too, because even a clear label that is sloppily cut will be obvious.) The second way is to print the labels on a computer, then mount each label on foam core, as you would a drawing. This preserves the dimensionality of your boards and can make them easier to read. The third method of labeling is to do so by hand. Now, in the very first design studio I had, the professor warned us neverto label our boards by hand. In most cases, this is a wise suggestion. However, there were a few times when I decided that hand-labeling would be more appropriate, and found success. If you choose to label by hand, work slowly, use a straight edge, and use your architectural lettering. If you haven't had drafting yet, or your lettering skills are shaky, I'd recommend that you use a different method of labeling.

A Few Helpful Products--

Foam Core: I mentioned its use earlier as a means to add a 3-D affect to your boards, but foam core has many other applications. It can be used for architectural models, as a pincushion or an impromtu cutting board, and it makes for a wacky voodoo-type surface when the project gets too frustrating. (Use a scrap piece for this--the stuff isn't cheap.) I also used foam core for the presentation board itself, though I sometimes mounted mat board on top of it. The foam core, I found, nicely supported the weight of various materials as well as mounted drawings. It also stood up better when transported from home to classroom.

Poster Tape: This is my favorite kind of double-stick tape. It's made by 3M under the Scotch brand, and has more weight than regular double-stick tape, but isn't as thick or expensive as the foam tape. Plus, if you mount something incorrectly, you can usually pull this tape up without damaging anything as long as you haven't pressed too hard.

Krazy Glue or something similar: This is your emergency fix-all. You will have emergencies at the eleventh hour, and Krazy Glue is sometimes the only adhesive that will work in a pinch for a quick fix. It will fix almost anything temporarily and tends not to warp paper so badly, since you need very little of it. In addition, Krazy Glue is the only glue I've found that really works on textile samples.

Prismacolor Watercolor Pens: These are double-ended pens, one with a broad tip and one with a narrow tip. They flow nicely and blend well, plus they have a colorless pen you can use for erasing. Heaven sent. I used the black color religiously for drawings and labels.

Caffeine: Enough said.

There's one last detail that I should add. Some rules are made to be broken. There are times when the most powerful presentations are the result of successful rule-breaking. However, be aware that when you take risks, your project has the potential to be either a startling success or a huge fiasco. Play it safe unless you are fully committed to your idea. That way, whether your project sinks or swims, you will walk away knowing that you were true to your vision, and you have learned a valuable lesson. That is, after all, the purpose of receiving an education.

Once the presentation boards are constructed, you still have to think about preparing a concise but thorough speech.