The practice of architecture evolves continuously as it seeks to push the confines of the aesthetics of a building, a room or even a community. With every new year, new inspirations and trends grace the world of architecture as ambitious architects draw from technological and scientific advancements to come up with innovative building designs. This article explores the aspects that define the architectural trends in the Midlands.

"The first writing of the human being was drawing, not writing." - Marjane Satrapi, French & Iranian Artist & Writer

Every new build, including new houses, conservatory, loft or barn conversions, must begin life with good design. The design architect needs to formulate ideas for the new space, together with the homeowner. It is only through collaboration that these ideas can take shape and create a practical, functional and aesthetically pleasing space. Below we share five core principles of good architectural design.

Architects are professionals, trained and licensed to plan and design buildings, both residential and commercial. When choosing an architect and depending on your needs, you should look at companies with the expertise you require, but you should also ask around for references.

When it comes to collaborating with an architect in the design of your new home, there are certain areas that you should be familiar with. This includes knowing how he or she works, what services they offer and whether or not they have completed any similar projects - either recently or in the not too distance past.

As a business owner it’s not every day you go about hiring an architect for your premises. And yet it’s so crucial that you know what you’re doing. You’re going to be spending a lot of time in this physical structure, after all, so it’s important you get something you like.

When it comes to finding an architectural designer to work with on your project – whether residential or commercial – it always helps to have an architect you communicate well with. Another benefit, some would say, is that the architect is local to the area in which your project will be based – in our case Derby and the surrounding towns and villages. Certainly, although this isn’t critical, it does have its benefits.

The world will never be short of unique home designs we’re sure. And just to prove it we have collected seven from around the world – America, Australia, Japan and Argentina - for your particular perusal. We’re sure these fantastic pieces of liveable concrete architecture will ‘wow’ you just as much they did us:

As you might imagine, the actual process an architectural designer goes through when designing a house is fairly technical, but each project usually follows a series of straightforward stages. Here is a summary of what is involved.

If you are self-building you are under no legal obligation to work with an architectural designer at all – in which case each of these stages would fall under your direct remit. Not surprisingly, most self-build homeowners choose to work with an architectural designer – they offer a lot of valuable support at each phase. At BDS Architecture we also offer a construction and project management service through our sister business, so we are well placed to take even more weight off your shoulders.

If you’re planning on building a luxury bespoke home then chances are it’s going to be somewhere with pretty spectacular scenery – rather than in the midst of a housing estate in town. This means your dream home will probably be somewhere in the countryside – a rural area or perhaps even in a location which is considered an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

And here lies your first challenge – gaining planning permission to build in a beautiful, rural location. Often these sites are in conservation areas and it’s here that having an expert architect on board (especially a local one) comes into its own.