Architectural
and Design Services Combined
Looking
after a client’s best interests is one reason K2 Design maintains
an enviable position in Southwest Florida’s building, architectural
and design community. Jenny Carter, owner of this successful conglomerate
of energies, wears an assortment of hats as she multitasks and attends
to the day-to-day business that has brought K2 Design to its enviable
position.
“Our area of expertise
includes ideas and presentation of conceptual design, working drawings,
and obtaining and installation of everything required to make a design
become a reality,” Carter explained.
K2 is licensed by the State
of Florida to practice architecture and interior design. On most projects,
K2 (named after daughters Kacee and Kellye and Jenny’s skis, which
were made by K2) is the only provider of architectural and design services.
“If clients select an architect prior to teaming up with K2,
we will fill the role of interior designer,” said Carter.
When clients are not living
in the area, K2 becomes their advocate. Carter states, “We are knowledgeable
in all aspects of construction and can accept and review all contracts
and submittals, and provide advice to our clients on how the prospect
has conformed to the design. We review specifications that are provided
for bidding the job. Once contracts have been let, we review and provide
comment on payment requests and change orders. Then we review this information
with our clients.
“For example we get
the contractor to be reasonable regarding progress payments and get the
client to understand that things like hurricanes, worker’s illnesses
and hours workers can work really do take away work days.”
When Carter is tackling
a job that combines architecture, handling contracting details and interior
design, she begins by studying the project to collect the facts and then
moves along. And she has to know what the client’s mandate is before
starting. “Many clients are building second, third or fourth homes
and do not bring many items with them. Occasionally, there are some favorite
things they want to bring, and that’s fine.”
Carter recalls a client,
a devoted “trekkie” (remember Star Trek?), who had a chair
that replicated Captain Kirk’s body. Carter swayed the client out
of using it as a chair, placed it between two beds in a guest bedroom
and stacked books on Kirk’s lap. She turned it into a night table
for his grandchildren!
Things have changed in
the past few years as home automation and the high-speed advance in the
technology of home electronics have led to a more forward style of design.
“Push a button and you can change the glass in your windows from
clear to opaque. Things have become sleeker.The electronic era is taking
us into the future...we’re moving forward at a fast pace,”
Carter said.
Carter also stresses that
environmentally sound construction is no longer a catch phrase. “It’s
serious business.The Florida Building Code has been revised to make buildings
everywhere in Florida much safer.” This is changing the way buildings
look; for example, windows
must now be impact rated. The Code puts dramatic limitations on exterior
designs.
Regarding interiors, K2
Design no longer recommends wood floors in beachfront condominiums. Stone
or tile can be cleaned up after a storm, but wood floors must be replaced.
Neutral colors, beige,
white, black and gray, are still popular and are often used in furniture
textiles, or they hide in the foreground while blasts of color, such as
persimmon or deep aqua are used in the background. “Solid colors
show form. Patterns are distracting,” said Carter.
K2 has been in business
for 12 years and, for good reason, has become a Southwest Florida success
story in every way.
K2
DESIGN
3940 Radio Road, Suite 102, Naples, FL 34104
25081 Bernwood Drive, Bonita Springs, FL 34135
239 261-2100
www.K2design.net
Written by Sue Lynn
