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Blue Ridge Home

It’s not every day that we receive an inquiry for a custom home in North Carolina.

After starting a conversation with the inquiring couple, we learned their story is even more intriguing. The husband and wife duo currently live in Ohio and are planning for their retirement home in North Carolina. Talk about a geographic exercise!

We were introduced to Blue Ridge Energy Systems (BRES), the contractor on the project. BRES has a 40+ year track record of building high energy performance homes, including Net Zero homes. After continuing the conversation, we learned the project would be a great fit for all of us. Our values aligned and we eagerly booked our first site visit to Asheville to meet BRES and the clients face to face.

It was 70 degrees and sunny when we landed in Asheville, very surprising for Mid-February. We rented a car and trekked into the misty mountains for our first meeting. The leafy green trees welcomed us as we arrived at the site nestled into the Blue Ridge Mountains.

We are really excited to be working in a new environment and to be learning about a different climate.

It’s rewarding to be part of such a dynamic project team, all working towards the same goal.

It is our great pleasure to announce the winner of the 2019 art installation 🎉🎉🎉

JWA Welcomes Steven Austin as Project Architect

Architecture has been a part of his life since Steven was young.  Influenced by his grandfather who learned architecture and the building arts through apprenticeship and "learning through doing” and by his father and uncle's home building businesses, he spent his childhood learning how structures come together. This legacy nurtured his interest in creating spaces and learning how design can enhance and influence the social and natural environment. With a long family history in the New Orleans area, he attended Tulane University School of Architecture. The city itself was a classroom that taught an architectural history of thoughtful and meticulously detailed spaces. While the iconic architecture of New Orleans shapes and influences his designs, he sees every design as an opportunity to improve and complement a project's surrounding environment. After graduating with a Masters of Architecture, he moved to Houston and then Seattle.  In both cities, he worked for several diverse design companies. While his design experience includes various project types, he specializes in multifamily projects and custom high-end residential homes. His experience includes coordinating project teams, working with homeowners, developers, engineering disciplines, and general contractors. He coordinates construction administration for projects and is involved in bidding, planning and permitting processes. He has a strong technical knowledge and experience with a variety of codes and construction types. He works on Type I, II, III and IV construction with extensive experience in wood framed construction.

At JWA, Steven hones in on his skills working as a Project Architect in the Community Studio. He designs apartment buildings and larger scale residential projects.

To help you get to know him better, we picked a few questions from James Lipton’s Inside the Actor’s Studio. Enjoy!

 Q: What is your favorite word?

SA: Shenanigans! It’s a fun word.

 Q: What is your least favorite word?

SA: Can’t.

 Q: What turns you on creatively, spiritually, or emotionally?

SA: Being artistic and creative. Basically, architecture!  

 Q: What turns you off?

SA: Negative criticism.

 Q: What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

SA: Going into the Airforce to be a pilot.

 Q: What profession would you not like to do?

SA: Doctor. I can’t handle anything medical.

 Q: So here’s a question I’m personally interested in, what is one thing you must keep at your desk at all times?

SA: A picture of my son.

Happy Lunar New Year!

Lunar New Year is the first day on the Lunar Calendar year, which is followed by the monthly cycles of the moon’s phases. On this day, the moon’s phase is a new moon, that can appear any time between the 21st of January and the 21st of February. This explains why this day is specifically called Lunar New Year, as well as why the day is different every year. Additionally, every year is labeled as a specific animal from the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, with this year being the “Year of the Pig.” People born in the year of the pig are said to have extra luck, but also be subject to certain superstitions that they should try to avoid or follow.

In the East Asian Countries where it is most commonly celebrated, there are many variations to this holiday, with names specific to the respective countries and cultures, each with their own traditions. For example, in South Korea, it’s “Seol” and and in Vietnam, it’s “Tết”.

Dan, one of our employees at JW Architects, shares how he and his family celebrate the day:

“Lunar New Year, or Tết as my family and I celebrate it, is always a busy time, where we would do various tasks to get ready for the new year. First, we tidy up the house the best we can to create a "fresh” atmosphere. Then my mom creates various dishes, such as rice cakes, sticky rice, fried noodles, and more, to prepare as offerings for our ancestors (and for us to eat too)! I help out with what I can, although I’m not the best cook (haha). We set up small sections of dishes around the kitchen and dining room to give blessings to our ancestors, and wish for a good year to come. There are also little red envelopes we give out to our extended family as a sign of luck and blessings for the new year, called Li Xi in Vietnamese. They usually contain money, candy, or other small tokens that are considered to be good luck, including the respective zodiac animal in a small form such as a keychain. During this time, there’s a lot of positivity and joy that goes around."

No matter what community, background, or culture someone may come from, anyone can appreciate and be involved in the celebration and festivities of the Lunar New Year. Join us in our celebration at JW Architects!

Happy Lunar New Year!

JWA Welcomes Jaidee Weber as Principal

Jaidee Weber has been instrumental in the growth and development of JWA from the beginning in 2009.  She has over twenty-five years of experience working with and leading innovative, creative and collaborative teams and has received multiple awards for her work in the arts and design. 

After a successful 15-year career in the performing arts, Jaidee returned to higher education and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a focus in industrial and interior design at The Art Institute of Seattle.  During her studies, she worked as a model builder and design assistant at Pb Elemental concurrently with Julian.

Upon graduation, she was recruited to work in lighting design and had the privilege of working on many iconic buildings in Seattle.  Using her skills as a collaborator and connector, she led a lighting studio in developing the standards and design of uniquely illuminated spaces for millions of square feet of Amazon headquarters, including The Spheres.

At JWA, Jaidee combines her passion for studying the human experience and how we interact with the built environment.  She leads the integration of interior design services with architecture, oversees internal design and development projects, manages construction administration services, and mentors professional growth among the staff while maintaining a vibrant office culture.  If you think her hands are full you should see her heart!

To help you get to know her better, we picked a few pivot questions from James Lipton’s Inside the Actor’s Studio. Enjoy!

Q: What is your favorite word?

JFW: Extravaganza

Q: What is your least favorite word?

JFW: Can’t

Q: What turns you on creatively, spiritually, or emotionally?

JFW: Positivity  

Q: What turns you off?

JFW: Negativity

Q: What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

JFW: Too many to decide. Astronaut-rockstar-travel blogger! I’ve always called myself a “multi-potential”.

Q: What profession would you not like to do?

JFW: Someone who does laundry. It’s my least favorite chore.

Q: So here’s a question I’m personally interested in, what is one thing you must keep at your desk at all times?

JFW: A picture of my kids

King Street Office Awarded AIA Honorable Mention

On November 13th, 2017, the Seattle AIA chapter hosted the 67th annual Honor Awards for Washington Architecture to celebrate excellence in design. The King Street office was awarded an Honorable Mention.

The jury commented on how the office building reflects the firm’s energy, passion, and aspirations for the future.

JWA 5th Annual Halloween

It may seem unexpected, but Halloween is serious business at our firm. We don’t take it lightly. Employees plan costumes for weeks, sometimes even months in advance. We have Halloween trivia, team games- such a building a stable scarecrow with the most random but awesome items, and there is a cash prize for best costume. People have become quite clever with their outfits over the years. The costumes range from architectural terms, such as this year’s look of the “party wall”, to personal role models, like the iconic Jimmy Buffett. We look forward to this day every year. 

We are excited to announce that Julian Weber, our Founding Principal, will be speaking on a discussion panel at the upcoming Washington Energy Future Conference alongside Living Future Institute, Architecture 2030, and Seattle City Light.

Celebration of Zero

On September 22nd, 2017, we celebrated the King Street office building being certified Net Zero Energy. The JW Architects team felt so thankful and humbled by the wonderful feedback and support we received about our journey to zero. We had a great event filled with catered food, a DJ, a champage toast, and presentations by Julian Weber, our Founding Principal, and Jack Newman, Manger for Zero Energy at International Living Future Institute. Thank you to everyone who attended.

Photography by:  Elizabeth Zuluaga

JW Architects is officially Net Zero Energy Certified by International Living Future Institute! 

Upholding Charm

Seizing the spirit of a neighborhood is a necessity when designing a home.

Ashworth Homes is a Seattle based development company that specializes in building contemporary, yet classic homes. Their team brought JW Architects a site located within the Columbia City neighborhood. JW Architects made an instant connection to the site, as it was a short walk from the original office on Hudson Street.

JW Architects made it a design mission to fit in. By matching the neighborhood rooflines with a series of gable forms, the duo is dynamic, yet refined. Their height and scale matches the existing homes as a friendly neighbor. The result, a contemporary twist on a classic form, and two homes that maintain the collective memory of their place.

And the neighborhood agrees. One resident wrote, “I am a Columbia City resident, who values history, retaining neighborhood character, preserving older homes.  Recently so many of us are experiencing tear-down fatigue...with cold, larger than life boxes replacing warm, community-neighbor-friendly homes.  I drove by one of your projects on South Hudson and wanted to thank you for designing a beautiful development that fits into the character of the neighborhood, has a roof line, and color.... we need more designs like this....then our mourning for our character in our neighborhoods would be over!  Thank you for your creativity.” 

Sense of place is not static. The possibilities that arise from examining the existing character of a neighborhood is not only valuable at a community level, but an urban one.

Built by: Ashworth Homes

1257 S King Street has now achieved Net Zero Energy!

Net Zero Energy Certification

Preserving Character and Building Community with Urban Infill

Successful infill projects bring new residents and businesses to existing neighborhoods while respecting their character.  

Isola Homes is a local urban developer that acquired land on 20th Avenue near the intersection of Madison Street and 23rd Avenue.  This is a dynamic area with evolving commercial uses and many new residents. This site presented challenges due to its multiple zones.  JW Architects was chosen for this project because of our expertise in connecting zones, and experience with successfully guiding projects through Seattle’s Design Review process.

We looked closely at the neighborhood and its surroundings.  Our first design move was to create a 2 story live-work space clad with brick that is a clean and modern version of the adjacent 1920s-era brick building.  We chose complementary residential materials to ease the transition to residential zoning.