Discover · One One Ten

The HOMEwork Assignment

A Discovery Questionnaire

"Design is what links creativity and innovation. It shapes ideas to become practical and attractive propositions for users. Design may be described as creativity deployed to a specific end."
— Sir George Cox

A successful project begins long before design drawings take shape. The most valuable early work involves clarifying your motivations, priorities, and aspirations. Thoughtful pre-design exploration ensures that every decision that follows is grounded in a clear understanding of what matters most to you. This process helps tailor a design that responds directly to your needs, leverages the strengths of your site, and reflects the way you live, work, and rest.

Work through the following questions on your own, setting aside input from other decision partners or stakeholders for now. Your answers will shape your project's story and guide the building program and design criteria as the work unfolds.

1. Goals & Priorities

In descending order of importance, list your project goals that the design of your home should accomplish.

What is motivating you to undertake this project now?

How long do you envision living in this home, and how does that shape your priorities?

What is most important to you in the process of creating your home? What outcomes will signal that the project has been a clear success?

2. Site & Setting

What qualities of your site or existing home are most meaningful to you?

Which views should be emphasized, framed, or protected?

How should natural light enter and move through your home throughout the day and across seasons?

Are there environmental factors (wind, sun, privacy, noise) that should influence design decisions?

3. Lifestyle & Daily Experience

What activities or rituals define your daily life at home — morning routines, cooking habits, work patterns, relaxation?

Are any major lifestyle changes anticipated in the near future?

Describe your ideal day and the three to six most meaningful days of your year. How should your home support that experience?

How could your home enhance, host, or sponsor these moments and activities?

4. Identity & Personal Expression

What aspects of your personality should your home express?

What materials, textures, or sensory qualities feel essential to create a certain emotive feeling?

Are there emotional qualities — calm, warmth, openness, intimacy — you want your home to evoke? How do you ultimately want to feel in your forever home?

How do you want your home to reflect who you are as a person, couple, or family?

5. Rooms & Spatial Relationships

Consider how public and private areas should be organized — how should the integration or segregation of specific areas be developed?

Imagine your home as a 'society of rooms.' Describe the qualities of each space: size, relationships to other rooms, desired atmosphere, materials, or defining features.

Are there specific adjacencies that matter most to you — e.g., kitchen near outdoor dining, office away from bedrooms?

6. Design Qualities

Light is the creator of architecture. How should light be captured in the various spaces within your home? Consider the qualities of daylight at different times of day and across seasons.

7. Budget & Practical Considerations

What is your anticipated construction budget?

What is your desired project timeline?

Are there financial boundaries or expectations that should guide realistic decision-making around quality and costs?

Are there future phases or long-term plans we should consider now?

Your responses will form the foundation of your project narrative within the Discovery document and inform the design concepts explored during the subsequent Design phase.