Some people talk about the devil being in the details, meaning although something may look simple, the deeper you get into the details the more complicated the undertaking becomes. We prefer to talk about details like puzzle pieces that need to be fit together to form a picture. And we love puzzles. As SweisKloss is the puzzle creator and puzzle builder, we both imagine and implement these details.
One way to tell that the details are just right is when they are unnoticeable in the finished product. The finished product should look natural, like it has always been that way. We love transitions between materials in the same space; these transitions require a lot of attention. A good example is where wood flooring, tile flooring, wall tile, baseboard, drywall and a pocket door all come together in one corner doorway from a hallway to a bathroom. In this example, the floor must be level despite the thicknesses of the different materials, the different subfloors, and the different mortars. Tile is not delivered to the jobsite already in the perfect layout and alignment, that is our job. Tile must be measured and cut to fit in the area without having slivers of cut tile filling in the gaps. Like a puzzle, the pieces shouldn’t be so small that they don’t look like pieces anymore.
When cutting tile is necessary, the cut tile should be installed so that the manufactured finished edge is exposed and not the cut edge. This detail may sound logical and somewhat obvious, but like most things, if we don’t pay attention to these kinds of details, the illogical could happen!
It is at these intersections of material that we get to be most creative such as using recessed baseboard that allows the wall tile or drywall to terminate elegantly, or placing tile on one side and drywall on the other side of a glass window. Making these materials meet so that raw edges don’t show through the glass is a detail that takes thought and creativity.
Floor to ceiling doors and glass, mitered tile edges, cabinets that go up to the ceiling and don’t stop short creating an out of reach shelf to collect dust, window headers that line up with door headers down a corridor, recessed pockets for window coverings, waterfall edges on counters – I could go on and on! - are all details that we love.
Just like when a puzzle comes together and all one sees is the pretty picture. The eye does not get hung up on one puzzle piece intersection or snagged by a piece that doesn’t fit. When all the details come together in a design it is the beauty of the whole space that the viewer receives.
