News

Beyond the Drawings

Making Connections on the Course

Building Community, One Home at a Time

At Home in the Sheffield Neighborhood

Beyond Golf with Sports Simulators

Thrilled to Share Our Role in New View

PAWS Chicago Golf Open 2025

What is the Property Tax Assessment Freeze and How Can it Benefit Historic Homeowners?

Executive Spotlight: Edward Twohey

Columbus, Indiana Trip

Building at the water's edge

Celebrating 30 Years of Inspired Spaces

Don’t Demolish that house. Dismantle it.

Tudor Kitchen Renovation

Home in Berlin, Germany Comes to Fruition.

Employee Spotlight - Jennifer Hense, AIA

Renovate or Detonate

New Homes on the Boards in 2021

Modern Luxury Interiors North Shore

Meet Nick Moorhouse

Luxury remodel of Lake Geneva home

bba Architects Habitat Build Day

Modern River Cottage

Golf Course Home Update

Aspire Design and Home Magazine

De-code Electronics In Your Home

Lincoln Park Transformation

North Center Craftsman

Meet Erin Morgani

2024 Summer Project Tours

Habitat for Humanity Build Day 2022

Bricks, Inc Tour + Demo

Building Code Undergoing a Major Change

Beer Tasting + Design Presentation

Meet Jack Callahan

Collaborating on Luxury Kitchen Trends

Mentoring Millwork Design

Employee Spotlight - Erica Blawat, AIA

The Knowledge Behind Every Recommendation

Raising the Roof

Finding Famous Architecture in a Cemetery

Elmhurst Historic Preservation Commission

North Side River Home Taking Shape

Historic Shaw Remodel

Deconstruct & Re-Use

Building a Traditional Jewel Box

Habitat Build Day 2024

Allison Henry Interiors Alliance

Classicist, No. 16.

Pool House

High Gables

Should You Hire an Interior Designer?

Meet Monica Musialowski

Can I Lower My Floor to Improve My Basement?

Tribute to Broad Shoulders 2022

Meet Maggie Willse

Creating Outdoor Spaces

BBA Architects Continue to Educate

Urban Deep Dig #1

1880’s Historic Queen Anne

An Excellent Italian Adventure

BBA News Blog

(See full archive

September 2026

August 2026

July 2026

June 2026

May 2026

Employee Spotlight - Erica Blawat, AIA

bba ARCHITECTS on Sep 06, 2019

Without exception, Erica Blawat understands all the classical principles of architecture, but she’s just as well versed in how architecture can intersect with teaching, creating joy for those who step back to appreciate the relationship between the two.  Known around the BBA offices for her infectious laugh, Erica is often seeking ways to bring her positive outlook while engaging fellow employees as well as clients.  She smiles to mention “When my employers hear laughter in the workplace, they assume you’re not actually working, but I’ve proven them wrong!”

For Erica, it was an early fascination with dollhouses that helped steer her into the roles she enjoys today.  “My grandparents gave me my first dollhouse when I was very young and I quickly became obsessed with miniatures.  At one point, I had a small town in my bedroom, with four or five individual dollhouses, and a bookcase that I had converted into a mixed-use high-rise with restaurants and shops on the bottom shelves and offices and apartments above.”

Excelling in both math and fine arts, Erica initially enrolled as an engineering undergraduate student at University of Washington in St. Louis, but quickly realized she was drawn to design and switched to architecture. “I dual-majored in architecture and psychology, since I was equally interested in the design process and the experience of spaces created.”

After graduating summa cum laude, Erica wasn’t sure what type of architecture she might want to pursue, so she explored a variety of project types across the country, including residential, institutional, and commercial ventures – “everything from stadiums to coffee shops.”   

A few years later, while earning her Master of Architecture at the University of Washington, she immersed herself in hands-on construction, historic preservation, and continuing her study of the sensation and perception of spaces – how to use windows, interior views, and shifts in floor or ceiling plane to make a small space feel bigger, for example.   She acknowledges being influenced by the works of Frank Lloyd Wright, which utilize many of these design principles.

In addition to serving as a senior associate here at BBA Architects, Erica values time spent exploring the insights and discoveries that architecture can contribute to the classroom and learning at home.  She even has a website devoted to it, entitled “Design In Play” (designinplay.com), developed while serving as a part-time teacher at her young children’s Montessori school.  In it, she outlines activities that explore STEAM-based learning (science, technology, engineering, art and math) through various architectural topics.  She touts her educational offering as a place to create a “family home designed for discovery, learning and creative play,” adding that the activities are intended for both home and classroom as a way to “promote discovery through design” and “find wisdom through wonder.”

Erica was recently invited to serve on the Elmhurst Historic Preservation Commission, where she will be able to share her expertise in maintaining the unique character of her community, while addressing the needs of modern society.

With husband Nick, an executive at US Foods, Erica is busy in her free time attending to a remodel of the family’s 1920s bungalow, while the couple is simultaneously building a new custom home for themselves, their two children, Addison (12) and Jack (9), and their two pet guinea pigs.

Previous Post Next Post