Introducing ourselves to the architects

No-one actually tells you how you go about introducing yourself to your potential new architect - it's not a meeting that follows the norms of social interaction.
How do you approach someone who you will be working with intensely for a number of years, who will guide you through anything from light fittings to finances, and who will get to know you and your relationships better than many psychiatrists?
Architect friends of ours advised that it was usual for clients to speak with several architects before choosing one, and that architects expected clients to do so.
Still, it all felt a little weird.
Deciding that honesty was our best policy, we sent an email to our shortlist of firms being upfront about our intentions.
The basic email read:

We are wishing to build a new home in about 2 years and are in the process of choosing an architect. Through looking at past projects, we have ‘short-listed’ your firm and two others.

Our main priorities are:

1.       10 Star Sustainability Rating – 5 Star is so 20^th Century; our current home is solar-powered, supplied only with rainwater, with onsite biocycle waste-treatment, but has lousy passive design

2.       Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – omit wasted space (no ‘media rooms’ etc); incorporate our existing furniture; use timber from any cleared trees on the building site; get materials from demolition yards

3.       Be sympathetic to the landscape / environment – the property is 57 acres in the Huon Valley ranges with a waterfall, several 100 metres of sandstone caves and abundant wildlife

4.       No ‘standard family home’ – we require only a master bedroom & 1 guestroom, a combined living / eating / cooking area, AND purpose-built His&Hers studios (Andy is a musician and Vicki is a sculptor/painter)

5.       Low maintenance – we don’t want to be climbing ladders to patch the walls when we are in our 70s

6.       Must be indoor-cat friendly!

Finally, so you have some idea what you might be dealing with, two one-page personal profiles are attached – a simple “19^th-century-power-station-fused-with-Medieval-church-some-commercial-glass-and-a-bit-of-Gaudi-thrown-in” should do it!

If you are available (and interested) we would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you at your offices in late-February-ish (when we are planning a return trip to Tasmania).

We look forward to hearing from you.

Now we just needed to wait and see who would get back to us, who would 'get' us, and if anyone ran screaming into the hills...