How to Avoid Change Orders

Surprises are great – most of the time. We all love those unexpected moments for birthdays, anniversaries, and Valentine’s Day.

But when it comes to building or remodeling your home? The last thing you want during a custom home project is a long list of surprise charges after you’ve been given a price – also known as CHANGE ORDERS.

Unfortunately, many dishonest contractors have given Change Orders a bad rep because their modus operandi is to give their clients a low bid in order to be competitive, and then once they have the job, they “walk it up” with Change Orders. We’ve met many homeowners who were given a price for a remodel but when it was all said and done, they paid more than 75% of the original bid because of Change Orders for things the contractor had “forgotten” to include in his bid.

So how do you avoid these horror stories? There are two parts to this. Read on to find out how to avoid Change Orders on your custom home project.Continue reading

The Continual Love Affair With Gray: Design Trends 2017

Grays in Bathroom

Gray has taken the limelight for far longer than people think.  True, the book Fifty Shades of Gray gave it a Hollywood boost – but it earned its fame fair and square through its own innate beauty.  Hence, it has become known as the “color of the decade.”  In 2017 design trends, gray rises to new heights as many paint companies increase their range of gray shades, and homeowners find new ways to incorporate it into their homes.  Read on to find out about the new era of grays, and how you can make it work with any motif in your custom home.   

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Open up a Smaller Space with Home Remodel & Design

Home Remodel & DesignThe kids are growing and things are feeling somewhat cramped on the home front. Your house isn’t particularly large to start with, and now you want to create more usable room within the space that you do have. If this seems like an impossible challenge, don’t despair.

A great home remodel doesn’t have to be as major as you might think. You’d be amazed at what the design team of a creative construction company can do when faced with a seemingly impossible idea. The boundaries of reality may be wider than you imagine.

Start with the framework of the available space and work from there. Once a smaller space has been opened up physically, there are also interior design tactics you can follow with to maximize the illusion of even more space. Stretch the limits. Read on to find out how.

Create Extra Space … Like Magic

A good home remodel construction company will have experienced architectural design and renovation staff plus interior design consultants on their team, all with good ideas to take your space from tiny to terrific. Here are some solid suggestions:Continue reading

How to Really Get a Quality Bathroom Design and Remodel


It’s a bit strange that a bathroom can become such center piece in a home. It’s supposed to be the most private of rooms and yet when it comes to showing off a house for sale it is one of the spaces people are most interested in seeing.

Far more design hours go into making the bathroom look good than the bedroom, or even the living room!

So let’s face it, for whatever reason when you remodel your home you are going to want a bathroom that looks great and, more important, functions well.Continue reading

3 Good Reasons to Remodel Your Kitchen

ktichen remodelThinking about taking the plunge? The kitchen with adjoining rooms is often where most of the family time is spent. To help you move from thinking to doing we offer these reasons on why remodel a kitchen.

1.  You Spend a Lot of Time in the Kitchen!

Just think about your average day.  How much time do you spend in the kitchen?  You wake up and go to the Kitchen for coffee and breakfast.  You might make aContinue reading

Home Design Everything Old is New Again

It seems these days that a lot of the “latest things” are just rediscovering old traditions: buying from local farms, using natural clothing, eating organic, even hanging your clothes to dry!

Well the same can be said of the resurgence of Venetian plaster. Venetian plaster for accent or styleThe old world grace and style of Venetian plaster are always in fashion.  And with the added durability and “Green Living” benefits, it will be a welcome addition to your new home design.

What is Venetian Plaster?

Well one thing Venetian Plaster is NOT is a “faux finish.”  The word “faux” means “false” and Venetian plaster is definitely Continue reading

Concrete Countertop Revolution

If you want to truly express your own personality, look into concrete countertops for your bathroom or kitchen; outdoors; anywhere you need a space to set things on.  In this world of unique interior design, you can set your home or office apart with custom made concrete countertop.

In store Concrete Countertop
Custom Concrete CounterTop

 Concrete Countertop Color

Pick up your interior design colors with concrete, or make your home, office or retail store look uber-modern with an industrial gray tone.  You can mix colors or embed items in the concrete for a truly one-of-a-kind look that is exclusively yours. Designing your own embedded concrete countertop can give you an incomparableContinue reading

Hiring the Right Building Contractor

Building ContractorWhen people are looking for a building contractor, no matter how many marketing campaigns a construction company does, most people will go straight to their friends for a recommendation. This is understandable. Marketing is just that, marketing. You can’t necessarily trust what a company says in its Yellow Pages ad or on its Website. Anyone can say anything in a marketing campaign. So you go to a friend you can trust and ask them for their experiences and if they have any recommendations for who to use or who to avoid.

But while the recommendation of a friend is valuable it may not tell the whole story. A contractor may be a very skilled tradesperson and a friendly and agreeable guy (or gal) and your friend may have had a good experience with them. But they may just be one or two people literally working out of the back of a pickup truck.Continue reading

Avoiding the Hassle in your Home Remodel

Home Remodel ContractorAre you considering a home remodel? Everyone wants to live in a home they are proud of. It’s a great moment when you are finally in the position to turn your house into that dream home you’ve always wanted. It’s a chance to be creative and own something you will truly be proud of. You get to look through magazines and home design shows and you start to get an idea of exactly how you want everything to look.

But then the dream collides with the ugly reality of having to hire a Building Contractor. This is the point where you have to communicate your dream to another person and you have to trust them to make it happen. And hopefully, without any nasty hassles along the way.Continue reading