Many designers’ clients, my own included, often seem to have a lingering suspicion that they aren’t being a good client. Perhaps they feel that they’re being overly indecisive, and need some handholding to reassure them that they are “normal.” Although almost every designer has “client from hell” stories, in truth, the vast majority of clients are just fine. However, I thought it might be useful to describe some of the traits that make a GREAT client. This should be important to you, because great clients usually end up with great projects. And bad clients can sabotage a really outstanding design for themselves faster than a two-year old left alone with crayons and a clean wall. Continue reading “What Makes a GREAT Client”
Managing Your Husband
After 25 years of watching the dynamics of husbands and wives during the remodeling process, there are a few tips that I can offer to wives who think their husbands aren’t going to be very involved. Continue reading “Managing Your Husband”
The Magic of Full Spectrum Paint
I have lately become quite enamored of a relatively new development in paints: Full Spectrum paints. Unlike standard paint colors, which are usually a blend of two or three hues, plus some black, full spectrum colors are blended from the 7 colors of the natural light spectrum, and use no black at all. Continue reading “The Magic of Full Spectrum Paint”
Have some FUN with your Remodeling!
One of my New Year’s resolutions is to push for a little more fun and whimsy with my remodeling projects. It’s sometimes a bit of a challenge to get clients to go along, though. Many are convinced that they will get eventually get tired of anything out of the ordinary and end up going with “safe” decisions that they think will stand the test of time — mostly because these decisions then will be invisible forever. Continue reading “Have some FUN with your Remodeling!”
Product or Service? (You need to know!)
Determining whether your contractor is a “product” contractor or a “service” contractor is one of the most (perhaps THE most) critical component of your remodeling or building project. If you don’t pay attention to this at the start, it will cause needless tension, disappointment, and you may never realize why it’s occurring. Continue reading “Product or Service? (You need to know!)”
So Many Choices…
One aspect of remodeling that most of my clients are not fully prepared for is the potentially overwhelming number of choices that they are going to have to make during the course of their project. They occasionally smile when I tell them that they will be making more choices in the project than they could ever have dreamed of, probably thinking, “Oh, it really can’t be as bad as that.” Well, actually it is! Continue reading “So Many Choices…”