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Buying a new home can be exciting. There's so many ways to make a new house your home. We met a family earlier last year who had just purchased a new house and they immediately wanted to make changes. We met with them to discuss options on opening up the kitchen and living room. Together we came up with a plan, and then onto the really fun part. The execution of this plan. Opening up that wall made such a difference! We were all shocked by the transformation. A few months went by before they reached out to us again for the next stage of the remodel. We were looking at changing out the countertops, cabinet pulls and adding a tile backsplash. Talking out a few ideas that they had in mind, I began the design process with a couple different options. We tossed around the idea of painting the cabinets, and were split between the different countertop materials. After some deep consideration, we decided to keep the cabinets as they were, replace the old laminate countertops with granite, and add a simple white subway tile backsplash. We couldn't be more proud of this kitchen remodel. This family is going to enjoy this kitchen for many years to come. They've really made this house a place to call home.

Another one bites the dust. We just finished up another bathroom remodel, and the transformation is outstanding! This bathroom features an Onyx walk in shower, complete with a custom bench. Starting off with the design process of this bathroom: After making some slight changes in paint colors and Onyx colors we were ready to go. Materials got ordered, and we were ready to go. Once all of the materials arrived, it was demo day! One of our favorites on a project. This day means that things are coming together, even though they are literally falling apart. After the shower base was set, then it's the drywall stage. This is another favorite of ours. This is the stage when complete chaos starts looking like something. Things continued to move along. Drywall. Priming. Painting. Flooring. Vanity. Shower walls. Fixtures. After all the parts and pieces were assembled, we got this... A beautiful new hall bath for this couple to enjoy for many years to come. We couldn't be more thrilled with the transformation of this hall bath. We started with this... And created this... Materials featured: Onyx shower and vanity top: Coastal Vanity & upper cabinet: Koch Express - Stone Flooring: Mannington Adura Flex: Vienna - Mineral w/ Almond grout Paint: PPG Manor Hall PPG 1006-2 Shark Fixtures & Accessories: Brushed Nickel

Talk about a transformation. We had the privilege to work with this family after they were a victim of poor decisions from previous home owners. This poor decision led to major damage to the exterior of the home, and it needed addressed before we could even begin the remodel of the this bathroom. We started with attending to the exterior of the home, by fixing the rotted studs, sill plate, and siding. Then we gutted the rest of the bathroom and began our beautiful transformation. Before.... Design Process... With this adorable house being built in the 1930's we wanted to keep with the integrity of the age of the house, but add a little modern flair. We did this with the modern fixtures, and the hexagon and subway tiles. During.... After...

We started this addition at the beginning of the year with hanging and finishing the drywall only. Then that evolved into suppling and installing the doors and trim, painting the trim and walls, and designing and installing the fireplace surround with custom benches. This one turned out beautiful just in time for their December 23rd wedding! I can't wait to see the wedding photos featuring our beautiful handiwork. When they asked us to come up with a fireplace design, I pulled together a rendering just for them. Check out our process photos for this addition. This family will be able to enjoy their cozy theater room for years to come!

Nothing like a little kitchen refresh just before the holidays. This kitchen we took out the existing quartz island, took off the additional taller portion of the island, and took out the laminate countertops. We then painted the existing cabinets and installed a butcher block countertop where the laminate countertop used to be, and a new quartz countertop with a slight overhang for additional seating. Once we removed the taller portion we had to rebuild the panel on the back of the island, since the original was split. By removing the taller portion of the island, it completely opened up the space. This is the before of the kitchen. New countertop, painted cabinets. Different views of the kitchen. Custom panel to match the rest of the cabinets after we took out the taller portion of the island. Different view of the island. The during work of masking, painting, and masking some more. Then the precious transportation of the cabinet doors from the shop to the jobsite. As you can tell, a kitchen update and significantly change the look and feel of a home. For this kitchen, adding a lighter color to the cabinets and countertops, it really lightened up the area, with the major lack of natural light coming into the space. Now this family has functional seating space at the island, and they can now put a dining table where the upper portion of the island was taking up so much space. The next steps for this kitchen remodel are: painting walls and trim, install a tile backsplash, and install new flooring.

This one has been quite the process. I first met with this client when Central Missouri was first being introduced to Covid-19. We did a site visit, to meet with them to discuss their renovation plans, and their vision for the space. They had specific items they wanted to the space. So, after getting measurements and the details, I started gathering inspiration for their master bathroom remodel. We went through a couple of renderings to get the new design just right. Check out these before, during and after images of our work. 3D rendering of the new design Before image of the bathroom before the work began. Gutting the bathroom down to the studs Drywall installed & the walls are primed! Color on the walls! PPG 1160-2 Magical. Glue down LVT installed. Mannington Adura Flex ensures a slip resistant surface. In addition to remodeling their master bathroom, we also did a little bit of work in their master bedroom. We removed some existing wallpaper, and a wallpaper border, skimmed, primed and painted the walls, and installed laminate flooring. Creating a fresh, and relaxing space for our client. We are excited for our clients to enjoy their new master suite for many years to come. Side by side comparison of the 3D rendering design proposal and the actual outcome of the remodel. It's been quite the pleasure working with these lovely folks on their remodel. We are looking forward to remodeling their hall bath later this year.

Nothing like doing work for a repeat customer. I really enjoyed working with this family on designing their basement bathroom. Finishing their basement has been an ongoing project of their for several years now. Projects like this do take time. So we were thrilled when they contacted us to work on putting together the finishes for their bathroom. They had already installed the drywall, we finished that last year. Now was the time to add the flooring, fiberglass shower unit, vanity and counter top, and bath accessories. They listed off their wish list of the look they were wanting for the space. Before of the space: 3D rendering of bathroom design. During process photos: Completed project photos: Now off to the next project on their list. Looking forward to working with them again. This is why I love what I do!

We started off the new year with a kitchen update. We're not calling it a remodel, because we kept the same layout, cabinet boxes, flooring and appliances. We just changed the cabinet color, the cabinet doors, countertop and added knobs and pulls to the cabinet doors. We met with the client a couple months ago to start planning the project. Our initial meeting was to look at the space and get measurements. Then I, the interior designer of the project, went straight to work gathering ideas and collaborating them into a plan for our new client. I started off with entering the existing kitchen into my 3D modeling program to give a visual of the new kitchen. I started by looking at new colors that would go with the existing tile floor and wall color. My main goal was to lighten up the space, so I started with classic white cabinets in my model. We had decided to go with a shaker style on the new cabinet doors. This style of cabinet would update the space, but keep it simple. Once I had gathered up my findings on countertop options and some color ideas, I met with my client again. We decided on a color and countertop just like that. My client was thrilled with what I had come up with, and was excited to begin the work. We ended up choosing PPG 1002-2 Arctic Cotton for the new cabinet color, and Wilsonart's Premium Laminate Hebron White with an antique finish for the countertop. For the fixtures and knobs and pulls we went with a brushed nickle finish to complete the look . After everything was selected and ordered we needed to begin building the cabinet doors. We measured and calculated with precise numbers to rebuild the cabinet doors using the already existing cabinets. Once the countertops had arrived the work began. We started with taking off the existing doors and masking off the space to protect the walls, floors, and the homeowner's belongings. We primed the existing cabinets to help cover up any stains and imperfections in the cabinets. Then we moved onto spraying the new paint color on the cabinets. We worked with PPG's Breakthrough. This particular paint is tough like lacquer but flexible enough to paint a balloon. This creates a durable surface without the smell of lacquer, meaning we didn't have to "kick" our clients out of their own house while we painted their cabinets. After multiple coats of paint the cabinets were finished. We then installed the new countertop, and hardware. Then proceeded with putting back the appliances and installing the sink and new faucet to finish up the project. Once everything was unmasked and put back to it's place, we had a "brand new" kitchen. No, not really, it only looks like a brand new kitchen. Check it out for yourself. So with an open mind we were able to use the existing layout of the kitchen, and make it look brand new. In the end, we created a space that was exactly what the homeowner wanted, which is always in my book, a job well done. We strive to exceed the homeowner's expectations, and make a remodeling job easiest on them.

We finished up 2019 and began 2020 with a basement remodel. In this project we had to frame in new walls, hang drywall, build custom cabinets, stain the new wood, paint the walls, and install carpet. Read more to learn more about this project from start to finish. This whole project started out with the homeowner having some foundation work done, and had a sump pump installed. After this work was completed Garrott Construction came in and had to build out walls and figure out a plan to hide the sump pump. We got started with framing new walls along the existing concrete walls. The original concrete that had been removed was glued to the concrete. This method was not an option for us, because the foundation company had installed a vapor barrier that couldn't be punctured or damaged in any way. So we framed up new walls, and installed drywall on the new framing. After the drywall was hung, mudded, and sanded smooth we proceeded with priming the walls and staining the wood cap on top of the new wall. We wanted to match as close to possible to the existing paneling and trim. The paneling was in really good shape, and works well in that space, and the client really likes it, so we didn't see a need to remove the existing paneling. After we primed the walls, we began building the cabinet around the new sump pump. We wanted something that could be easily removed to maintain the sump pump, but still looked nice in the space. After the cabinet had been built, stained, and the polyurethane had been applied we moved onto painting the walls. We didn't go with the typical neutral color of gray. We got to have some fun with a pretty shade of green and a lighter shade of purple for an accent wall. It worked so nicely with the red toned wood already in the space. As a designer I could've told my client they needed to go with neutral colors, but that wasn't my client. She loves color. So we decided to go with PPG's colors Whispering Pine and Cloudberry. After drywall, paint and trim was all completed we then installed new carpet. Since we went with colors on the walls we went neutral on the floor to ground out the project. This particular carpet is a 100% cut-loop pattern, which means the homeowner has an easy to clean carpet that's going to last quite some time in this basement.

Happy November! Where on earth did this year go? Can you believe we’re already down to our last couple months of 2019?! In my last blog I promised I’d eventually tell you more about Garrott Construction. So, I had some fun interviewing the owner of Garrott Construction, Ashton Long. He’s the mastermind behind this whole company. Well at least for Garrott Construction being in Columbia Missouri. Here we go: Garrott Construction started back in the mid 1970’s by Ashton’s father, Dave Long, in Peoria, Illinois. During that time, he mostly worked on custom hardwood installations. He continued with these marvelous installations through to the 1990’s. By then he started expanding his business to some remodeling work. In the early 1990’s Asthon was born, and Dave continued his work. As Ashton grew up, he watched his father work on various types of projects. Dave allowed Ashton to work on minor things like helping cleaning tools and keeping the shop clean. By the age of 10, Ashton was tagging along to job sites working right alongside his father. Of course, he started with very minor things, and learning the process behind everything. As Ashton grew into his teenage years he had continued working alongside his father. They both greatly enjoyed working with each other. Together they worked on numerous projects, like hardwood installations, painting, and even rebuilding 100-year-old garage doors. The years continued, and Ashton was getting ready to graduate high school and head off to college. He was always intrigued by how things work, hence, the motive behind watching his dad work all those years. Ashton was accepted into the Mechanical Engineering program at the University of Missouri, in Columbia Missouri. While he was attending college, he was part of the Formula car team, where they designed, built and raced a Formula car against other engineering programs around the country. As Ashton was attending classes he began reflecting on his past, remembering the days of his childhood helping his father. He remembered how he loved working with his hands rather than sitting behind a computer. He started seeking out jobs in the area and found a carpenter job with a local construction company and fell back in love with what he was so familiar with. He worked for this company for a few semesters during breaks and whatnot. By the time of graduation, he started working for another local construction company. Within a year, he decided to make the jump and go off on his own and build his own company. Yes, you guessed it, this is the one. He took his father’s company name from Peoria, Illinois and expanded the company to Columbia Missouri. Since that moment he’s accomplished so many projects. Projects like building a 3-story 1200 square foot addition onto an existing house, multiple bathroom and kitchen remodels, trim and stair installations, hardwood and tile installations, and many drywall installations and repairs. When you hire Garrott Construction, you work firsthand with the man doing the work. Yup, you guessed it again, Ashton’s the man! He’s the one out there on the job sites completing the drywall finishing, hardwood installations, installing the new kitchen cabinets and so much more. He begins the process by looking at the job site, and from the first look he’s thinking of the best ways to complete the project for the longest lasting result. All of this while he’s addressing the clients wants and needs. When Ashton isn’t on a job site you can find Ashton researching new and better ways to improve his work, or duck hunting, or fishing. Even when he’s doing the fun stuff, he’ll be thinking of better ways to solve a building problem. I’m not kidding about that; he’s constantly talking shop. That's how I know this is a true passion of his. He truly enjoys what he does. Let us bring that enjoyment to you. A new build or remodel project shouldn't be stressful. Yes, things happen outside of our control in the construction world, but here at Garrott Construction we're going to make it as easy on you as possible. Now go enjoy November! The leaves are beautiful, at least for just a little while longer.