ARTICLES OF INTEREST
Pro Spotlight: How to Make Your Home Work Better for You
“People often have ideas of how to make their homes better, but they’ve been in the same house for so long, they can’t see all the possible options. That’s where we come in.”
“People often have ideas of how to make their homes better, but they’ve been in the same house for so long, they can’t see all the possible options. That’s where we come in.”
If you’ve lived in your home for years, chances are, it doesn’t fully fit you anymore. Maybe you’ve accumulated many items that are now taking up counters and tabletops because there’s not enough storage. Perhaps you lack areas where you can entertain family and friends. Or maybe you’re starting to think about aging and don’t need all those spare bedrooms. Though form is important, function should lead the way in your remodel, says Lucas Bourgeois of LU Design Build in St. Louis. “Your home should meet the needs of your lifestyle,” he says. “You have to love where you live.”
Featured in Houzz "Bathroom of the Week: A Serene Master Bath for Aging in Place"
Sad at the prospect of having to move out of the home they’d lived in for 40 years, this retired St. Louis couple hoped to find a renovation option that would allow them to age in place.
Sad at the prospect of having to move out of the home they’d lived in for 40 years, this retired St. Louis couple hoped to find a renovation option that would allow them to age in place. Using universal-design principles, interior designer Jennifer Chapman came up with a smart plan to transform two bedrooms, a small bathroom and a hallway on the first floor of the two-story home into one accessible master suite. LU Design Build was the contractor on the renovation.
Bathroom at a Glance
Who lives here: A retired couple
Location: St. Louis
Size: 92 square feet (8.5 square meters); 8½ by 10⅘feet
Designer: Jennifer Chapman Designs
An Accessible Bathroom Layout
Wheelchair and walker accessibility dictated the bathroom layout, including the measurements of the door, the entry to the shower and the shower stall, as well as the area around the toilet, the area underneath the vanity and the area between these spaces.
Key measurement
The opening to the bathroom is 36 inches wide to accommodate walkers and wheelchairs.
Our Project Featured on Houzz's "32 Home Design Trends That Will Rule in 2019"
Darker, moodier colors seem to be catching on. Mattison sees a lot of emerald and deep teal being used in kitchens, especially for islands, like the Deep Sea Dive by Sherwin-Williams on the island in this St. Louis kitchen by Jennifer Chapman Designs.
“The perimeter cabinetry can be a neutral from white to gray and the island can bring a pop of color to the space,” Mattison says. “By doing only the island a color, people can see the color without it being overwhelming.”
10 Times to Hire a Design-Build Firm
Wondering if it’s time to hire a design-build firm? Unlike the more traditional path (known as “design, bid, build"), which involves hiring a designer and a builder separately, hiring a design-build firm gives you design and construction services under the same umbrella.
Wondering if it’s time to hire a design-build firm? Unlike the more traditional path (known as “design, bid, build"), which involves hiring a designer and a builder separately, hiring a design-build firm gives you design and construction services under the same umbrella. Whether led by an architect or a builder, all true design-build firms include both designers and builders at their core.
If you are thinking of remodeling, adding on or building from scratch and want the ease of working with a single firm from start to finish, a design-build firm may be the right choice for you. (If you want to learn about other home pros, go to the bottom of this story for links to earlier stories in our “10 Times to Hire” series.) Here are 10 times it makes sense to work with a design-build firm to bring your project to life.