Being an active NW Society of Interior Designers member has allowed us to build relationships with many unique and amazing designers in our community. Wendy of Wendy Phillips Design is one of those designers we had the good fortune to work with, along with her clients.
The scope of work focused around the living room’s corner fireplace and a pass cabinet update that tried its best to incorporate the fireplace. The clients had lived with the funky layout, and it was time for a change. Wendy’s design was beautiful and functional. The design centered the fireplace on one wall, built up the cabinetry around the fireplace, and redesigned the lighting plan. Our remodel included lacing in new hardwoods where needed, refinishing the entire main floor, replacing the front door, replacing a few failing windows, and making some crown molding updates. As you can see below, the project turned out Great.
Some people might think that this was a simple project. Sure, all the tasks would not be as complicated as they would be if we were doing a whole house remodel, but now we are concentrating all our efforts in one small space and coordinating with all the trade partners one at a time. We could have the electrician and gas plumber show up on the same day and work on a different part of the house while he waits his turn. It is also not just one visit. You have rough ins and then finish after painting. Setting the fireplace, running the vent and back later after stone to install the finishes and fire it up. All in all we put in 6-7 of our trust traded partners to get this project over the finish line.
Speaking of finish lines, the clients go all out for the holiday season and wanted everything finished by Thanksgiving. So, how hard can that really be? On May 20th, we entered into a feasibility agreement to estimate the project, and on July 5th, the client approved the construction agreement. For a project like this, we brought in Adrian from Vision Woodworks. This was going to be the driver to the entire project. Custom cabinets were going to have a lead time of 9-11 weeks; we needed to hurry up and wait for the cabinets. There wasn’t the time available to frame and then measure for cabinets. We instead framed the fireplace with collaboration from Adrian to match Wendy’s design as closely as possible. After discovering some plumbing surprises following demolition, the cabinet drawings were approved on August 20th with an expected delivery date of October 15th, which would cut it close. Then the push to the finish would begin. In the meantime, we finished the framing, roughed in electrical & gas, had Bellevue Fireplace Shop set the fireplace, installed the door and windows, and did the drywall and paint. We got our building permit in time to avoid delaying the project and passed our electrical, gas, plumbing, and mechanical with flying colors.
After some sweating, the cabinets arrived right on schedule and were perfect. Jeromy, our lead carpenter, was back to install the cabinets and added matching crown molding. Within days, he had progressed enough for us to template the porcelain “stone” that borders the fireplace. The following week, the painters came to spray the cabinetry and trim. Then came the final electrical work for the ceiling and in-cabinet lighting. Then, Scrivanich Natural Stone installed the porcelain, and finally, the fireplace was finished. Dealing with the bomb cyclone at the end added an extra hurdle to the project, but the clients could still decorate for Thanksgiving.
So, did the project go as smoothly as we made it sound? No. Did we deliver an excellent product? Yes. One of the most exciting aspects of remodeling is that it brings people together, allowing us to work through the challenges of the remodel and successfully complete it. Even with some of the frustrating challenges that come with remodeling work, we’re excited and ready to do it all over again.
https://nwsid.org/
https://wendyphillipsdesign.com
https://visioncabinetry.com/
https://www.bellevuefireplaceshop.com/
https://scrivanich.com/
