A Beautiful Kitchen Renovation, for One of Our Own

We take pride in every project we complete for our clients, but when we do work in a Schrader and Company team member’s own home, that’s something extra special indeed.

This kitchen renovation accomplished all of the homeowners’ goals–improved functionality, more workspace and storage, and an updated aesthetic.

These clients are avid home cooks and entertainers who wanted more counter space for working side by side. The existing kitchen was on the smaller side, so a few layout changes helped maximize the space. We removed the existing cabinetry and counter tops and reoriented the sink in order to lengthen the continuous workspace. We installed a longer peninsula, and increased the bar seating from two seats to three. The peninsula also features a hidden pullout cabinet for extra storage.

Careful thought was put into every organizational feature. Our clients love their soft-close drawers for storing plates and bowls, the spice rack, the bookshelves for their cookbook collection, and their beautiful walnut custom coffee hutch, which looks like a standalone piece of furniture. The hutch features flipper doors, lighting, and a display cabinet. 

The white quartz counter top, cabinetry, and tile back splash contrasts beautifully with the walnut elements like the hutch and hood. Our clients are especially appreciative of Brooke Weinert’s expert guidance throughout the project in making selections and creating a cohesive design.

Our clients love their kitchen, which functions perfectly for their lifestyle, and allows them to entertain in their home in style and comfort.

Building an Oasis…

Our homes are often a reflection of our values, and how we hope to spend our time. For clients who love to entertain and host large gatherings filled with food, friends, and fun in the sun, this Project Spotlight will serve as a major inspiration.

Our clients wanted their home to be an oasis for hosting friends and family. That meant upgrades to the kitchen and dining room, to improve functionality for both cooking and entertaining. The large island, top of the range appliances, and bountiful storage provided by our custom cabinetry make it a dream kitchen to work in, alone or with many sous chefs at hand. The coffered ceilings in the dining room create a classic look with an open and inviting feel. The additional cabinetry and countertop match the selections in the kitchen, and provide storage and workspace, as well as a cohesive aesthetic.

We also transformed a screened-in porch into a three season room, making it suitable for additional months of use throughout the year. The views of the picturesque property through the new windows and the wet bar make it an ideal spot to hang out and relax with guests.

The clients’ outdoor property is truly enhanced by the new decking and sleek modern railings, which will stand up to tough upstate weather conditions. To maximize their enjoyment of their beautiful pool, we constructed a free-standing building with room for changing in and out of swimsuits, and storing pool supplies. Our clients worked with Brookside Nursery for their elegant landscaping and patio enhancements, and a local pool company to complete the upgrades to their outdoor space.

Our clients love their renovation and the ample opportunities it provides for making many fun memories with loved ones, all throughout the year.

 

 

An Extensive Renovation That Feels Like a Brand New Home

Some home improvement projects simply feel like an upgrade. And some feel like a transformation so dramatic, its hard to believe the “Before” and “After” reflect the same home.

In this Project Spotlight, we’ll go behind the scenes of an extensive, multi-room renovation that is fresh, updated, and modern.

This project included the remodel of our clients’ kitchen, first floor bathroom, laundry room, family room, and the primary bedroom on the second floor. The homeowners were ready to update the décor and also create more kitchen space for better functionality during family gatherings.

We partnered with an architect to consult on the structural changes involved in the project, particularly for the removal of the bearing wall between the kitchen and dining room.

Our design team did a wonderful job of pulling all of the materials and colors together, which created a cohesion between all of the many renovated spaces.

The transformation is nothing short of spectacular, and our clients are absolutely thrilled with the end result.

This Project Spotlight beautifully highlights the many possibilities renovation allows for clients who love their home and their location, but want to revamp their living spaces to better fit their lifestyle and design preferences.

It’s all doable, and we’d love to show you how! Reach out to us today if you’re ready for a new reality in your existing home.

A Luxury Bathroom Transformation

Few rooms in the home are subjected to as much use as our bathrooms. They serve an essential function, but when done right, they can be luxurious retreats that help us relax and unwind. We want them to be beautiful, well-maintained, and fit to meet the specific needs of our lifestyles.

In this Project Spotlight, we’ll look at a bathroom renovation that achieved all of those goals for the homeowners. It was an extensive project, and the stunning result was well worth the effort.

The clients wanted an updated unique and luxurious bathroom. This necessitated a full redesign of the existing space. To accomplish the redesign, the room was gutted to the studs, interior walls were removed, and the door opening relocated.

Reimagining a space and relocating mechanicals (plumbing, HVAC, electrical, etc.) is always a challenge and requires careful coordination. 

To accomplish the desired luxurious and updated aesthetic, our designer worked with our client to select Kohler’s Purist wall mounted fixtures in Kohler’s Vibrant Brushed Bronze projecting out of the tall, quartz backsplash. By placing the generously sized shower behind the soaking tub, the design allows both features to stand out. In addition, the large niche in the shower was inlaid with hand-made tiles designed to capture light and enhance the beauty of the project. The vanity and tub front were made from a naturally finished walnut, adding a natural touch to the style of the space. Every knob, handle, and clip were specified with the same brushed brass finish of the Kohler fixtures. Gorgeous custom cabinetry adds valuable storage and a show-stopping centerpiece to the room.

Our clients were given the bathroom of their dreams, and couldn’t be happier with the end result.

If you’re ready to turn your bathroom into your favorite room in your house, give us a call to explore the possibilities.

 

Design Trends We’re Loving Lately…

We asked our brilliant in-house designers Brooke Weinert and Kara Woitkoski to share some of the best recent design trends they’re seeing in the industry today. This thoughtfully assembled list can help inspire and guide you as you look to make selections for your own home projects.

As always, Brooke and Kara are here to help bring your interior design visions to vivid life!

  • Larger Fixtures (in lighting & hardware specifically):

Larger Light Fixtures and hardware with texture or complimentary colors are huge right now. They’re being used more as statement pieces, which we love!

  • Textures (in backsplash, countertops, cabinet doors, etc.)

We’ve seen a decline in true square edge backsplash tiles and a rise in tiles that are handmade or look handmade, bringing in more character and texture with perfectly imperfect edges. It brings a much more natural and welcoming feel to any space. We’ve also been seeing more interest in mesh or metal panels in cabinet doors to bring a more interesting and detailed style to their homes. 

  • Color in Cabinetry

We have seen a lot more color being introduced in cabinetry, which is so much fun! We’re seeing a big increase in “natural” colors, like stone, slate blues, tonal greens, etc. While we love a classic white kitchen, it’s such a fun opportunity to work with color more frequently. This year specifically, we’ve had multiple clients who want to steer away from an all-white kitchen, saying it doesn’t feel “warm or homey” enough for their preference. With our recent clients who do want white, we’ve use other tones to support and bring warmth to the space; be it a wood island or two tone cabinetry to make it more interesting and welcoming.

  • Command Centers

Almost all of our kitchen projects lately have requested a “drop zone”, better known as a command center. We think with getting back into our normal, pre-Covid routines, we’ve also gotten back to our old ways, which means everything ends up on your kitchen counters! We don’t love that, so we like to design a designated area for all the little things from chargers for your phones, to organizing mail. We’re doing our best to help families stay more organized and keep their clutter out of the kitchen.

  • Tile and Wood Alternatives

While loving the look of tile flooring, people are wanting lower maintenance and more wallet-friendly options. Luxury Vinyl Tile (or Plank), known as LVT or LVP, has become extremely popular. They can give you the look of tile without the grout, while being much more forgiving on your body and joints. They can also replicate natural hardwoods, without worrying about scratches, water damage, or seasonal movement.

  • Natural Countertops

While we love the virtually zero maintenance quartz countertops, we have recently (surprisingly) seen a big comeback of natural stone countertops. Despite the fact that they require more maintenance and care, our clients have been consistently steering towards granites, soapstones, and even quartzites! They are made from the earth–a snapshot of a moment in time–and each slab is completely unique and one of a kind. That is tough to beat!

 

A Dramatic Renovation That Feels Like a New Home

A well-planned and well-executed renovation can sometimes be so dramatic, the end results feel like a completely different home!

In this Project Spotlight, we take a look behind the scenes of an extensive remodeling project, covering two floors and multiple rooms.

The goal of the renovation was to create spaces that better worked for the family and their lifestyle. The clients had outgrown the existing space, and they wanted to update the aesthetic in the kitchen especially.

We renovated a large portion of the first and second floors of the home. On the first floor, we renovated the kitchen, mudroom, dining area, and parlor. On the second floor we removed the master bedroom and master bathroom. This space was rearranged to create two bedrooms and a main bathroom. We then removed the roof from the existing garage and created a new master bedroom suite.

The kitchen/mudroom space was opened up to create a better flow. The transition of each area as well as the finishes that were chosen are spectacular.

The difference between the original and finished spaces is nothing short of amazing. It almost feels like a different house altogether.

Our clients are so happy with their renovated home, and we are beyond gratified to know the project came together in such a satisfying way for everyone involved.

 

Creating Major Curb Appeal

A beautiful front porch is the stuff homeowner dreams are made of…

We love to picture ourselves enjoying a hot cup of coffee and the morning paper from a comfortable chair, surveying the neighborhood and greeting friends, or decorating for the seasons with flowers, pumpkins, or twinkling lights. Your front porch is your home’s first impression, and we all want to maximize our curb appeal.

That’s what we did for our clients in this Project Spotlight, who wanted just the right front porch to blend seamlessly with their lovely log home.

The clients wanted an update for both aesthetic and functional reasons. They wanted to make sure that the new structure did not take away from the look of their log home, but needed a front porch they could enjoy with ample room for seating.

Integrating the new finishes with the log siding was important in this project. The home featured a relatively new brick sidewalk that the clients also wanted to keep. We recessed the stair tread to allow the brick walk to remain, while making sure the porch floor was deep enough to allow for the usable space the homeowners needed.

The combination of the stone column bases, wood trim and ceiling, and the tongue and grooved composite flooring all work together beautifully.

The end result looks like a part of the original design, and is allowing our clients to enjoy their home in a brand new way.

Building A Backyard Oasis

Spring, summer, and fall here in Upstate New York invite us all to enjoy the outdoors as much as possible before our long winters set in. We love helping our clients make the most of their properties by creating their perfect sunrooms, porches, and decks.

This Project Spotlight goes behind the scenes of a beautiful deck renovation that allows the homeowners to revel in their beautiful landscaping, entertain their loved ones, and expand their living space.

Our clients wanted to update their existing deck, add a deck extension for a BBQ area, and include a new railing system that would allow them to view the beautiful landscaping they had previously installed.

We started by removing the old wood decking, stairs, and railings. Weather-resistant composite decking was used for the new outdoor space, and a BBQ area and fire pit area were constructed, utilizing large format tile. We also installed a cable railing system for a sleek, modern look that allows the clients to enjoy their backyard views without obstruction.

Special attention was paid to the prevention of water damage, as is necessary when working with outdoor spaces and entryways. At the area in front of the patio door, we included plastic grating to allow water to drain from the deck before it could build up at the door threshold. 

The smart materials used all work together to create a beautiful backyard oasis. The renovated deck is as functional as it is beautiful, and we’re thrilled that our clients are enjoying it just as much as they had hoped.

 

A Classic Never Goes Out of Style

A bathroom is one of those home improvement projects that you want and need to stand the test of time. Not only will it encounter heavy daily wear and tear, but it’s a room where the essential components are relatively permanent. Few of us would want to re-tile a shower or replumb a new bathtub every few years. 

That’s why it’s so important to make choices and selections that feel just right for your individual home, aesthetic, and lifestyle when undertaking a bathroom remodel. In this Project Spotlight, you’ll see an example of a bathroom renovation that really kept an eye to the classic hallmarks of timeless design, solid craftsmanship, and luxurious details. 

The goal of the project was to completely renovate a large bathroom. The homeowners felt that the existing built-in tub, shower, and vanities were dated. We removed everything: shower walls and floor, tile floor, tub and tub surround, vanities, all fixtures, mirrors, doors, and exhaust fan. The project also encompassed improvements to two closets just off the bath.

The desired aesthetic was a very traditional, yet stylish master bath. The clients worked with interior designer Brooke Weinert on selections to really capture the classic look and feel that they wanted. The outcome demonstrates just how dramatic the change to an existing space can be, when time is spent in the details. Walking into the room, the claw foot tub and designer tub filler capture your eye. The in-laid vanity doors with clear crystal knobs add a touch of nostalgia and class. The subtle addition of chrome in the plumbing and light fixtures adds to the classic feel.

Cabinet maker Robert Page worked with our clients to design and produce two truly one of a kind furniture style vanities, that while elegant, will stand the test of time both visually and functionally. The tile and marble work speak for itself—classic and elegant. The custom full glass shower opens up the space. We upgraded the heavy shower glass to Low Iron, which eliminates the greenish tint of standard shower glass, allowing the dazzling white of the Carrara Marble to show through. We also included an attic mount fan that allows for a more delicate vent and light than a standard ceiling mounted unit. 

“This renovation took place during the pandemic and under Covid safety restrictions and protocols,” says project planner Mark O’Lena. “We had to regroup, and change some of the ways we typically perform our mission. Essentially, adapt and overcome.”

“As a planner we have the opportunity to walk through the project with the client and see the expression on their face when we tour. I am always pleased when the client is pleased, and judging by the reaction, they were pleased. So much so that they have given us the opportunity to work for them again.”

 

 

Incorporating Color and Pattern Into Your Renovation

Home decor trends and home decor trends go…

We can all remember a time when shag carpeting or avocado appliances were the height of sophistication. It can be tricky to separate the classic from the trendy when embarking on a home renovation. The last thing any of us want to do is invest in expensive and permanent changes to our home, only to find they’re as passé as popcorn ceilings in a few years time. That is why it’s nice to have experts at the ready who can help guide us to choices that we will want to live with for decades.

Color and pattern are having a real moment in terms of design trends, and we meet with lots of clients who are interested in adding some visual interest to their homes, but are concerned about what might turn out to be “too much” or “too trendy” as times goes by.

Our award-winning Interior Designer Brooke Weinert and architectural representative Christine Raible of Best Tile were kind enough to sit down with us to talk about ways to incorporate color and pattern into our home decor in thoughtful ways that will stand the test of time. 

On Color Choices:

Brooke: I like to incorporate color in permanent fixtures (tile, cabinetry, etc.) using more tonal or muted versions of colors that the clients already have in their home. For example, if the clients like blue and have blue in other parts of their home, I’d recommend a slate blue or navy blue tile or island accent. Both slate and navy are shades of blue that are still regarded as neutral “tones” that read blue and bring out blue in other colors close by.

We are less likely to get sick of neutral colors, because they tend to play well with many different colors. I think the stem of the issue of things being trendy and going out of style are when we choose bright tones that draw our eyes’ attention much more quickly. So when we inevitably want a change, a bright blue island is going to make repainting and redecorating much more difficult, resulting in wanting a total renovation.

Christine: With tile especially, because it is so permanent, I try to recommend one showpiece in the space that has color and pattern, whether that be the countertop, the floor tile, or an accent mosaic. Then all of the other parts of the space become supporting roles to that feature. There can be other colors and patterns in the space, but having that one feature helps it to not become overwhelming and too trendy. 

 

On Picking Patterns:

Brooke: I love pattern and texture, and these two often work hand in hand. I think these add a very important depth to a design that can sometimes be overlooked. However, you have to be careful when choosing something with a pattern or texture, to avoid making your space look too busy, and therefore, seem smaller. 

If you’re hoping to do an accent tile to incorporate a pattern in your shower, for instance, you want the patterned portion to distinctly stand out from the rest of the wall tile. So you don’t want to choose a wall tile that has a lot of movement and variety, because it will compete with the patterned tile and become difficult for our eyes to process.

One thing that I think is often forgotten when choosing a patterned tile is ensuring that the pattern works well with the style of the home and stays in tune with the design style. I’ve seen so many Houzz images where there’s a gorgeous traditional white kitchen with a bar area that has an accent patterned backsplash that looks like it belongs to another house. We don’t want that!

Another way I like to incorporate pattern/texture is switching the installation format of the tile. This is a fun way to play with a “classic” tile and make it a bit more fun. I love when we have clients who come in saying they “hate subway tile”, and then we show them the many ways that it can be installed and they look at it in a whole new light. 

 

Trends that Aren’t Too Trendy:

Brooke: Trends I’m seeing include the incorporation of a color, either in the backsplash or island. I’ve also been seeing a lot of accent backsplash behind the ranges again, mainly carrying the countertop up as the backsplash behind the range only.  I’m not sure if it’s because people have been stuck at home for so long and want a change, but it seems like a lot of clients are wanting to express themselves with brighter tones and bolder patterns in their homes than they had pre-Covid lockdown. 

Christine: Glazed ceramic wall tiles are very popular and I feel they are also very classic and timeless.  There are so many options and you aren’t stuck to just the traditional white subway tile. These tiles come in a range of sizes from 2×8 to 4×16 and many other sizes in between. They also have a range of colors, patterns, and glazing. Adding a glazed ceramic tile with variation in the glaze is a nice way to add a little pattern and interest without making the space too busy.    

Adding a mosaic as a vanity backsplash in lieu of a traditional 4″ quartz or granite backsplash is a fun way to add a pop of color and pattern behind your sinks. Accenting the back of the niche in your shower with an accent tile also adds a subtle pop. Powder rooms are the perfect place to play with color. This is the space that your guests most often use and they are a separate space from other spaces so you can really play with patterns in there. I often used patterned porcelain tiles or stone mosaics with variation in these spaces.

Check out some examples of color and pattern trends in our projects below and consider adding a pop of visual interest to your next project. With Brooke and Christine’s expert guidelines in mind, there are plenty of ways to spice up your space in a timeless and elegant way.