Evanston Change of Pace

Projects
Tags: Evanston Escape
Evanston Change of Pace

Evanston was the scene for one of our favorite projects in 2019. She wanted a change of scenery and purchased an extremely dated condo in a peaceful complex that was removed from the hustle of downtown. We loved this project because we had the opportunity to fully reimagine and refresh every corner of this basic condo. The client was so lovely to work with, and her two grown daughters gave a ton of input which is always welcome. They have great style and wanted the finished space to feel peaceful, bright and airy. This condo was a complete fresh start, almost nothing was brought over from her old condo.

Due to COVID, we were just now able to take the professional photographs. We wanted to give you a little background on the project while we anxiously await the proofs to hit our inbox!

We made a slight floorplan change that created a huge impact. Our client didn’t need the enclosed bonus room off of the main living space, so we decided to blow out the wall. Here is an overview of the floorplan and changes we made.

Original Floor Plan

Original Floor Plan

New Floor Plan

New Floor Plan

Kitchen Before

Kitchen Before

Kitchen Before – Different Angle

Kitchen Before – Different Angle

Dining Room looking towards living room

Dining Room looking towards living room.

Guest Bathroom – Before

Guest Bathroom – Before

Master Bedroom – Before

Master Bedroom – Before

Master Bathroom – Before

Master Bathroom – Before

Evanston Change of Pace

New Kitchen – 3D Version

Another small change that had a huge impact on the finished space was removing the dreadful popcorn ceilings! We used furring strips and low profile LED lights to integrate recessed lighting into the ceiling and eliminate the track lighting. The existing ceilings were low, but we decided the seamless lighting and clean ceilings were worth giving up 1.5” of height.

Progress Photo – View looking from the living room towards future office built-ins (where walls were removed).

Progress Photo – View looking from the living room towards future office built-ins (where walls were removed).

Kitchen After Demo

Kitchen After Demo

Kitchen – Clean Slate

Kitchen – Clean Slate

Fireplace after new firebox installation and build-out

Fireplace after new firebox installation and build-out

Fireplace after drywall

Fireplace after drywall

Our client needed an occasional work space, but didn’t want to dedicate a whole room to it. Her daughters’ request was to find a way to hide the clutter and not let the workspace take over the room. We designed custom built-ins that allowed for a comfortable/bright/functional workspace that could easily be closed off when not in use. There are large sliding doors that can cover the workspace and reveal the decorative bookshelves!

Office built-in progress photo

Office built-in progress photo

The bathrooms are small, but we maximized the space and utilized bright/soft finishes to complete the look. The transformation in the bathrooms was dramatic!

Master Bathroom after demo

Master Bathroom after demo

Master Bathroom – progress photo

Master Bathroom – progress photo

Master Bathroom – progress photo

Master Bathroom – progress photo

Guest Bathroom – progress photo

Guest Bathroom – progress photo

Fireplace and new flooring sneak peek

Fireplace and new flooring sneak peek

View From Kitchen looking towards dining room

View From Kitchen looking towards dining room

We can’t wait to share the completed space with you. It is so bright and layered with different monochromatic tones and textures. Stay posted to see the reveal!

Testimonial

My partner and I had some necessary corrections made to our condo unit which caused us to have to adjust some of the layout of our living space. We had to relocate a wine refrigerator that had lived in the living room for years. We wanted to relocate it into our kitchen but was overwhelmed with the task.

Talking with Erica Lugbill was the best thing that could have happen for our place. She visited us and immediately understood what we wanted. In talking to her, we told her that we might want to change a couple other items in our kitchen at the same time we had the refrigerator installed in our kitchen. She took pictures, measured the entire kitchen, and told us that she would start designing a "mini" makeover. Within 3 days, she came back to our house, and showed us a 3D rendering of a couple ideas for the placement our wine frig within our kitchen. We loved both choices, and settled on one of them. She also suggested several options for the other concerns we had with the kitchen. Erica helped us pick the products for our "mini" makeover and couldn't wait for the process to start.

After wards, Erica introduced us to her construction crew, when they all came over for a review of the work order. This was something I didn't expect, but truly appreciated.

The work began within a week, and her crew was completely professional with the entire scoop of work. They spent half a day just preparing the work area and protecting all the other rooms from dust and work debris. Since we have a loft, our kitchen is open to the dining room which is open to the living room, the crew understood this, and completely insulated the rest of the house.

Erica visited daily to check on her crew and on us, making sure to work out the smallest construction details and to answer any of our questions or concerns. Once the process was completed, the crew spent another half a day cleaning and removing everything that they brought into our condo.

We ended up with a one of a kind kitchen compared to the rest of the building, a perfectly incorporated wine refrigerator, new back splash tile, new pendant lighting system, new brushed nickel wall switch & outlet plates, and to finish off the project, a fancy industrial kitchen faucet.

Before hiring Erica, I always thought a interior designer would be an expensive proposition, but we were pleasantly surprised that this wasn't true. Erica is extremely talented, kept with our budget, and was completely professional. She is a great listener and didn't push her own choices when it came to material options. Not only did everything come out wonderful, put she suggested a different color for an accent wall, and it is amazing how it transformed the adjoining room. She is amazing, pick up the phone and call her!
Joe - Winnetka, IL