Let me share a funny story with you. Three years ago a client reached out to me, asking for help with the remodeling of her house. It was a townhouse that needed some TLC. From the outset, I was excited to work with her because she has great taste and uses bold patterns and colors fearlessly. This project was going to be fun.
I emailed her the contract, waited, but didn't hear back. Finally, I mustered up enough courage to ask her whether everything’s okay. In her response, she explained that they had decided to sell the house and buy a new one, instead of remodeling. Despite my disappointment, I told myself that everything happens for a reason. This is what I truly believe.
A year later an email from her showed up in my inbox. My heart leaped like a teenager who thinks that they’ve found their first true love! My client said they had purchased a house in San Jose and wanted to hire me for the remodel. This was the moment I had been waiting for! I drove over to their new house, met with my client and her husband, and felt again that this was indeed a family that I’d be delighted to work with. However, later that day I received confirmation from a large commercial project that their remodel had been authorized and was about to commence. Oh my! Yet again I was unable to work with my client on her house. You cannot imagine how disappointed and conflicted I felt. However, in line with my philosophy, I thought that whatever is destined to happen will happen.
Another year passed. And then one day my inbox glinged with the tone of another email from this client! It was a super busy time for me. I was working on projects and personal plans. But I remember saying to myself, this is your opportunity -- take it! So my clients and I met again. I was thrilled to reconnect with them and we promptly started working on their remodel.
First, we remodeled their master bathroom and powder room. Then we remodeled the kids' bathroom. Redesigning was challenging because the layout of the space included a window that we couldn’t move or change the size of. We set to work on the plumbing and tiles. My client and I share the same taste so the process was thoroughly enjoyable. We fell mutually in love with a particular floor tile that featured hand-drawn tally marks, which her husband nicknamed "the prisoner" (which I think is an awesome name for a tile). We talked about tally marks and soon enough he started to become fond of them too.
Here is how the process started:
Storage was essential and we worked together to design convenient classy modern cabinets. The warmth of the tiles played off perfectly with the clean and contemporary feel of the space. Colors, patterns, textures, and lighting collaborated marvelously, tying everything together in harmonious elegance. The outcome is gorgeous!
Here is how this bathroom used to look like:
Just as I had expected from the outset, this was a fun project to be involved with. What made it even more enjoyable for me as a designer, was that my clients dared to explore different textures and patterns. They’re planning on giving their backyard a makeover and hopefully, this will be the next project we take on together, who knows?
Photos by: Limor Edrey