Lucas Valley Downstairs
My husband and I remodeled our downstairs including our kitchen, family room, breakfast room and living room. We originally were going to follow the plans our good friends and neighbors used to remodel their home since the architectural layouts were very similar. We hired Claire to help us with the kitchen. She was instrumental in inspiring us to move beyond our neighbors solution since we had space to expand the house into the back yard instead of the side yard. This allowed us to have a much more spacious kitchen and a more open floor plan. This open floor plan enhances traffic flow and allows us to easily entertain large groups of friends. I believe the most important advice Claire gave us was to help us design a kitchen that saved money by leaving things like plumbing and gas lines in the same general areas of the old kitchen to keep costs down, but still create a perfect kitchen for multiple people to prepare food in an efficient and logical manner. In a large kitchen it is so important that you are not running around the island to gather your supplies every time you need something. She also helped us determine where electrical outlets will be needed and what type of lighting would give us the ability to see while working but adjust when entertaining. We all know that our guests will end up in the kitchen which is the heart of our home. Every morning when I come downstairs and pour a cup of tea, I look around at my beautiful kitchen and appreciate the incredible thought and detail it took to make it that way. The greatest compliment I can give Claire Michaels is to refer her services to my family and friends which I have done multiple times.
Lissa D. Harris
Novato Kitchen
Thank goodness I hired Clare to work on our kitchen remodel. Without her advice and guidance I would have made some very BIG mistakes that would have cost me more money and the kitchen wouldn't have worked out the way we planned. She also worked very well with the contractor I already had, so that was really important too! Thank you SO MUCH Ms. Michael!! Best money I have every spent!
Leda Thayer
Oregon Kitchen
After years of looking through kitchen design magazines, making binders of ideas, storing pictures, I finally found Clare with her remodeling design expertise. She pulled the ideas all together in a uniform cohesive form using my wishes and her wise creative design to fruition. I can now enjoy a bright cheerful updated white kitchen that I love. Thank you so much Clare.
Linda Livingstone
Older Sausalito Home
Clare Michael was instrumental in helping me do a remodel and overall upgrade of my large, older house in Sausalito to prepare it for renting. She referred me to a great contractor who handled each job quickly, beautifully and well-within budget. Clare also consulted with myself and the contractor on the dozens of decisions about paint colors, product choices and many other aspects of creating a finished product. When done, the house rented immediately and the new tenants were enthralled by environment they moved into. All in all, Clare's service made the whole process smooth and very successful.
Dan Bergen
Bel Marin Keyes Kitchen
We couldn't be happier with our new kitchen. We're both so pleased with how everything came out. It looks better than we could ever have imagined it. Clare was a joy to work with from beginning to end. She brought creative ideas, excellent taste and a great eye for detail. And everyone she brought into the project (Amazing Stone from San Leandro for countertops, Sollera from British Columbia for cabinets, the Floor Store from San Rafael for flooring, and especially Vidal Morales from Tikal Construction as the contractor) were all solid professionals who had superior products, did outstanding work and were a pleasure to work with too. Clare guided us through the whole process, and it was remarkably quick -- our new kitchen was fully functional just one day shy of 2 months from when the demolition began. So if you're thinking of remodeling your kitchen we highly recommend Clare. Check out the before and after photos -- the results speak for themselves.