Craftsman Design and Renovation

Working with Craftsman Design and Renovation was a pleasure from beginning design work to finished project. The old and new portions of our 1921 home blend together seamlessly with meticulous attention spent on each detail. The overall process from design to construction and final finish work was smooth and comfortable and the end result a joy. Everyone on the CDR team was responsive, helpful and always ready to answer questions and provide information. We may need to come up with another project just to work with CDR again!

I think of myself as a choosy client in that I am a stickler for details, and pride myself on being able to distinguish truly fine work from the usual, 'good enough'. It actually matters to me. The good news is that I am also very easy to please, requiring only that the contractor cares about his work. It is all too rare these days, but without sounding snooty about it, Craftsman easily exceeded my expectations.I've become accustomed over the years to making compromises when working with a contractor because I couldn't quite get the contractor over the bar...I've learned to (begrudgingly) accept work that is "pretty good". One of my least favorite things to do is to have 'the talk' with the contractor when the work isn't quite where it needs to be. Often, that's because the contractor has priced the job according to what he felt would be competitive, leaving him little latitude to spend the extra time to get it just exactly right. That was never the case with Craftsman. In each instance where I'd notice something that felt like it needed a bit more attention or a different approach, it turned out that Craftsman was always steps ahead of me, usually pointing it out to me before I even had a chance to mention it, and talking about what they felt would be the right solution. It was clear that we were in tune with respect to our expectations for a high quality job. The result is that there are none of those little issues that so often remain and that end up taking a little bit of the sheen off the finished job.

Craftsman listened carefully to what we wanted to achieve, and then came through with superb design, materials, and construction. It always felt like a collaborative process; they were not afraid to tell us if they thought our ideas were problematic, but if we felt strongly about anything, they worked hard to have the result match our vision. When there were hiccups (there always are) they always made it right, and they stayed with us throughout and after project completion to be sure we were completely satisfied. The results exceeded our hopes.

Areas For Improvement

Already discussed with them, but there were a few spots where communication or follow-through were not up their usual standards. That said, all concerns were addressed thoughtfully and appropriately.

The project came out super. Everyone likes it, even Craftsman.

From the design phase to the construction phase - the designer, the production manager and the lead carpenter kept me informed on a weekly basis of the work that was to be done. Any changes to that schedule - some of which were beyond the control of the contractor (such as a death in the family of one of the sub contractors) - I was notified about. The quality of the work on my project met the standard this company has established for itself.

This is our second time using Craftsman for a renovaiton on our 1928 home. We are always happy with the finished project. They take the time to do it right.

Craftsman Design and Renovation is a professional company. They did exactly what they said they would do. The work was outstanding. We are thrilled with the quality of the work and the people that did the work. We will be using this company again for sure.

Craftsman Design and Renovation came in and helped me when I had a very poor experience with another contractor and not only did they provide excellent and go far above the standard of service and workmanship but they showed empathy, kindness, and true concern for the situation I was coming out of. Without a doubt, I would recommend them to anyone looking for work on historic homes. They were able to maintain the historical integrity of the house as well as keep within a budget that was reasonable for me. Every person on their staff that I interfaced with was excellent and amazing.

Craftsman's beautiful design aesthetic and masterful workmanship perfectly complement the fair, honest, and transparent manner in which they conduct their business. This is an exceptionally well run firm with superb leadership and a well culled team of supremely talented and unfailingly competent employees, each and every one. In short, they deliver! We could not have been happier with the renovation process and are absolutely in love with the results.

Very professional, I felt Craftsman's end goal was my satifaction.

As a whole i would highly recommend Craftsman Design. I am a very picky person and all of the work was not done with flaw, but in the end i am happy with the resulting product.

These were the only contractors we could find that did period restoration, including restoration of missing details - both design and construction.

Along with my husband, Michael M, we engaged Craftsman for a whole house remodel of a 1909 craftsman, recently-purchased home following our relocation to Portland. Having done two architect / contractor remodels previously, we found the experience of a design/build firm more efficient and we believe more economical.Beginning with the senior designer, we found that Wade demonstrated 3 qualities: creativity, attention to the financial constraints and a commitment to a consistently high standards. As the project unfolded, each team member, especially our lead carpenter and project manager, executed every step with a seamless commitment to those same standards. Each aspect of the house was engineered very well, including cost-conscious and aesthetically beautiful accommodations to our special requests (e.g. for a lot of light / windows). All subcontractors were of high quality and a pleasure to work with. Given that this kind of project can be stressful, frustrating and sometimes disappointing, we have to say that the relationships we built with the Craftsmand team - and the whole experience - was transparent, highly respectful, and often fun. We would recommend them highly.

Areas Of Satisfaction

Most satisfied with the management experience relative to the senior design team, the project manager and lead carpenter who coordinated the subs. Well done and it worked. The end result is even better than we had expected. Craftsman added that critical factor you want in a partner - they brought up what you had not thought about. In many cases, large and small, we get to enjoy and appreciate these things on a daily basis as we now live in the house.

This was the third project for which we have hired Craftsman Design and Renovation. We trust Wade and his team with our home. We appreciate the highly collaborative process Craftsman Design uses to ensure that the contractor and the owner agree on detailed plans and specifications and price before any work is begun. And we couldn't be happier with the results. We have a 1912 Craftsman house that has been revived by Wade's excellent design advice and the great workmanship of the CDR team.

Areas Of Satisfaction

This is our third project with CDR. We deeply appreciate the process of developing plans, agreeing on them down to the details, knowing the contract price, and seeing change orders with clear explanations and prices. The CDR team approaches our projects as professional design/build contractors. We know exactly what we are contracting for, and CDR delivers. We are extremely happy with the work, and through completion of three projects we now have our dream home without having to leave a neighborhood and neighbors we love.

Areas Of Satisfaction

Wade, Noah and Suzanne were responsive to our communications and completed the work with care. The renovation is high quality and well done

Areas Of Satisfaction

The lead staff was excellent, easy to work with, very personable, and easy to get a hold of. The entire team was very sensitive to our needs. The design was a good fit for the rest of our house.

Additional Comments

We were very pleased with everything. We had a great experience, everything went very well.

CD&R designed and renovated a new kitchen, dining, living, and den space for us. They came in on time, and our new space is fantastic! Everyone was very nice and easy to work with.

While Craftsman Design did do a decent job of scheduling, the work site was protected and kept clean. The demolition and the basic construction seems solid. Electrical and plumbing seemed to be done well, though I don't trust the plumber, we will see how things hold up. The wood work was well done. The window they put in is nice, but already jumped off the track once. The fan they put in is good. However, there is a long list of fumbles in the project:-Design that did not account for transition to hallway-The bid assumed patching plaster with drywall which are incompatible materials-Poor project planning on the fixture allowance, even after I questioned them on it at the contract signing-Missed many details in our design, like how we said we didn't want a low flow toilet, but wanted the legal maximum allowed, yet we ended up with a low flow toilet anyway.-Unprofessional painter that did not know how to paint properly, and did not bring the proper tools to the job site.-Poor communication from designer-Several lazy/sloppy finish details (scratched finishes on fixtures, door handles that are not level, paint lines that aren't as clean as they should be, finish imperfections from dirt in the paint job, crooked tile line next to the tub, ugly transition between hall and bathroom because it was not accounted for in the design and there aren't any other options, cabinets that don't have equal space around the doors, door that was refurbished has odd spacing on new glass that was installed.)I could not in good conscious recommend Craftsman Design. The end results and project experience do not align with prices resulting in poor value.

Additional Comments

We were very satisfied with the team from Craftsman Design and very pleased with the renovation.

Wonderful design concepts; very flexible incorporating our ideas; great on-site staffing!

Areas Of Satisfaction

The team was incredibly responsive to our ideas, questions, and any stated concerns. They went above and beyond the scope of their project to help us address other aspects of our new home. Since we had just moved to Portland, that was wonderfully helpful!

Additional Comments

This is a wonderful company; we are simply delighted with our renovated kitchen.

We were really pleased with the quality of the work and the timeliness of it. I have gotten a lot of compliments from friends and neighbors on what we did to the house. We really appreciate everything that they did to take care of us.

Areas Of Satisfaction

I think the design that Wade came up with for the exterior of our house was really in keeping with the original style of the house, but at same time updated and personalized to what we were interested in. The design is elegant and it really suits the house. Wade was really responsive to our requests. The final quality of the work is really beautiful. I was really impressed with what Wade was able to do.

Areas Of Satisfaction

The friendliness and willingness of the Craftsman Design and Renovation staff to meet my satisfaction was exceptional.

Our project was repairing, restoring, and replacing one of a kind decorative ornamental features on our 1892 Queen Anne. Craftsman Designs demonstrated the ability to understand and problem-solve for period historical accuracy, prepare detailed architectural drawings, and possess the necessary master carpentry skills that met our every expectation. They are first class in their attention to detail. We smile whenever we look at the detailing and receive compliments from friends, neighbors and family.

Our overall experience with Craftsman Design and Renovation was very positive-- from the first meeting to hear what we wanted, throughout the active phase of the renovation, and at the end when there were just a few little fixes, we appreciated the expertise, the recommendations, the communication, and the beautiful results. We would highly recommend Craftsman to anyone seeking a beautiful realization of their dream kitchen/bath/addition-- what ever it may be!

Remarks on a previous page will, I think, do what you have in mind. Basically: I've been utterly and completely pleased with the scheduling, communications, work performance and end result. Interactions among LInda Fitch, Brant and myself were always pleasant, useful, timely, and informational from my point of view.