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I just got back from a visit with the fine folks at Design Workshop in Aspen. They’re the landscape-design gurus behind many of the beautiful gardens and outdoorscapes in Aspen (and beyond) and if you ask me, everything they touch turns to gold. I thought you’d like to see a few snapshots from the tour of their gardens–wouldn’t you just love to pass a summer afternoon in the midst of any one of these scenes, cool drink and good read in hand? Don’t miss more of their work: designworkshop.com.
Tags: Aspen, Design Workshop, gardens, landscape architecture, outdoor living
Last week I had the pleasure of being included in Old Greenwich Builders‘ annual marketing meeting. Well, let me qualify…I happened to know that Chris Withers and Cress Carter, co-owners of OGB, host their annual planning meeting over steaks and wine. So this year, I invited myself because I couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to hear from one of Denver’s most notable general contractors about how business is going and what they have planned for the future. So, over a fabulous steak dinner at Elway’s in Cherry Creek, we enjoyed a bottle of 2005 Franciscan Magnificat from Napa Valley, CA, and talked shop.
Cress filled me in and said that business is good, and that even though it might not be back to where it once was, they’ve been able to start new projects in the past few months that have taken them into new neighborhoods, as well as start new business relationships (with New World Millworks, for example, who used to only deal with large high-end commercial projects.) Part of the reason Cress and Chris are still faring well in such a tough building economy is that they measure their success very simply by 100% customer satisfaction. They told me, “We remain friends with our clients, sometimes close friends, and you couldn’t do that if you didn’t feel like your clients weren’t completely happy with their homes.” Makes sense.
I asked them during dinner if it’s possible to complete a project on time and on budget–you hear so many stories on the contrary–and they told me that it definitely can be done, but that oftentimes their projects’ budgets are extended because their clients are exposed to far more detail than they know is possible. Once a client knows what kind of custom detailing is available to them, they often make decisions to increase their budgets and upgrade their design and finishes.
It doesn’t hurt that Cress and Chris are the nicest, most honest, interesting, and easy-on-the-eyes guys you will ever meet. If you are looking for a high-end renovation or custom-home builder, check out OGB’s work: oldgreenwichbuilders.com.
Tags: custom home building, Denver, Elway's Restaurant, high-end renovation, home building, home building trends, Old Greenwich Builders, wine
We were all so excited to see this amazing winning entry by Wende Watson from our Bath of the Year contest. It is an entirely different thing shooting the space, with the whole photo team huddling in the WC (Emily Minton Redfield adjusts the camera angle here). The uncharacteristically overcast Colorado day really made the shoot, allowing for this soft, glamorous lighting. We were all enthralled with the second-story curtained deck furnished with a double chaise, the stunning high-gloss white vanity sink base, and the clever asymmetrical custom cabinetry. You won’t want to miss the August issue, with gorgeous color-glossy spreads of this and more stunning baths, plus our Kitchen of the Year winning spaces.
Already we’ve gotten some comical responses to our invitation in our Jan/Feb issue to look back at the milestones and missteps in Colorado design history. Judy from Denver writes, "I grew up in Denver, and my mother was so excited about the pastel flowered wallpaper she found that she put it up everywhere: the kitchen, her bedroom, the living room, even the guest bathroom. Now that I think of it, I can’t decide if it looked like it belonged in an old folks’ home or a baby’s room. Even though I know that wallpaper is cool again, especially in those big prints, I just can’t bring myself to even consider it, after years of living with those tiny baby blue and pale pink flowers!"
And Laila from Edwards says, "Ha! I loved your reference to mirrored walls. We had a whole wall of mirrors in our living room when I was a kid…and a huge sectional sofa in a brushed mauve/purple velvet. When it was delivered, I was eight, and i remember thinking how awesome it was. I wanted to sleep on it, so my mom let me spend the night on the couch."
We did hear from a reader, Karen, who said that she can’t believe that we’d make fun of the homes that once graced the pages of our magazine. We certainly don’t mean to offend anyone, and while we do believe good design is important–and a fascinating reflection of pop culture, politics and geography–we don’t think it hurts to have a good chuckle from time to time at trends that we’re glad are long gone. Disagree? Send me a note at hoswald@coloradohomesmag.com. I’d be happy to post your responses.
