Remodeling projects do not always have to involve knocking down a wall or tearing out some antiquated bathroom fixtures.

Often a great looking remodeling project can involve updating a few key items within a home and putting a fresh coat of paint in the right places to give the project a “Brand New” look.

Ms. Peggy – she insisted that we call her by her first name – wanted a fresh new look for her kitchen, living room and bedrooms.  She knew she wanted granite counter tops and new appliances for the kitchen, but she didn’t want to spend all that money and be left with an outdated look for the rest of the house.  We worked with Ms. Peggy on developing several options for updating the kitchen and den area, replacing the old closet doors throughout the house, and painting the interior and exterior.

Here’s where we started…

The first item to trash was the existing ceiling tiles.  In a house this old, you have to make sure that certain materials are tested for asbestos and disposed of properly.  Fortunately these ceiling tiles came back negative for asbestos , so we were able to tear out the old ceiling and install a new drywall ceiling.

This kitchen remodel focused on 2 specific areas

1) NEW GRANITE COUNTER TOPS

2) NEW APPLIANCES

The refrigerator Ms. Peggy purchased was about 6″ wider than the existing one, so we had to modify the wall cabinets.

The existing cabinets are at least 15 years old.  Can you pick out the new cabinet – finished to match the existing cabinets?

Slapping on a fresh coat of paint always helps spruce up any house, but bringing in professional painters to paint the interior and exterior makes the project look brand new.

We also replaced the old and dated closet doors in the bedrooms and hallway.  Although the new closet doors are nothing spectacular or custom, they achieve an updated, modern look for the home without breaking the budget.

This project was great fun and our client, Ms. Peggy, was an absolute joy to be around on a regular basis.

For more BEFORE and AFTER photos, click here.

Are you trying to maximize your budget, and want to know how to achieve your remodeling goals?

Call REDBUD Construction Services 865-250-9172

We would love the chance to serve you and tell others what a joy YOU were to work with.

Remodeling a master bathroom always requires a careful and thoughtful balance of design and constructability.

The DESIGN…

The existing ‘Master Bathroom’ in this house was what I call a “Hotel Style” bathroom.  The vanity was located between a walk-in closet and the space/room where the shower and toilet were located.  You see this layout in many hotel rooms, where the vanity is not included in the ‘bath/shower/toilet area.’  This works fine for a weekend stay away from home, but feels slightly non-discrete when it is your master bathroom.

Not only was the shower area cramped, but also the toilet was also so close the edge of the shower/tub that the customers had little room to maneuver.

Below is a drawing of the existing space…
It was RCS’ job to figure out how to open up the space and incorporate a custom Soaker Tub into the new layout.

After a producing a few sketches (Sketch 2, Sketch 3, Sketch 4), the Owners decided they would go with what we called the “Grand Master Bathroom.”

This layout utilized the existing walk-in closet space for the new tub area and allowed the addition of French Doors to create a separation between the existing Master Bedroom area and the new Master Bathroom.  Since the Master Bedroom area was very large, we decided to relocate the walk-in closet.  This relocation created an even more intimate entry into the new Master Bathroom and gave the owners the opportunity to update their closet space with a more efficient layout.

CONSTRUCTABILITY…

In order to construct this design, it was necessary to remove everything in the existing bathroom, vanity, and closet areas down to the sub-floor and studs.

The biggest challenge of construction was going to be relocating the plumbing for the new Soaker Tub to an area with no existing plumbing lines or drains.

To facilitate the tub in this new location, we raised the tub about 6-8 inches above the existing subfloor.  This enabled the plumber to make the tub drain connection without cutting into the existing floor joists and also created a platform area to step in and out of the tub.  From an asthetic point of view, raising the tub above the floor made the tub area the “Grand Feature” of this space.

We aslo decided to frame in a header approximately 12 inches below the finished ceiling to further accent the tub area.

This header also hides the Rainfall Shower headed located in the ceiling of the tub area and the showercurtain rod, giving a clean view of the custom tile work around the tub and shower area.

And here are a few details that finsihed off this project nicely…

For more photos including before and after, click here.

Do you have a project that you would like to complete and don’t know where to start?

Call RCS and we can help you.  865-250-9172

Incorrect Plumbing

I had a hard time understanding exactly what they were trying to describe, but when we met the owners at their home, I understood completely.  Unfortunately for the current homeowners, the previous owners had taken on a plumbing project that was literally ‘over their heads.’  The pluming in the living room ceiling was installed in order to put a bathroom upstairs in what used to be a renovated attic space, but it was installed incorrectly.  The only way the drain lines would have worked was if water flowed uphill!

So there was the first challenge.  Fix the plumbing and make the living room ceiling look like a living room ceiling…again.

Bathroom Before

Down to the Framing

The next challenge was to renovate the downstairs bathroom to gain more space for a family of five, and to make it a retreat for mom…a place to soak away the stresses of the day in the antique, cast-iron, claw foot tub.  The owners (especially the mom) wanted to have a spacious bathroom for her tub and incorporate an archway into the design.  The problem was that in an 80-year old house with a very old bathroom, the floors have a tendency not to be level and there is usually water damage over that period of time….and so was the case on this project.  So we had to remove the floor down to the joists and start from there.

After removing the floor, ceilings and walls, we re-framed, re-wired, re-plumbed, and re-finished the bathroom…mom had a place to relax and get away…if only for a few minutes.

No More Plumbing

Aaron and Katie (mom)…the owners:

“When we needed to hire a contracting company to remodel our 1925 Arts and Crafts house, we had 3 requirements in mind during our selection process: honesty, quality design and materials, and a good old-fashioned hard working spirit. Redbud Construction Services was the obvious choice for us! From the initial cost estimation and design process all the way to the last day of clean up, the Redbud team went above and beyond the call of duty. You will not find a better company to work with!”

Check out more of this project’s photos on our home page under the Featured Photos section in the middle of the home page.
Do you have a project that you would like to complete and don’t know where to start? Call RCS and we can help you.  865-250-9172

Before: Masterbath

This is where we started.  What we refer to as a ‘CONTRACTOR SPECIAL’…meaning the contractor that built the house probably received a special discount on every item in this bathroom because he/she bought everything in bulk.  Nothing special at all, really.

The homeowners called REDBUD Construction Services and said, “We want to update our bathroom, but we don’t know what we want.  We just know we don’t want this anymore.”

After a couple of design consultation meetings and producing an ‘AS-BUILT’ sketch, the RCS design team started working on a design that would ‘open-up’ the space by removing the old tub, demo’ing the wall at the end of the vanity, remove the vanity and generally brighten up the space with a new lighting scheme and add architectural detials like a raised panel wainscott and a new tile floor and walk-in shower.

In order to deliver a design that meets the owners’ needs and makes best use of a given space, RCS tries to focus on a sigle element and design the space with that in mind.

THE FOCUS OF THIS SPACE WAS THE WALK-IN SHOWER FOR TWO.

Remodeled Walk-In Shower

We replaced the tub and added a clear glass door.  The simple tile design and recessed lights make this shower area the focus of the bathroom.  The owners didn’t exactly know what they wanted when we started, so I suggested that they browse the internet and find a picture of something they liked.  This is what they sent us…

An Example of What They Wanted

And this is where we ended up…

The Final Product

Adam and Ellen (the Owners)…

“Redbud Construction helped us dream of a design, and then they took it from there.  From the architectural drawings to completion.  Shawn’s professionalism and integrity sold us on using them for our remodel.  He was always up front with us  and was always looking out for our best interest.  The team he assembled to remodel our bathroom was top notch.  I highly recommend them for any construction job you might have!”

Do you have a project that you would like to complete and don’t know where to start?  Call RCS and we can help you “dream of a design.”

865-250-9172