We're Still Here

Someone recently made a comment to me that got me thinking about how often I post a blog entry about what we are doing. While I do love to talk about the fruits of our design efforts and our labor, I wonder how often we need to self-promote? I have found that self-promotion doesn't hold a candle to the tried and true best advertising vehicle known to man, "word-of-mouth". Every client that Avaloft has ever had, with the exception of one, has been a direct result of word-of-mouth advertising. I owe a enormous amount of thanks to the many people who have referred us to others to help them solve their problems. We have weathered the economic storm of the past two years, in large part, due to their loyalty to our work and our brand. Thank you Mom, Jim, Michelle, Hilary, Ross, Kathy, Ian, Melissa, Steve, Shannon, Frank, Kim, Randy, Sabrina, Bryan, Liz, Rich, Sharon, Greg, Sarah, Michael, Lori, Ed, Alice and Keith for helping to keep food on my kids' table.

Naperville Addition and Kitchen Project

Work is now underway on our latest project, a major renovation to a home in the Winding Creek Subdivision of Naperville, IL. We're adding on to the home in three places. We will demolish the existing two-car garage, reuse its foundation for a master bedroom and add a master bath and closet. We'll then add a new three-car garage to the other side of the house and a sun-room in the back to replace the existing deck. We started two weeks ago with the existing house, shown at the left. Since then, we've replaces the windows not affected by the addition work with new Pella casement and awnings with 9-lite prairie-style grills between the glass. The new units get trimmed out with 1" rough-sawn cedar on the exterior and new casements will be installed on the inside. All of the existing cedar siding that will remain on the house gets a fresh coat of opaque stain from Sherwin-Williams. Now, let's bust this place open.

We started the demolition by cutting the existing garage away from the house and disconnecting the old electric. We found a couple circuits that actually ran through the garage and back into the house. Those had to be re-routed so that power wasn't lost in places where it wasn't intended to be. Then, the big machine comes out. John Green has been doing demolitions for me since 2003 and the existing garage came down in about 20 minutes and was loaded and hauled away in a semi-trailer in another 20. The same backhoe then gets to work on the excavation for the new foundations. We're going down 4 feet here for frost protection. 10" footings will be followed by 38" foundation walls. Excavation should be completed by the end of the day and the concrete contractor will get start on the foundation work Wednesday or Thursday. Nice hole!

In the meantime, interior demolition is underway, and we'll have more on that later. TTFN!

Visit Us in Wheaton - Design and Build!

Kitchen Remodel Rendering Demo - Part 1

We begin our demonstration on renderings with a Kitchen Remodel that we're drawing for a job in the White Eagle subdivision of Naperville. When we're all done, we'll post a finished product photo in the portfolio section of the website. http://www.avaloft.com/portfolio.htm. We start with a meeting with the homeowners to learn more about what doesn't work for them in their current environment and how they want the new space to function. In this case, the owners are looking to eliminate the kitchen table and make the sunroom behind the kitchen the primary place to sit down as a family. In so doing, we would gain space inside the kitchen to enlarge the work space and provide for a large breakfast bar. After taking measurements of the existing space, we put it all on paper and establish the space in which we have to work. By clicking on image above, you can see the room's dimensions and the associated notes and dimensions. The image below lets us look at the entire space in perspective from above to get a better feel for it. Here, we've given the wall their appropriate height and can establish where the entrances are to the space. Finally, we'll sketch out some different layouts, and after arriving at out best solution to meet the needs of the client, we'll meet with them to discuss and make adjustments as necessary. Here's what I will present later in the week to Frank and Amy.

Home Addition in Naperville - Rendering

Over the weekend, we finished a rendering of our next major project. We will be starting on a major renovation that will include three additions and a kitchen remodel to a home in Naperville very soon. The work includes the construction of a new first-floor master suite, relocation of the attached 3-car garage, and the addition of a sunroom.

Avaloft can provide this unique service to our clients to help visualize the finished product long before we start. We have more on how we can create renderings for your project coming soon, including a step-by-step demonstration. Read more about our core services on our website at http://www.avaloft.com

Geothermal Eco House Coming Soon!!!

Posting new pics soon. In the meanwhile, busy building a cool house on Spring Ave in Downtown Naperville :^)

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"V" Freeman's Sweet 16 Surprise

Host:
Matt Freeman (V's Dad)
Location:
Travel Express @ DuPage Airport

32 W 731 Tower Rd.

West Chicago, IL 60185 US

When: Saturday, November 15, 6:30PM

Come join us for food, music, and fun as we celebrate "V's" Sweet 16. The guest of honor will arrive at 7 pm, so be sure to arrive by 6:30. If you have an aritistic flair, or just want to have a little extra fun, come join the decorating crew at 4 o'clock to help set up.

Let me know if you need a ride.

Leave your reply here in the comments or send me an email address so I can include you on the official EVite.