Spaces for Life: How to prioritize for a big project
By Lance McCarthy Ever seen the Steve Martin movie The Jerk? It has one of my all time favorite scenes. He has just told his wife he’s leaving, and he doesn’t need her or anything else…except this ash tray…and this lamp…and this chair…and that’s all!…and this remote control…and… That’s a lot like a big home
Spaces for Life: What to know before choosing a designer
By Lance McCarthy When you are getting ready for a project, the most important decision you will make is in picking the team. The contractor, architect and interior designer will be crucial to getting you the space you want. I’ve talked a lot about how to pick the contractor, but I wanted to share some
Spaces for Life: How hidden agendas can hijack remodeling projects
By Lance McCarthy I heard a story recently about a young woman who was making dinner for her friends. They asked her why she cut both ends off the ham as she was preparing it. She said, “I don’t know, that’s the way my mom always prepared it.” The next day she called her mom
Spaces for Life: Prairie Village Addition
By Lance McCarthy Do you guys do _______________? That’s one of the questions I get more than any other. The blank is usually filled with all kinds of projects…bathrooms, kitchens, new builds, office tenant finishes, decks, leaky faucets…We love it all because our real passion isn’t a certain type of project, but more a certain
Spaces for Life: Ways to work with a contractor
By Lance McCarthy There are many ways to work with a contractor that are swirling around out there in Constructionland. I thought it might be helpful to give a brief overview of those different methods. As with chess pieces or Marvel Superheroes, there are strengths and weaknesses to each type. In case you were wondering,
Spaces for Life: The Secret to a successful construction project
By Lance McCarthy My 6-year-old has been honing his comedy skills, and discovered the impatient cow joke. You know this one? ***Spoiler alert*** I’m telling the joke now… “Knock Knock” “Who’s there?” “Impatient Cow” “Impatient C–” (before the other person can say “who”) “MOO!” I consider myself a humor connisseur, and this is still
Spaces for Life: Universal Design Frequently Asked Questions
By Lance McCarthy I have asked one of the other members of the ReTouch community (we have a number of companies in the construction and real estate industry that office together and work collaboratively) to write for this week, and I think you might find it interesting. Bryon Sunday owns Accessibility Remodeling, and they specialize
Spaces for Life: What you should know about interior doors
By Lance McCarthy Do you find your house mysterious and perplexing? I have decided to bravely serve as tour guide to the home. Each month I will dedicate one of my columns to illuminating some part of the house that most people might not know much about. This week’s topic: The Doors Not the
Spaces for Life: Do you like emotional roller coasters? Preparing for the challenge of a remodeling project.
By Lance McCarthy New clients are hardly ever prepared for the emotional challenge of a remodeling project. I considered forcing them to watch the movie “Money Pit” from back before Tom Hanks considered himself a serious actor, but I thought I might get backlash. (“Two weeks”?) So instead, I’ll try to describe the highs and lows
Spaces for Life: Call In The Experts – who will you need for your home project?
By Lance McCarthy As you start planning for a project on your home, you might be wondering who you need to talk to? A modern home is actually a fairly complicated system with thousands of parts and pieces. The team you put together can help make sure the work lasts for decades to come. Architect: