Find Top-Rated Redondo Beach Interior Designers

Interior Design reviews in Redondo Beach

• A

  Apartment 73

  After months of struggling to properly decorate our Redondo Beach condo, I researched affordable interior design companies and found Apartment 73 via Google. My husband and I were not looking to create a showroom of our home; what we wanted was a warm and welcoming environment in which to live. We worked with Sheena and Caroline to help decorate our living room, master bedroom and dining room. The entire process was a delight. I worked in management consulting for many years and appreciate a streamlined process focused on positive results as well as an engaging client experience. Because we purchased the "In-Person Design Plan," Sheena Newman was our first point of contact. Our email interactions with Sheena were prompt and professional. Prior to meeting with Ms. Newman, we were sent a link to Apartment 73's virtual design platform. There, I took a cool style quiz, uploaded photos of my space and even provided them links to my Pinterest page! The easy and fast questionnaire probed deeper into what our vision for our condo would be both aesthetically (color palette, style, etc.) as well as what we wanted our house to be from a living perspective. I.E. how does our home function for us and how do we want it to feel. Post-questionnaire submission, Sheena visited us at home. She was prepared, punctual, an excellent listener (thank you Sheena...you made us feel heard), and very knowledgeable (just by viewing our space she was able to make excellent estimates about rug sizing, furniture placement, etc. but also made precise measurements to ensure accuracy). Post meeting, Sheena matched us with Caroline to start designing our living room, master bedroom and dining room via the virtual design platform. Caroline walked us thru why she chose certain pieces and how they would work in our space. We messaged Caroline a couple of times for clarification about our design board and she was responsive and thorough each time. In the end, Caroline submitted a final design, floor plan and even purchased all of the items we chose! Overall, I am very pleased with Caroline and Sheena's suggestions and their vision of our home. Thank you Apartment 73 for helping us pull together a look that not only visually appeals to us but also functions for our lives. Every time I walk into our house, I want to cry. It's so beautiful and exactly my taste!
  - Sue C.
• D

  Regal Construction & Remodeling Inc

  This was not a very good experience....... Regal Construction over promised and under delivered on multiple fronts! We didn't want to be that family that would ever write a bad review but...... this was so beyond comprehension and extremely disappointing!! the first sign this wasn't going to go be a good experience started on day one when Regal asked if it was "OK" for us to start late. They seemed very dis-organized....... we were told yes we can do this and that when in reality Regal couldn't come through on completing the job to our satisfaction. There is so much to complain about that I'm not sure where to start...... 1) If they mention "Ronnie" the cabinet guy ..... run for the hills! He sent workers to our house at 8:30p....... 3-4 different times during the course of construction. They were so incompetent it's almost hard to believe. Regal should be more careful in choosing their vendors. VERY poor representation and association....it was a complete "Black eye" for Regal! 2) The cabinets were not complete to the agreed upon specs..... We are still waiting for the Tip Tray...... 3) they didn't complete the job....... didn't paint under bar area where they replaced the Granite..... we needed to hire someone else to finish the job. 4) They didn't clean up after the job was "completed"...... the actual contract0r needed to come out and clean our walls, crawl space door (which was suppose to be re-painted.... never happened)and all the dust created by their workers. 5) Appliances where not hooked up correctly..... garbage disposal leaking and dishwasher was hooked up incorrectly..... need to have warranty company come out for service call..... job hasn't been completed for a full month yet!!! 6) over ordered cabinets so no one could figure out where they went..... I literally needed to print out blue prints that were provided by Regal Construction so cabinets could be completed. 7) It was so bad that the Contractor offered to take off $500 buck from the final bill..... big deal! We would have paid $5,000 to have the job done correctly and to our satisfaction (which was our highest bid....... you get what you pay for...... pain in the butt!) 8) Five days went by that we didn't see a single person from Regal Construct or their vendors..... which might be a big reason that the job 3 weeks longer then promised. 9) The unprofessional and constant mistakes were so frustrating that almost asked them to stop the job...... so painful...... i would not go through this experience again! 10) My final word would be...... BUYER beware ! There are so many more issue we could list but ........ we want this awful experience to be behind us! please do your homework before hiring Regal or any contractor....... I really thought we vetted out every contractor/person we met with but you can always do more!! Good Luck!!!
  - Monica M.
• A

  Corey Brown Decor

  Corey brought different materials, colors and textures together for us in a way that was exactly what we wanted before we realized what we wanted. He provides his expertise without ego or judgement, giving other options and respecting the client's tastes/preferences. He is even-keeled and easy to work with. There are always going to be challenges/disconnects when you're working with a designer along with multiple contractors, and Corey handled them with flexibility and understanding.
  - Matt B.
• A

  Supreme Remodeling Inc

  We chose Supreme Remodeling to help us with a major renovation of two bathrooms and a kitchen, fireplace refacing and new hardwood flooring. When I say major I mean it. Both bathrooms and the kitchen were completely gutted and redone. There were major changes to the layout of the plumbing and electrical. Sinks, showers and tubs were relocated. By the end of the project I would say about 70% of the plumbing and 40% of the electrical wiring was redone in our home!
  We feel very fortunate to have worked with Simon for this massive project. Simon was there for us every step of the way. He gave us great advice and ideas on how to make optimal use of our space. One of his best ideas was to remove a linen closet in order to extend a bathroom wall and make room for a beautiful soaker tub!
  We have a town home managed by a strict HOA located in city with even stricter city inspectors. Simon did everything according to city code and our renovations were fully permitted.
  You hear a lot of horror stories with major renovations like ours and usually the trouble starts when unexpected issues come up once the walls are opened up. We also encountered unexpected issues along the way but the great thing is that Simon worked with us to come up with solutions with which we are comfortable and happy. He always found a way to solve the issue and stay on budget. 
  However, to be completely honest, a couple of the unexpected issues did cost us more money. One issue was that we needed a new electrical main panel because the previous one did not meet city code with the additions needed for this project. Another issue was that we discovered plumbing leaks in our garage that needed to be fixed. In all cases Simon gave us a very good price to fix the issues. In fact, he only charged us his costs to make the repairs and did not try to make additional profit. We were on a really tight budget and this really helped us out!
  Speaking of budget, we got three bids before starting the project and Simon's bid was the lowest. Simon really took the time to figure out a budget for us that we could handle. We are thrilled with the final results and feel that we were treated honestly and fairly every step of the way. Simon really worked hard to make us happy. He also did a lot of extras for us. This included adding more electrical outlets in the living room, installing a bath fan in a bathroom not part of the remodel, professionally installing under cabinet lighting and a new water filtration system in the kitchen.
  Thinking back on this experience, we think the greatest benefit of working with Simon was his ideas for how our space could be used optimally. Other contractors we interviewed didn't even try to think outside the box for us. They were simply going to install new cabinets, finishes, fixtures in the same layout as before. If we had chosen one of these other contractors we would never have realized the potential of our space. With another contractor we would have spent a lot more money and still not have a space that was any more functional.
  Pros
  - Great design ideas and advice. No other contractor suggested removing a linen closet to widen a bathroom. This was a fantastic idea and we have room for a beautiful soaker tub because of it!
  - High-quality work
  - They worked diligently with city inspectors so that all work is permitted
  - Simon did everything to make us happy. If we were displeased with how something was done, he would redo it to our satisfaction and not charge us a penny more
  Cons
  - The project went way over the expected timeline. This was mainly due to changes required by the city to pass inspection, running out of materials, and limitations with scheduling enough sub contractors to help get things done faster.
  - You need to stay on top of all the details. We are very picky and chose specific materials and wanted things done specific ways. We learned quickly after a few things went differently than expected that it was critical to communicate all the details as clearly and consistently as possible. But again, when mistakes were made, they were corrected to our liking.
  
  
  - Jeffrey M.
• A

  SOD Builders

  We found them on Angie's List and the estimator turned out to be our project leader, Adam T. He and his team were wonderful to work with, especially since we had to live in a hotel while the work was going on. The entire first floor needed patching of open walls - we had the entire first floor re-piped to prevent a recurrence of the water line break that caused this. So there were holes in the walls everywhere - maybe 20 of them from floor to ceiling that the plumbing guys had left. SOD covered everything, worked efficiently, let us select new colors for the paint job, and made my wife and me happy to see them arrive. They also repaired cabinet woodwork damaged by water, and made it match the undamaged cabinetry. The result is a first floor that looks better than when they started. And if something wasn't quite right - that always happens - they promptly came back to fix it. 
  Would I hire again? I actually tried to hire them again when an air conditioning installation went south, but Adam advised the job was too small for them to handle efficiently and gave me good advice on getting it done at reasonable cost. Quality and integrity in a contractor - a breath of fresh air for us.
  
  - Gene S.
• B

  Preferred Home Builders Inc

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  We selected Preferred Home Buildings (PHB) to renovate
  
  
  
  our kitchen after meeting with 2 other contractors and reviewing online
  
  
  
  reviews.  The 2 primary reasons we
  
  
  
  selected PHB, other than the positive reviews, were 1) the initial design that
  
  
  
  was provided to us by the project designer and 2) the fact that the company
  
  
  
  highlighted their project management skills and communication as a
  
  
  
  differentiator from other companies.  Now
  
  
  
  that our project has been completed, we still support reason #1 (we are very
  
  
  
  happy with the end result) but were sorely disappointed with #2.  We sent this draft review to PHB and
  
  
  
  subsequently received a call from the owner to discuss our input. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Project schedule:
  
  
  
  the estimate for completion when we signed the contract was 5 weeks.  Ultimately, we were able to start using the
  
  
  
  kitchen after just 4 weeks, but there were residual tasks that did not get
  
  
  
  completed until the end of the 6th week.  Even after completion, it was another 9 days
  
  
  
  before PHB returned to remove their lockbox from our front door.  Overall, given the fact that there were some
  
  
  
  additional scope changes (driven primarily by us) during the project, we felt
  
  
  
  they delivered upon their schedule commitment adequately.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Cost: another
  
  
  
  selling point for PHB was their position that they do not originate any change
  
  
  
  orders to increase cost during the execution of the project.  While it is true that they did not come to us
  
  
  
  to request additional money for unforeseen costs, we did have to negotiate extensively
  
  
  
  with them for some repairs that we felt strongly they had caused.  The overall assessment for cost would be
  
  
  
  good, although we would have preferred not to have to engage in disputes of
  
  
  
  items like the wood floor repairs.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Project
  
  
  
  Management: At the beginning of the project, PHB identified 3 primary
  
  
  
  people that we would be interfacing with during the project: the designer, the
  
  
  
  office coordinator, and the on-site foreman. 
  
  
  
  We will assess each of these people individually and as a group.  The designer was very friendly and engaging,
  
  
  
  especially during the initial selling/design phases of the project.  He took the time necessary to create a
  
  
  
  detailed plan that we liked, and was responsive to requests from us for
  
  
  
  alternate options or changes.  He took
  
  
  
  time to visit the cabinet maker and tile store with us to help us select our
  
  
  
  materials.  However, once we had signed
  
  
  
  the contract and made these initial selections, we found him to be very
  
  
  
  unresponsive and disconnected from our project. 
  
  
  
  He would make commitments to us to do things, but would then not follow
  
  
  
  through.  For example, we were frustrated
  
  
  
  that the countertop he helped us select from the tile store was more expensive
  
  
  
  than he had bid in the project, so needed to go back to the tile store to look
  
  
  
  at options within our price.  He agreed
  
  
  
  to take a book identifying the pricing categories to the tile store for us to
  
  
  
  reference (which is just a 5 minute drive from his office), but when we went,
  
  
  
  he had not done that so it required 3 times as much time in the store for the
  
  
  
  saleswoman to look up the individual price of each item.  When we could get his attention, he would
  
  
  
  argue with us over stupid things.  For
  
  
  
  example, when the kitchen faucet was installed, the handle was put on the left
  
  
  
  side of the faucet which we pointed out was not correct.  He argued with us that it was correct, said
  
  
  
  it couldn?t be changed, and asserted that we had purchased a ?left handed
  
  
  
  faucet? even though we provided the installation instructions which showed the
  
  
  
  handle on the right, and the fact that the heating was reversed with hot water
  
  
  
  coming out when the handle was pulled forward. 
  
  
  
  After several weeks of this dispute, we pointed out the issue to the
  
  
  
  foreman, he said it was no problem, and the handle was moved shortly after.  We also expected the designer to provide more
  
  
  
  oversight to the project to ensure the execution was consistent with his
  
  
  
  design.  In fact, in the sales process,
  
  
  
  he said he would be by every few days to check in.  However, he rarely came by and, on at least
  
  
  
  one occasion, actually lied to us by saying he had come by one morning,
  
  
  
  although we knew he had not since one of us was home from work that day.  Errors were made in the project execution, as
  
  
  
  when a beam was left jutting out several inches further than it should have
  
  
  
  been, that would not have been caught except for the fact that we personally
  
  
  
  examined the site every night and called their attention to this issue.  By the end of the project, the designer simply
  
  
  
  stopped responding to our phone calls and emails. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The office coordinator was responsible for sending weekly
  
  
  
  schedules of the planned activity, tracking/requesting payments, and scheduling
  
  
  
  the various workers.  While initially she
  
  
  
  seemed to be handling these tasks well, over the course of the project we
  
  
  
  became very disappointed with her performance.  The actual activity was inconsistent with what
  
  
  
  she had told us would happen, and she would even believe that certain activity
  
  
  
  had occurred when in fact it did not happen. 
  
  
  
  She also stopped communicating with us directly during the second half
  
  
  
  of the project and instead responded to our requests for information through
  
  
  
  other office staff.  Near the end of the
  
  
  
  project, we created a list of the items remaining to be completed and shared it
  
  
  
  with her and the project designer to ensure clear communication.  Both she and the designer took offense to
  
  
  
  this, and would ignore items on the list or argue they were complete when they
  
  
  
  were not.  An example of this was our
  
  
  
  request for them to have the cabinet maker fill a significant gap between the
  
  
  
  cabinets and the top of the fridge (NOTE: they were provided with the
  
  
  
  dimensions of the fridge prior to installation).  For several weeks we argued with the office
  
  
  
  coordinator about this, with her saying that the only filler piece they had was
  
  
  
  1 inch high which would not work since the gap was around 3 inches high.  We repeatedly told her that even a 1 inch
  
  
  
  filler would be better than none, but it still took several weeks of arguing
  
  
  
  this point before the filler was eventually installed.  Another example of some poor communication
  
  
  
  was when one of their workers showed up at our house after 9pm
  
  
  
  unannounced.  He was about to use the key
  
  
  
  in the lockbox to open the front door (even at that hour) and our burglar alarm
  
  
  
  was already on for the night.  Luckily we
  
  
  
  got to the door just in time otherwise the alarm would have triggered waking up
  
  
  
  our 2 year old son.  We would have
  
  
  
  expected the office coordinator to inform us if someone was coming after
  
  
  
  working hours.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Prior to project completion, the project designer came to
  
  
  
  our house one night to introduce us to the foreman who would be managing the
  
  
  
  on-site work.  He seemed nice and we were
  
  
  
  comfortable with that plan.  However, on
  
  
  
  the first day of the project, a different foreman showed up with no advance
  
  
  
  warning.  When we questioned this, we
  
  
  
  were told he was the ?demolition foreman? and that the other gentleman would
  
  
  
  take over once the construction began. 
  
  
  
  However, the first person never showed up again and the ?demolition
  
  
  
  foreman? continued with the rest of the project, without anyone ever acknowledging
  
  
  
  the change to us.  Overall, we were happy
  
  
  
  with the foreman and found him very easy to work with.  Unfortunately, any agreements discussions we
  
  
  
  had to him were then directed to the project designer/office coordinator, which
  
  
  
  ultimately delayed items and caused a significant amount of confusion, in our
  
  
  
  opinion due to the project designer and officer coordinator, not the foreman.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Overall we would rate the project management as
  
  
  
  poor.  Essentially we felt like we had to
  
  
  
  take on a significant amount of responsibility to manage the daily activities
  
  
  
  and continue to follow-up with the office coordinator and project manager
  
  
  
  several times before we received responses or resolved issues.  They also had some coordination errors that
  
  
  
  caused some delays in the project, as when they continued to forget to place an
  
  
  
  order for the replacement window (which the project manager had agreed to do in
  
  
  
  the very beginning) until the project was almost complete, so the window did
  
  
  
  not get installed for almost 2 weeks after the majority of the project was
  
  
  
  complete.  This was especially
  
  
  
  disappointing given how the company advertised their project management as a
  
  
  
  highlight early in our discussions.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Cleanliness:
  
  
  
  Overall we were happy with the clean-up done each day by the on-site team and
  
  
  
  at the end of the project.  While it is
  
  
  
  never possible to contain all the dust, they installed plastic sheeting as
  
  
  
  requested, put down floor protectors, and vacuumed at the end of the dirtiest
  
  
  
  days. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  On-site workers:
  
  
  
  We found the workers who were on-site performing the work to be very friendly
  
  
  
  and polite.  They did a great job and we
  
  
  
  had no major concerns with them.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  End result: We
  
  
  
  are very happy with the end result of our kitchen renovation and have not found
  
  
  
  any significant issues so far (it has been roughly 2 months since project
  
  
  
  completion).  We like the design, the
  
  
  
  layout, and the quality of the work. 
  
  
  
  Unfortunately, even with the fact that we are happy with the end result,
  
  
  
  to date we have declined to recommend PHB to friends and family due to some of
  
  
  
  the concerns we had with the project execution. 
  
  
  
  However, if PHB were to improve their project management, communication,
  
  
  
  and coordination, we believe they could become a much stronger company that
  
  
  
  would warrant recommendation.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  - Brandon W.
• A

  RED Home Design & Staging

  lesRed Home Design staged 2 vacant homes, and re-designed 2 homes using the existing furnishings.
  The transformation on each of these was amazing. It's always fun to walk through each room and see the nice arrangement of furnishings and artwork/decor.
  Two of the vacant home sellers live out of the state; when I sent them photos of their newly staged properties they were ecstatic. One of the properties sold for well over asking price ($35k), and the other sold at asking price...both went pending within a short time after listing.  
  As for the properties of the home sellers living in the properties, the results were also amazing and sold for over asking price in a short amount of time. Both of these homes sold over asking: one was $10k over and the other was $60k over asking. If you want to see proof, I will be happy to send you the addresses so you can view the photos and closed sales pricing on these.
  Results, of course, vary by area, location and property condition, but staging/redesign always improves the look and feel of a home. And home buyers are interested in buying homes that look and feel good!
  As a real estate professional, it's important to have reliable companies to recommend to home sellers. I simply cannot say enough good things about Redo Home Design. The prices are reasonable, and the outcome is well worth the investment.
  
  - Melinda F.
• A

  Susan Deneau Interior Design

  We want  to redo our master bedroom but be sympathetic to the ethos of our 
  1950's home.   Having never worked with a designer before we were not sure what to expect but Susan came up with some creative solutions to some  design issues that had been stalling the project.
    She really understood what we were going for  -  we are delighted with our new Master Bedroom!
  
  
  
  - ANTHONY D.
• A

  Claudia Interior Design

  Claudia also chose quality contractors that were timely, responsive, and fairly priced. They also did an amazing job on the wood flooring (we have lots of stairs) and the tile in our bathrooms. I always felt they were honest, professional and respectful of our home.
  The best part about our home remodel was Claudia's vision and phenomenal professionalism. I continue to be so incredibly impressed with her responsiveness and follow-through. If everyone was as service oriented as Claudia, the world would be a better place. As an added bonus, she has a spectacular sense of humor, which is really nice when you are trying to choose flooring, paint colors, or anything else that isn't always easy to do. It bears noting that she charged a fair flat rate for the entire project except for a little shopping trip that occurred several months after the main project. Lastly, she makes you feel like she cares about your home as much as you do, which I think is a rarity. I highly recommend Claudia to anyone for any interior design service. She will exceed your expectations in every way.
  
  - Matthew G.
• C

  Preferred Home Builders Inc

  It was an uncomfortable experience. 
  The company, as well as the individual contractor continued to push for a committment to give them the work.  The deal was just for a design, but since it was a design/build company I was interested in giving them the work.  Until the interaction with the contractor turned us off to the company. 
  My girlfriend spent a lot of time planning out ideas and scoping out the project.  When she told him her ideas he just shot them down, interrupted her and spoke over her.  The main red flag for us was the price for the remodel.  He didn't quote a price until asking for our budget, and sure enough the price wasn't a penny under the set budget.  He encouraged us to increase our budget of $10K.  I know that it can be more "difficult" working in a condo, but that was too much money to part with for what we were getting. 
  In summary, the contractor's tone from the beginning dissuaded us from pursuing the project with this company.  The price tag made the decision even easier.
  
  - Gregory W.