Bridgwater is known to be one of Somerset’s liveliest towns. With a history dating back over 1000 years, it has many traditions, including a carnival which happens every November, and is hailed as the world’s largest illumination procession. What wasn’t looking lively, however, was this Limestone tiled kitchen floor at a house in the town. It had been laid five years previously but at the time of laying hadn’t been sealed with adequate amounts of sealer. As a result, the Limestone had absorbed a lot of wet footprints and other dirty stains. The sealer simply broke down after a while, leaving the homeowner with a floor that never looked clean no matter how much they cleaned it – using all kinds of products. In fact, the tiles looked blackened and mouldy, as you can see in the photos below. It was time for the homeowner to seek out professional assistance, so she decided to contact her local Tile Doctor. I was asked to completely restore the look of the floor – something the homeowner had deemed impossible at this point. In practice, I knew the floor could be restored using the right products and methods including a really deep clean and resealing with the right type of sealer for these tiles. I scrubbed in Tile Doctor Remove and Go, which is a powerful coatings remover which draws out ingrained stains and strips away any old sealer remaining on the tiles. The floor was then rinsed thoroughly with plain water to neutralise it, and the resulting soiled solution was extracted using a wet vacuum. I repeated the process on stubborn areas, eventually transforming the floor back to its natural and clean state. I allowed the Limestone to dry out completely overnight before returning to the property to seal the tiles. This is important as the slightest amount of excess moisture can damage the performance of the sealer, and we would’ve been back to square one! After checking with a damp meter, I could see everything was fine, so I proceeded to seal the floor with Tile Doctor Colour Grow, which is not only a robust impregnating sealer that will protect the floor going forward but also enhancing the natural colours in the stone at the same time. In the space of two days, the Limestone tiles had been completely transformed. Now it had been properly sealed, the floor will be much easier to clean and therefore should stay looking great for a long time to come. The customer was very happy to have finally resolved the problem with some assistance from the Somerset Tile Doctor! Dave Hurst Somerset Tile Doctor

This paving and planting scheme features new hard landscaping elements and a new planting scheme. Artscape was initially briefed to extend and enhance the patio in the garden of a lovely home in the village of Cookham Dean in Berkshire. Our clients wanted to increase the size of the paved area so they could use it more frequently for relaxing and dining in the sun during the day. As well as increasing its size and practicality, they wanted the terrace to look and feel more inviting. The existing site was a mixture of brick paving, which was slippery underfoot, and tired concrete crazy paving. The patio also had stone retaining walls surrounded by sloped lawns and a few poorly maintained and mismatched shrubs. Redesigned and repaved area We first created a new, larger layout with a series of wider steps closer to the house, making a more inviting and welcoming area. Our landscapers paved the area with coursed sandstone, renowned for its incredible strength and durability. The earthy tones and unique texture of the sandstone gives it a natural timeless look which blends sympathetically with the garden setting. The worn finish of the paving also makes the surface safer to walk on. The edge of the paving curves in line from the end of the house to visually link the areas. Bullnosed edges enhance looks and safety Bullnosing provides the garden step edges with a smooth, luxury appearance, which also enhance safety. Safety is an important factor to consider when renovating or building new steps and paved areas. Smooth, rounded bullnosed steps or edges means there won’t be any harshly cut, sharp edges to injure someone should they trip or fall. Our Artscape paving experts can advise on the best bespoke, professionally profiled bullnose edges to suit the needs of your garden project. Replacing sloped lawns with plants Our initial brief was to create a new planted border just around the paved area. However, after various discussions and designs, our clients decided to follow our recommendation to expand the planting, so it included the whole sloping bank. The planting design also included the addition of small trees to create vertical interest. New nature-friendly planting The planting features an easy-to-maintain mix of perennials, grasses, and shrubs. This adds softness to the seating area and brings an everchanging display of flowers, foliage, textures and colours to the garden. The plants will attract more birds and butterflies to the garden, and will be beneficial for insects too. The lawn was doing very little to support a diversity of insects and birds. Replacing even a small section of lawn with perennial flowers, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers, or groundcovers will benefit nature and wildlife. As well as supporting greater biodiversity, plants are more environmentally friendly than maintaining a lawn. Lawns are drought tolerant and will recover even if the grass has turned brown and patchy in a heatwave. But to keep the lawn looking lush, green, and beautiful in a hot, dry spell will require constant and wasteful watering. The planting is informal and includes grasses, taking inspiration from the fields opposite. Ornamental grasses soften the scheme and bring movement to the garden as they shimmer in the slightest of breezes. Grasses are easy to grow and require little ongoing care. The main maintenance task is to cut the planting back in spring ready for the new growth to come through. To keep the whole project within our client’s budget, we retained the existing walls, simply carrying out some small repairs and modifications where necessary. We were also able to add stunning new atmospheric lighting to the older existing lighting circuit to illuminate the area at night.

After several years on the remodeling to-do list, the homeowners decided to update to add a sense of style to their half-bath/laundry and called the Renovisions team in to help create their vision for this space. The main goal was to provide a clean, open and inviting feel, while adding a nice balance of texture and interest. Upon a few visits to the Renovisions showroom, to discuss a suitable style, the final CAD design was approved and de-construction began. A new double-hung window replaced the old window, and measurements were taken for the new painted wood shutters. Out with the existing tile flooring, vanity, drop-in sink, toilet and outdated wall cabinets over laundry pair and window. In with the stylish, now taller shaker style vanity in stunning blue-green paint color. Pretty quartz countertop with under mount sink, and energy efficient comfort height toilet. The white subway wall tiles provide a classic look with timeless appeal fabulous with black porcelain floor tiles and contrasting light grey grout. Black and white provides a more dramatic look without compromising the rooms longevity. Overall. The client is thrilled with the simple and fresh look of her now more interesting and stylish bath/laundry room. The vintage industrial design with stylish mini pendant light fixtures with clear seedy glass shades in old bronze finish is a perfect addition to this newly remodeled space and ties in nicely with the oil rubbed bronze hardware and accessories. “The bathroom is SIMPLY BEAUTIFUL…….floor, tile, vanity, countertop, cabinets, lighting, and the faucet….I could not be more pleased!!!!!!” - Susan M. (Hanover)

Photo by Erika Cooper. We decided to make this custom built-in clean, simply, and symmetrical. The driftwood sculpture and shell accessories tie in with the seaside theme of the condo and the television is non-obtrusive. The built-in offers plenty of storage for AV components, books, and whatever else the clients want to stow away.

We were contacted by a homeowner in his mid-80s who decided it was time to retire his ladder. He was interested in a micro mesh gutter guard that would eliminate the need for ongoing maintenance. He already had 6-inch gutters, so we simply gave his gutters a tune-up by cleaning, resealing and resetting them so they would drain properly towards the downspouts. This home is located in Upper Arlington, Ohio

The kitchen isn't the only room worthy of delicious design... and so when these clients saw THEIR personal style come to life in the kitchen, they decided to go all in and put the Maine Coast construction team in charge of building out their vision for the home in its entirety. Talent at its best -- with tastes of this client, we simply had the privilege of doing the easy part -- building their dream home!

….with good lights, well-designed cabinets, privacy, and antique mirroring…. The desired characteristics for the walk-in closet were clear, but how to bring it to life? All the measurements were done, and the mood board was set… What was needed was to create the ambiance, the vibe, the mood that could not be drawn. For the boudoir feeling, we decided to go for an oriental and Moorish background. The fabric could be found in the warmth of a carpet or ottoman, but that made the room look to narrow. We needed to be more creative to get the best out of this space. I looked at different angles, materials, colours and woodwork. The closets needed to be handmade with shutter-like doors, but to give the room an even more delicate feeling, we needed to do something with the paneling of the doors. After sourcing and searching, I found it. The Carpenter could make latticed doors which would give just the right twist to the room. Subtly impactful. From there, every choice was simply an addition to the atmosphere we had created…the light paisley curtains, the copper curtain holder, the arch separating the bedroom from the walk in…. All of it welcomed one into a distinctly sultry world, and home. The cherry on the pie was a stunningly beautiful floor-to-ceiling antique mirror…. and Voila!

This Indian Sandstone Patio in Bolton-Le-Sands near Lancaster had not been cleaned successfully for several years. Although the owner had power washed it on occasion, that won’t rid you of Black Spot, Mould, Lichen etc and this will build-up over the years. It does clean the stone up to a certain standard but at some point, it will need further treatment. My client had now reached this point and decided to give Tile Doctor a call to have it renovated. We discussed the Patio which ran around the house and calculated that it measured approximately 60m2. With the measurements and a summary of the issues I was able to work out a quote which they were happy to accept. To improve the appearance of the stone I started by giving it a power wash to remove the general grime and dirt. I used a top of the range Karcher Pressure Washer for this which can apply up to 20 bars of pressure. The machine also comes with a spinner attachment results in a much more even clean than simply using the spray head. The patio was left to dry for thirty minutes before applying neat Tile Doctor Patio & Brick Driveway Cleaner. Please note this is a very powerful product meant for professional use so if you’re using it always wear gloves and protective glasses. You leave it on the stone for ten minutes or longer before working it in. The directions on the back of the bottle say recommend leaving it for two to four hours, but its general advice. Personally, I find it is best to test the timing on a small inconspicuous area first, leave it on for say ten minutes then add a bit of water, scrub the surface and if the Black Spot disappears then that is all the time you need. If the stain is stubborn, increase the time. The two to four hour recommendation is really for difficult Black Spots that have become ingrained into the stone and then the product needs longer to digest the stain before it can work. Once that was done, I used the power washer on low pressure to wash the products off the stone and into the sewerage drain, a wet vacuum comes in handy for this. Don’t dispose of it into the grass or planting areas as the strong chemicals in the product could upset them. Many properties have a soak away to capture rainwater from gutters, so you need to make sure it’s the sewage drain you are using. As you can see on the pictures, this product really does work and got rid of the Black Spot completely. To maintain the patio a regular jet wash was recommended, the household versions are ideal for keeping it clean and tidy. Due to the size of the Sandstone patio the whole process took around six hours to complete. Once done though the patio looked transformed and was all ready for a barbeque and some guests. Hopefully, it will stop raining long enough for this to happen. Russell Taylor Lancashire Tile Doctor

The family purchased the 1950s ranch on Mullet Lake because their daughter dreamed of being married on its shores. The home would be used for the wedding venue and then as a wedding gift to the young couple. We were originally hired in August 2014 to help with a simple renovation of the home that was to be completed well in advance of the August 2015 wedding date. However, thorough investigation revealed significant issues with the original foundation, floor framing and other critical elements of the home’s structure that made that impossible. Based on this information, the family decided to tear down and build again. So now we were tasked with designing a new home that would embody their daughter’s vision of a storybook home – a vision inspired by another one of our projects that she had toured. To capture this aesthetic, traditional cottage materials such as stone and cedar shakes are accentuated by more materials such as reclaimed barn wood siding and corrugated CORTEN steel accent roofs. Inside, interior finishes include hand-hewn timber accents that frame openings and highlight features like the entrance reading nook. Natural materials shine against white walls and simply furnished rooms. While the house has nods to vintage style throughout, the open-plan kitchen and living area allows for both contemporary living and entertaining. We were able to capture their daughter’s vision and the home was completed on time for her big day. - Jacqueline Southby Photography

When the Grossman’s located in Miami area decided it was time to transform their tired, old pool into the tranquil retreat they’ve always wanted, Van Kirk & Sons was there every step of the transformation process. At the end of a long day the family can enjoy unwinding in their spa, or simply listening to the serene sounds of the cleanly designed, floating water fountain. This stunning water feature also doubles as a unique, refreshing waterbed for sprawling out on in the sun. On the weekends, the Grossmans can finally entertain their friends by the pool, and by the looks of it, they’ll never want to leave.

We often get asked whether it is suitable to install a freestanding bathtub in an alcove. The answer – absolutely! Freestanding bathtubs have been around for nearly 150 years, and they are still part of every day design. Available in endless shapes, colors and sizes. The freestanding bathtub has really evolved in terms of materials, aesthetics and comfort. We recently collaborated with the incredibly talented Andria of Andria Fromm Interiors in Nashville. Our customer Jenny was renovating her bathroom and Andria had a stunning vision. Jenny wanted a shower as well as being able to enjoy soaking in a bathtub. They decided that installing a freestanding bathtub in an alcove they created was the best option to enjoy the best of both worlds. The end result is simply stunning. She completely transformed the room by wrapping the entire bathroom in tile. A beautiful mix marble, and tile adds dimension to the entire design. Andria integrated some Earthy elements as well, some greenery and wood trim. Natural light enters from the window centered above the T & L Adoni freestanding jetted bathtub providing a view of the garden. The soft white matte finish on the bathtub gives the appearance of natural stone with a clean crisp finish. Sunlight bounces off the elegant gold accents bringing a charming glow into the bathroom.

A 20-year old builder kitchen that desperately needed an update. That is why the Louds called us. A few years previously, we had completed a finished basement project for them that you can view here: https://www.allrd.com/project/loud-basement/ To connect the kitchen a little more with the dining room, we opened the doorway as wide and high as we could. One special feature of the kitchen is the beverage pantry. It was something the homeowner had seen online and wanted to make practical. Because pull outdoors would have been in the way, we went with slide-in, fold-out doors like what you would see in an entertainment center. The other unique feature of the kitchen is the center island. The blue was chosen to match the color theme of the connecting living room. The solid wood countertop is a striking centerpiece that steals the show. The cooktop was moved to the island, but because the homeowner did not want a bulky range hood hanging from the ceiling, we had to get creative with a downdraft range vent and a fan mounted on the outside of the house to pull the air out. Another interesting aspect to the cooktop is that we had originally recommended an induction cooktop instead of regular electric cooktop. The reason being that an induction cooktop cools instantly the moment the pot is removed whereas an electric cooktop stays hot but with no visual cue to warn you. The homeowner initially decided to go with the less expensive electric cooktop. But, before we had even finished construction, one of the family members slid their hand over the cooktop while walking by just after a pan had been removed and got burned. Immediately the homeowner requested we install the induction cooktop instead. Soft Maple Cabinets painted Simply White, Taj Mihal Granite countertops, farmhouse sink, 3” x 6” Antiqua Ceramic tile backsplash in Feelings Grigio, 30” Dacor HoodDowndraft vent, Luxury Vinyl tile floor, and LED i-Lighting undercabinet lighting.

Inspiration for a modern home design remodel in Seattle

This paving and planting scheme features new hard landscaping elements and a new planting scheme. Artscape was initially briefed to extend and enhance the patio in the garden of a lovely home in the village of Cookham Dean in Berkshire. Our clients wanted to increase the size of the paved area so they could use it more frequently for relaxing and dining in the sun during the day. As well as increasing its size and practicality, they wanted the terrace to look and feel more inviting. The existing site was a mixture of brick paving, which was slippery underfoot, and tired concrete crazy paving. The patio also had stone retaining walls surrounded by sloped lawns and a few poorly maintained and mismatched shrubs. Redesigned and repaved area We first created a new, larger layout with a series of wider steps closer to the house, making a more inviting and welcoming area. Our landscapers paved the area with coursed sandstone, renowned for its incredible strength and durability. The earthy tones and unique texture of the sandstone gives it a natural timeless look which blends sympathetically with the garden setting. The worn finish of the paving also makes the surface safer to walk on. The edge of the paving curves in line from the end of the house to visually link the areas. Bullnosed edges enhance looks and safety Bullnosing provides the garden step edges with a smooth, luxury appearance, which also enhance safety. Safety is an important factor to consider when renovating or building new steps and paved areas. Smooth, rounded bullnosed steps or edges means there won’t be any harshly cut, sharp edges to injure someone should they trip or fall. Our Artscape paving experts can advise on the best bespoke, professionally profiled bullnose edges to suit the needs of your garden project. Replacing sloped lawns with plants Our initial brief was to create a new planted border just around the paved area. However, after various discussions and designs, our clients decided to follow our recommendation to expand the planting, so it included the whole sloping bank. The planting design also included the addition of small trees to create vertical interest. New nature-friendly planting The planting features an easy-to-maintain mix of perennials, grasses, and shrubs. This adds softness to the seating area and brings an everchanging display of flowers, foliage, textures and colours to the garden. The plants will attract more birds and butterflies to the garden, and will be beneficial for insects too. The lawn was doing very little to support a diversity of insects and birds. Replacing even a small section of lawn with perennial flowers, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers, or groundcovers will benefit nature and wildlife. As well as supporting greater biodiversity, plants are more environmentally friendly than maintaining a lawn. Lawns are drought tolerant and will recover even if the grass has turned brown and patchy in a heatwave. But to keep the lawn looking lush, green, and beautiful in a hot, dry spell will require constant and wasteful watering. The planting is informal and includes grasses, taking inspiration from the fields opposite. Ornamental grasses soften the scheme and bring movement to the garden as they shimmer in the slightest of breezes. Grasses are easy to grow and require little ongoing care. The main maintenance task is to cut the planting back in spring ready for the new growth to come through. To keep the whole project within our client’s budget, we retained the existing walls, simply carrying out some small repairs and modifications where necessary. We were also able to add stunning new atmospheric lighting to the older existing lighting circuit to illuminate the area at night.

Project near Boston MA Installed by longtime customer LifeTime Tilers of Westfield MA Onda is a tile that brings the second oldest European style profile (what we in North America know as ‘Spanish S’), into the 21st Century. By combining the classic beauty of the S profile with high tech double side and head locks they can provide a tile that will withstand whatever Mother Nature wants to throw at it. Once tile makers had mastered the technology of extruding clay to form the shape of the tile, as opposed to shaping a pad of clay round a pre-formed mold, an inventive tile maker decided to combine the existing two piece pan and cover tile into one tile and the ‘S’ profile was born. The makers of our Onda tile have been able to retain the overall appearance and timeless beauty of the good old Spanish S tile which up to now have simply relied upon overlapping each other to keep out most of the weather. Available in a range of colors and complete with all the necessary fittings and accessories Onda, like all those offered by our company, are perfectly suitable for installation in the Northern US and Canada.

Creating an elegant spa-like retreat suitable for a multi-million-dollar high-rise condo was the request of our client. Leaving the details to the design team, our client simply said she envisioned a bright white contemporary design with warm contrasts, a bathtub that is actually inviting, and the ability to look out at the waterfront view from the shower. Given the “triangle” shape of the bathroom, we decided to design the bathroom around straight lines to juxtapose the angles in a modern aesthetic. Sleek floating cabinetry with accent lighting and glossy white floors give this bathroom a relaxing light feel, as if you are floating in the clouds.

The kitchen isn't the only room worthy of delicious design... and so when these clients saw THEIR personal style come to life in the kitchen, they decided to go all in and put the Maine Coast construction team in charge of building out their vision for the home in its entirety. Talent at its best -- with tastes of this client, we simply had the privilege of doing the easy part -- building their dream home!

Living room - large contemporary open concept dark wood floor living room idea in New York with white walls

There were a few difficulties in making this kitchen any better than how it was. There was a separate staircase that had access to the second floor which was located in the kitchen. This left just enough room to push the dining room to one side. Then, there was the porch. A really nice panoramic view of the back, but was somehow under-used by the family during the summer months. Then, it was the size of the kitchen. It simply was way too small for a growing family, and while it had a peninsular in place, the flow just didn’t work. I remember watching them one day demonstrating how awkward it was using the kitchen. We got it! We had our marching orders to go and figure out how to make this kitchen work for this family. Everything in the room was fair play. The design was done to make the kitchen very open. For a few ideas, we incorporated the porch in the kitchen by using the nana wall idea but it ended up being too cost prohibitive to do so. We then decided to do a permanent fix by using a commercial glass wall application. Once we figured that out, we moved back inside and removed the staircase. This gave us two added benefits. One allowed us to really reconfigure the kitchen and the other opened up the second floor for a huge built in closet system. We relocated the windows, added a fire place with a built In TV above. From there, it was onto the kitchen itself which contained a huge Island with seating, large kitchen sink and built in appliances which was set up in a way to take advantage of the new layout. We re-positioned the kitchen facing the beautiful views outside rather than looking towards a wall. Now, when you enter the house up the entry stairs, the kitchen now draws you into the magnificent new open space. This is now setup for entertaining, relaxation, hanging out and most of all, preparing meals in a room where you only have to leave if you want to. This one was all about the design. Design was what made this space. Setting this space up for success was crucial, and this kitchen is a great example of how design can cover a multitude of sins in Kitchen designs. … Just close your eyes for a second and imagine waking up one winter morning and having a cup of coffee and watching the snow fall through those huge windows, leaning up against those 3D feature walls while watching the kids sitting around the table enjoying those warm radiant heated floors in this spacious kitchen…..