Design Really Matters

Madhu more than exceeded our expectations. We thought we knew what we needed for our growing family and family room project in our Menlo Park home but were struggling to move forward with our project and making decisions. Then we met Madhu! She identified our needs, created concise concept boards to illustrate possible design solutions, provided options for specific furniture items with attention to our desired budget, and ultimately helped us transform our primary living space into something functional and attractive. Specifically, she helped to steer me towards a custom sofa that better fit our space (and budget) in an updated color, create an adjacent but separate kids play space that my children now use daily, and find storage for toys that is functional and appropriate in appearance for a space that still hosts adult gatherings. Throughout the process, she was professional, easy to work with, and positive. She was dedicated to helping us achieve a successful design outcome that we were happy with--from stopping by to see updates, dropping off swatches, creating an excellent houzz idea book, and emailing us when stores were having sales.

Madhu did a terrific job designing our major renovation of a 1928 Craftsman house, including expanding the dining room, gutting the kitchen, master suite and guest bathroom, and sprucing up several other rooms. She helped us with all aspects of design, and was an incredibly valuable and important resource throughout. We would whole-heartedly refer her to anyone looking for a home designer. Madhu has just the right combination of taste and flexibility. She has a great eye, knows what she likes, and isn't afraid to say so. But she is also attuned to your preferences and works within them. When my wife and I disagreed on something (which, uh, did happen from time to time), Madhu effectively bridged the gap, heard everyone's opinions and preferences, and came up with compromises better than what either of us thought we wanted. The result was a house that works together cohesively yet has a different character in each room, and we are absolutely thrilled with the result. Another thing I think Madhu did a great job with was find a few special and dramatic pieces that we never would have found (or chosen) without her help. A pair of large hanging globe light fixtures in the dining room, a bold lime green backsplash in the kitchen, an amazing glass chandelier in the stairwell that absolutely makes the main floor, and bolder, more saturated colors that we would have been afraid to choose, that have turned out wonderfully. She strongly encouraged us to splurge on a super fancy dining table that both matched the room perfectly and extended to meet our seating requirements, while suggesting money-saving alternatives for other pieces when she thought bargains could be had. In terms of working style, Madhu is responsive, efficient and easy to work with. No one is perfect, and I don't believe in writing reviews without any areas for improvement. Madhu is still building her vendor list, and we had a couple of vendors that we wouldn't use again (and I imagine neither will Madhu!). And probably because she hasn't done 100 projects yet, she wasn't always a step ahead in terms of what was coming next with the contractor; at times we probably could have done things in parallel and not blocked the builder. But these points are minor and I'm sure will improve with time. All in all, we would absolutely hire Madhu again and would not hesitate to recommend her whole-heartedly to a friend. Bravo!