Two years ago, we hired Slade Architecture to reimagine the entire first floor of our large, two-story, turn-of-the-19th century brick colonial in Duchess County. It was a sensitive, detail-oriented project blending restoration with sleek modernization. Not a small ask! They beautifully honored the past while breathing new, modern light into both the interior spaces and exterior structure. Light was very important to us, and one of the reasons we wanted to work with them. Our magnificent new spaces are imbued with light, each one in different ways. When they took apart the majority of the house down to the studs, we discovered plumbing wrapped in horse hair for insulation. It was that old!!! There are not enough words to describe how phenomenal their whole team was. My husband and I met with them weekly in person or over Zoom and watched in wonderment as they created soaring vaulted ceilings that had once been quite low; glass walls from the floor to the ceiling in order to bring trees and gardens in; a new staircase; an additional fireplace; a glorious brand new mudroom and a new guest bedroom. The thing about Slade is that despite their many years of experience and clients, they really listened to us. The whole team was so kind and super professional in every way. They produced immaculate, clear, timely drawings and were fastidious about schedule. They worked seamlessly and cohesively with our contractor and designer, neither of whom they knew before the project (when they could have worked with any number of their own professionals from previous jobs.) On site-visits throughout the renovation, James Slade had a superb eye for detail and remarkably seemed to be able to solve any problem that arose. Hayes Slade viewed every room with her expert eye toward design, color and light, contributing many fabulous ideas to all the spaces. Associate Principal architect Greg Bencivengo was our stalwart, always on top of every detail—literally. We loved working with him and can't say enough positive things about Greg. Slade truly created a beautiful new, old home that gorgeously blends an early 1900's, historical frame with all the modern scapes their firm is known for. We recommend to anyone who wants the best possible experience building new or renovating old!
