Bartels Design

Christa was of immense help with our total kitchen remodel. She provided great advice from day one until the end of the project, including designing the entire kitchen inch by inch, helping us choose countertops, cabinets, flooring and backsplash, and keeping us on track getting the contemporary Craftsman look we wanted. Christa was always available to visit stone yards, tile stores and plumbing shops to help narrow down the vast number of choices so we could make a decision. She remained cheerful and excited about our project the entire time. We also used Christa to help design a new front door and entry to our home. She made detailed drawings of three options that worked with the rest of our home and our new kitchen. We highly recommend working with Christa!

I have hired Christa on several projects and she is a pleasure to work with. She listens to your objective, provides several options, executes in a timely manner and the quality of the work has been top-notch. In addition, I had confidence that I was not only getting wonderful advice but that I was getting incredible value as well. Obviously I would recommend Bartels Design!

Masterworks Construction Services, Inc. has been working with Bartels Design since its inception. The company has utilized Christa for both architectural and design services. Christa is a true professional, pragmatic and always has the client's best interest in mind. Christa stands out as unique among designers because she has hands-on construction experience. This gives her a better feel for feasibility and project costing than many of her colleagues. We would highly recommend using Bartels Design!

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Christa on a couple projects at my home. After taking time to listen to what I wanted, and the contemporary look I hoped to achieve, she went to work. She promptly presented me with options and comprehensive designs that helped me visualize the potential of the completed project. Along the way, Christa considered the rest of the home, and suggested colors and materials which really complemented what was already there. I was particularly impressed by her industry contacts, many of whom she utilized to help us find just the right materials. Christa has an excellent eye for what works. She can be trusted to deliver ideas that are both visually impactful and aesthetically appealing. Given that she’s up to date on all the latest products and design trends, having someone with her talents is a worthwhile investment. I’m thrilled with results! Christa is a pleasure to work with, and I wholeheartedly recommend her for any design project that demands imagination and attention to detail.

I highly recommend Bartels Design. Christa designed a deck for my hillside home in Eagle Rock. The project was complicated but her talent and attention to detail kept the project on schedule and on budget. She was able to provide the contractor with the necessary drawings in a timely manner. It was an extremely busy time at the Permit Office and she was instrumental in getting all the necessary permits in on time. She has also designed an ADU for my garage which I will not do because the construction costs are not in my budget at this time. But, I was glad I had her design to present to potential contractors. It made me realize what the project would entail.

Christa has helped me over the past 30 years on dozens of projects of varying degrees of difficulty and cost (mostly low to mid-10,000's): bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchens, and a home library, theater and gym. I've found her to be the consummate professional, someone able to combine an exquisite, European-trained eye for subtle color and room aesthetics with utilitarian requirements and customer priorities. She's been great at grounding my sometimes idiosyncratic vision in the realities of economics and elevating my own taste level, while remaining sensitive to my interests. Always impossibly good humored and accommodating. Warning: use her once, and you will likely find her irreplaceable.

Christa is an artist in her craft. She works hard to get you an amazing and unique result while also being mindful of your budget. I have done at least five projects with Christa and plan to do many more. She's also very accessible and responsive. She wants to get your input while also guiding you to get just the right look for your space.

When my husband and I decided that it was long past time to rebuild the river-rock front porch of our 1911 Craftsman in Highland Park, we hired Christa Bartels to act as our architectural designer and to be our representative with the Highland Park Historic Overlay Zone, among other things. In addition to suggesting an excellent contractor, Christa's aesthetic sense and practical knowledge were instrumental in achieving the very satisfying results of our tear-down and rebuild of the porch. Christa is a clear communicator, excellent designer, and easy to work with. She had a deep understanding of what we were trying to achieve -- to make sure our home remained on the hill for another 100 years, to keep the aesthetic style of the original but suggested that we incorporate some new elements -- dyed concrete for the porch floor, integrate the steps with the side stone walls, and to build in LED down lighting into those side walls. The result is tremendous. To finish the project, Christa consulted with us on colors for a full house repaint -- and got them approved by the HPHOZ. We will certainly call upon Christa and Bartels Design for our next project.

Christa was excellent! Helped me decorate my condo. Worked with the contractor to ensure everything was done correctly. Listened to me and incorporated my tastes and budget into the remodel.

Christa is very talented. She does a great job listening to our fashion ideas and makes sense of it and then presents wonderful options. She is very patient. My husband and I could not make a decision so she kept providing choices until we were satisfied. I will continue to hire Christa for decorating our house. I recommend her to my friends.

Christa designed a kitchen remodel for us (see photos of Glendale kitchen) a couple years ago and we were thrilled to have her design our small master bathroom remodel in our 1929 Spanish house. Christa is very easy to work with; she listens to ideas and concerns, worked with us to find all the finishes (paying attention to price), and coordinated with the contractor on the inevitable problems one encounters remodeling a 1929 house. Her design is exactly what we were hoping for; a bright and modern space that ties in seamlessly with the rest of the house. Cost is the cost of the overall bathroom remodel. Christa charges a very fair hourly rate.