House Plan Companies in Waterloo

“We worked with architect Jenny Gossow on an extensive interior renovation project where the goal was to take an ordinary 10-year-old pseudo-Craftsman open concept white-walled bore of a house to something that made my heart sing and actually functioned for our family. The scope included the main level kitchen/living area, the master bathroom, a hall bath, and a new office space on the lower level. During our initial meetings with Jenny, she really dug into how we use our spaces and what were our functional challenges (enough books for a town library, enough art and photographs for a small gallery, and a houseful of messy people who love to cook but hate cleaning the kitchen). She presented three options that reconfigured the giant open concept rectangle on the main floor into kitchen, living room and hallway separated by walls with arched openings. The new space is visually much more graceful and provided room for additional kitchen cabinetry, a walk-in pantry and an additional wall of built-ins for books. Jenny also designed beautiful cabinetry for the lower level office and additional storage cabinets for a new hallway created by closing off the office space. She connected us with a great general contractor and was with us throughout the project, helping find solutions to issues as they arose. I felt like she and the contractor worked to give me what I wanted even when it was problematic - like, I’d be ready to give up on an idea, but they never stopped until they figured things out. The work went on for a long time - well over the nine months that was originally scheduled, for reasons I found entirely acceptable - and I really enjoyed it. Our house is so charming now and honestly I feel like I can relax in it for the first time since we’ve lived here. It’s much easier to maintain and keep clean. I’m trying to decide what else to renovate so I can work with Jenny again.”

“We worked with Scott Krecji to draw up architectural plans for a bathroom remodel project and Kathleen Grim for the interior design component. Because much of this planning was done starting in the summer of 2020 they accomodated us with zoom sessions and on the occasions that we needed to meet in person they were respectful of masking and social distancing protocols. Their ideas were artistic and refreshing and incorporated aspects that made use of our vaulted bathroom ceiling and desire for an "open" concept. Working with Kathleen provided easy access to vendors and helped me narrow down selections that were focused on our overall design scheme. We couldn't be happier with Scott & Kathleen!”

“My wife and I have used Michael & Justing (aka Nistenhaus) on a number of projects over the past three years. Originally, they helped us design our master suite. Then, we loved that project so much we paid them to come in and design & decorate our main living space while we were gone in Munich. When we came back from that long international flight, it was an extra special moment I’ll always remember. We stepped into a brand new version of our home, and loved every last detail they added to it. Our second major project was when we brought them into renovating our first investment property. They actually came into the mix before the purchase to let us know what things would cost so we could make the best decision about the investment. Once we closed on the property, they were in the next week measuring and planning the new kitchen layout and showing us color swatches. It was important to us to stay within budget, and get this renovation wrapped up as quick as possible so we could get it on the market and rented. They nailed it! We came in a few thousand under budget, with everything we planned on doing and were basically talking ourselves out of moving in ourselves! We can’t say enough great things about Nistenhaus! They understand how to meet every need and want and keep within budget. They gave us pushback at the appropriate times if we would get ahead of ourselves and it was something that would take us over budget. Or, if they didn’t really think something would work well with the rest of the plan, they gave us their professional opinion and offered better options in return. I think the biggest part about working with them is feeling confident in their decisions. Occasionally we’d have something we weren’t necessarily liking, but all in all we trusted their decisions because they understood our style and aesthetic after our first meeting or two. Communication throughout the whole process was seamless and not overwhelming at all. My wife and I discussed a number of times how we always felt informed and part of the project, but never overwhelmed or annoyed by “too much communication”. As a business owner myself, I think that’s a tough thing to pull off. But they handled it beautifully. Their next project with us is an overhaul of my home office space. And after that, other rental properties until the big one comes: a new construction of our dream home in the CWE! We love these guys! They deserve their own tv show!”