Chosen Interiors

I wondered whether I could afford to hire Mary Jo Cooper, but as it turned out, I couldn’t afford NOT to hire her. I was in a serious bind with my home. The housing market for my area had not yet recovered, and while my mortgage was not underwater, the current value of my home was still tens of thousands of dollars under what I had paid almost 15 years ago. Then, to compound the problem, my home was damaged and required extensive repair. Oh, and, did I mention that I needed to sell my home within the next year? I was overwhelmed trying to determine what needed to be done in order to repair my home and renovate for sale, but still minimize further financial loss. So, I called Mary Jo. Mary Jo had requested that I complete an assessment prior to her visit so that she was prepared to meet my needs. From the moment she arrived, Mary’s ideas and recommendations flowed at about 25 per minute. I was taking notes as quickly as possible, but barely kept up. I quickly learned that much of the task list that I had established for preparing my home for sale was misguided. Mary Jo suggested many far less expensive ways of updating my house for the younger and trendier demographic that is purchasing in my area. What I truly loved about her style was that she is very specific. She didn’t suggest color families for paint – she provided manufacturers and precise paint codes. She didn’t tiptoe when my ideas didn’t work – she quickly indicated that they wouldn’t meet my objectives and recommended alternatives. By the time Mary Jo left, I felt that I had a quite workable plan of action established. And then, things changed. The timetable for selling my house was extended by several years. While I was quite happy with the plan we’d developed for selling, now that I'd be here longer, I wanted to modify the plan to better fit my style and taste while keeping the style within the taste parameters of the future purchasers, as well. So, I called Mary Jo again. Round two was even better than the initial visit. (I think that I failed to mention earlier that even though Mary Jo is focused on meeting your objectives, she is also fun!) We’d covered a number of things in the first visit that didn’t need to be changed, so with this visit, we came up with a new wall and flooring plan, vetted my bathroom tile schemes, determined how to update my existing furniture, selected upholstery fabrics and discussed accessories/art. I received so much more value from Mary Jo than I ever expected. Her advice saved me from spending thousands of dollars that would not provide the return that I hoped to receive. And even more importantly, for the first time in years, I am excited about my home again. I’ve begun to implement our plan and can’t wait to see the final product! Thank you, Mary Jo!

I just think when people come for an initial consultation, it's a chance for them to give you an estimate on work they might do as opposed to actually charging you for that time. So with most services like plumbers or something else you get a service charge for the call but I just don't know, you have to pay initial conversation where your finding out if your going to work with the person and finding out an estimate. Most home improvement types will provide an estimate for free. But it's not a big deal. I can give her a B.

Mary was great! I had to reschedule and they were very accommodating. She came on time within the window she set. I had to do some homework so that she could understand my style and what I was looking for. I hired just to get some ideas and a plan as I had just moved into my house. I was not looking to actually do any work at the time. The prices seem high to actually hire her as a designer but she will do all the work. She offered a discount if I use her for another 2 hour consult! I think it was great, for a person like me who cannot make any decisions. I have painted one room using one of her paint color suggestions and I love it!!! I love her suggestions on how to pick and choose colors as well!! I feel that I got a lot of information in the 2 hours and I would recommend her!!

Mary provided excellent tips and advices on how to add some cabinets in our existing kitchen.

I purchased a Big Deal for a 2-hour interior design consultation for $175. Mary Jo was prompt in contacting me and scheduling an appointment. I didn't give her a set budget, so she diverted me from discussing decorating and focused on what I really needed. I needed help planning possible projects given the spatial and size limitations of my small house. She offered helpful tips and advice. She also offered to come back out to meet with a contractor if I decided to move forward with my projects, because she wanted to make sure I felt like I was getting my money's worth with the Big Deal.

This may be in our lifetime top ten list of 'money well spent' We had just completed our master bath renovation with a very modern style in contrast to the rest of the house which is traditional. Our concern was that the bathroom now looked out of place, so we were looking for advice on paint and carpet options to make the rest of the house more transitional than traditional. Mary Jo delivered and then some. We picked paint colors for every room in the house, received advice on our wood floors, window treatments, furniture, lighting and carpeting. She listened carefully to our thoughts and opinions and incorporated them into her recommendations. Most importantly she was not afraid to tell us what would not work! There was no upsell, no bait and switch, no pressure whatsoever to use any of the manufacturers that she has an established relationship with. Only a request that if and when we are ready that she be afforded the opportunity to quote. Since then we have completed painting most of the rooms. The results are amazing and we are not done yet. Mary Jo not only provides great advice and ideas but it becomes apparent as the consultation goes on that she is a genuine down to earth really nice person. One tip is to use a voice recorder, we played it back a few times later and would have forgotten a lot of information that proved useful down the line. We highly recommend her, even if you think you know what you are doing!!

She spent so much time/patience with me looking at fabrics and furniture. Her recommendations were spot on. I love our new room. When she delivered furniture, she vacuumed the new rug and even re-arranged my existing knickknacks. She is a very talented designer and a pleasure to work with.

Mary Jo is personable and knows her trade. She discussed in detail her pricing options. I was not able to sign a contract with her at the time because I needed to address some home maintenance first. However, I intend to use her services in the future.

Mary Jo was fantastic. She arrived right on time and spent 2 hours with me discussing kitchen layout. She was very knowledgable and came up with several options for me to consider. I would definitely use her services again in the future.

Everything went quite well. Mary Jo is energetic but patient, easy to work with, and has both good ideas and the ability to explain why one thing might work better than another. The others who work in the office, the workroom, and in installations were also pleasant, prompt, and easy to work with. While she offers complete services, and I took advantage of most of the applicable ones, she did not seem unhappy when I selected a painter that does not work with her. That was a very good sign as far as I am concerned. (After meeting with her painter, I thought he was well qualified, but based on price and recommendations about a painter in my area, I used him instead.) We went back-and-forth about design for window treatments for three areas that had quite different needs (one full window, one window in outside door, and one small window over sink). We also changed paint colors several times so as to find just the right shades, given light, design preferences, and other factors. She was always willing to come up with additional suggestions and has a great sense of color. I had hoped to finish everything for much less than this all wound up costing, but based on previous experience, I think Mary Jo's prices are likely in line with others and she offers good quality materials, service, and ideas. We probably could have cut a few corners with prices of various things had that been essential. All of the major tasks are now finished and the kitchen looks great! So much more light -- so much fresher looking -- makes me happy when I walk in the door! Thanks, Mary Jo!

Mary Jo provided me with helpful budgeting tools and we discussed possible costs of the kitchen and bath remodel we anticipate doing. We analyzed the carpet samples that I had previously collected and decided on a carpet style and color for my home. She brought with her a variety of paint ideas using the color pallet range that I had provided to her before our appointment and we talked about how to choose final paint colors for our interiors. Using magazine photos and the internet, we looked at design ideas for my kitchen for inspiration and talked about what would and wouldn't work. We met for about two hours, maybe a little more. I was thoroughly pleased with the meeting. It was exactly what I was hoping for.

Provided good ideas for furniture placement and color schemes for basement. We think the paint color she recommended will make a big difference.

I'm highly impressed with Coopers Creation LLC, very customer focused. It was a very productive 2 hours of design service. She listened to my recommendations and suggestions and gave my a priority list. I am pleased with their service. She even answered my questions after the service and gave detailed guidance.

She came to the house walked the entire basement with me. she gave me great advice for lighting furniture layout, and found me more space for storage and gave me great ideas with which I could move forward on our build out with confidence. it was a wonderful experience. She can also help me in the future with shopping for furniture, etc. We just aren't there yet.

I just wasn't confident that they had experience doing this after speaking with them. I ended up cancelling the deal and getting a refund and going with someone else.

I think I gave feedback about this. She came on time. It went very well.

This went well, Mary Jo came in and we discussed our desires and needs, in our house. She walked us through the process and provided documentation on cost and estimates of the remodeling efforts that we are anticipating doing. It was educational and Mary Jo was very helpful.

We had a great experience with Cooper's Creations. They were professional, communicated well, stayed on budget, and provided a nice finished product.

Mary Jo Cooper squeezed me into her schedule sooner than usual (she books three weeks ahead) because I had some urgent decisions to make. She gave me homework regarding the styles and finishes I prefer, which I completed and emailed to her prior to our first meeting. This allowed her to come prepared with some great ideas and samples - a backsplash tile for example, that is gorgeous. I wish every designer would review homework in advance as she did. Mary Jo told me I couldn't do everything on my wish list for my $10,000 max budget, so we took new cabinet boxes off the list (we will repaint instead of replacing them) in order to afford a glass tile backsplash and quartz countertop. I also wanted a new vanity in the bathroom. Sounds simple, but the old vanity is situated inside of the floor tile (we do not have any matching tile to make adjustments), and the countertop is butting up to a cracked full wall mirror...suffice to say this presents an installation challenge. I liked Mary Jo's ideas for the kitchen & bath update, so I sat back to wait for an estimate. When it came, I was dismayed. The cost to do everything I wanted exceeded my budget - in part because I have expensive taste, and in part because this is a high rise building that poses extra challenges for the demo and installation. There are times when I will throw caution to the wind in order to get the special effects of the products and services proposed, but alas, this isn't one of those times. Mary Jo was generous in her suggestions for altering the project to fit the budget. I am currently contemplating the alternatives.

Mary Jo helped the husband and I decide on interior paint colors for our new house. I was a little worried about hiring an interior designer because it just is not in our budget to really do what we want right now so I did not want to feel pushed into other things and really didn't want to discuss accessories, furniture, etc. Mary Jo stuck to exactly what we wanted and made sure we felt we got the value we paid for.

It went very well. Mary Jo was very professional and knowledgeable. We decided on a color pallet and materials for my kitchen, which is my priority. Unfortunately, because of distance, she can't supervise the actual work, and advised me to deal with a reputable contractor. She also offered to order any materials that she can get at a discount. She also advised on what could be done about our master bath, which is an odd shape and size, and also window coverings for our master bedroom. This visit was very helpful, and I only wish she was closer so she could get the project done. She is very personable and was pleasant to work with.

She was excellent--punctual, professional, and detail oriented. This was a helpful and worthwhile purchase.

The service that was provided was excellent and definitely worth the money. Mary Jo was very helpful and gave me a lot of ideas.

We didn't go with them. It wasn't a good fit for us. Our tastes were so different. But he was a professional and capable person.

Mary Jo arrived on time, and reviewed my printed-out Pinterest pins for items for bath and kitchen. She stated upfront that the company had never done a bath reno job alone for under $20K; I stated that $18K was top dollar for both projects. She then proceeded to make measurements of both rooms; she was on site for about an hour. No real ideas were provided during this walkthrough - just a comment that fixtures, etc. would come from to the trade sources. I received an e-mail on Nov. 13 that reiterated the company had never done just a bath reno for under $18K, and that all dollars should be spent on this project. Only design details that were included stated that a less expensive granite would be used and beadboard paneling would be eliminated to get the quote under budget. No spec sheet or structured design statement was attached; the e-mail stated the company would need to know that we were comfortable in moving forward on the one project for the specified price before further work would be done. The e-mail stated that the company had already put in 10 hours on the project. I replied via e-mail that we were rethinking our project scope, and thanked Cooper's Creations for its time. In retrospect, if the two projects were not feasible for the dollar cap specified at time of consult, we should have shook hands and parted ways at that point in time.