James L Graves Construction

Jim Graves Construction truly partners with the homeowner. Over the course of many years and owning several homes, we've had quite a bit of interaction with contractors on various home projects. It was clear to us from the beginning that working with Jim Graves was going to be different from the bulk of our experience in a very positive way. Jim does the initial client interaction and discussion personally. It was obvious from the start that he had a wealth of experience and ideas. He listened very carefully to what we wanted to do and respectfully provided some alternatives (without any pressure) for us to consider. Jim does not provide a "ball park" estimate, though he will give you a range that specific types of jobs can run. His estimate is based on a detailed breakdown of everything the project will entail and he spells out each operation/item clearly. He even shows you his company overhead and margin. This means that you need to be serious about what you want and be ready to choose your finishes and finalize your design. It also means that you will have an excellent idea of what the project will cost with very few surprises (and those only being the kind that you can't know about until you take out a floor and find hidden damage etc.). Jim provides a list of vendors both on the internet and many with brick and mortar stores so that you can choose your items. We looked first online and then went to the stores to actually see/touch our faucet and other choices. Everywhere we went we were treated well and shown every courtesy. It made the selection process much easier. You are not limited to these sources either as he was willing to install mirrors we saw and liked elsewhere. We did run into a few unexpected items once the demolition was underway and we found Jim and his crew's solutions to be spot on and the resulting change orders reasonable in cost and expertly executed. We are THRILLED with the results. Jim stopped by our home on a regular basis to ensure that everything was up to his exacting standards. His crew were professional, experienced (in many cases expert) in their field, respectful and friendly. They kept us well informed of progress and spoke to us quickly if any decisions were required on our part. The bathroom is a pure delight in every sense...it looks beautiful and has great functionality. Our kitchen backsplash makes the room and was expertly installed. The ceiling repairs are pure perfection...they look brand new. So, great work, a detailed breakdown within the contract that ensured understanding between the parties, time line very close to estimate and good follow up equal very happy homeowners. We were so happy with the process and the results that we hired Jim to do a tricky deck repair for us. We are compiling a list of future projects as well. If you are serious about your project and serious about quality workmanship and want someone who is serious about his field and passionate about delivering top quality, then Jim Graves should be your contractor!

James L. Grave Construction were consummate professionals who delivered the highest quality on time and on budget. Our growing family required growing living space and it was time to finish the basement. We shopped around, but James L. Graves Construction were the only company that paid attention to all of the details of the project quote. They gave us a great quote and stuck to it. Since they've finished we have received nothing but compliments on our new basement. As with any large project there were glitches here and there, but what matters is how they're handled. The contractors handled them exceptionally well and were committed to our satisfaction. They were always professional, respectful, and accommodating of our daily lives. Such a great experience that I recommended them to my own mother.

They estimated the job would take 3-6 weeks. It was done within 4 weeks. We had heard from friends about kitchen redo's taking forever; costing more than estimated; and being a general disruptive nightmare. Graves team was quick, efficient, and hard working. We were completely satisfied with the service and job they did. Our only complaint, if any, was that sometimes the office staff was slow to respond to questions. Overall - an A+ job and we are very happy with the renovation.

I called James L. Graves Construction based upon reviews on Angie's List. Mr Graves was very professional. He took time to explain some of the issues that existed in our particular situation and certainly inspired confidence in his ability to do the work. Unfortunately, his estimate came in a bit beyond our budget and would have left no room for inevitable cost overruns so I went with another contractor. I would certainly give them another chance to earn my business if I were to need any major remodeling done in the future.

Jim Graves stands behind his work. He renovated my main bathroom over 2 years ago; installation of the ceramic tile was a significant part of the work. Over the past winter, I noticed that some of the grout was coming out of a seam of the built-in shower seat. I tried to make the repair myself and ended up doing more harm than good because a few months later, the tiles were started to pull away from the seat. I sent pictures to Jim and he got his tile wizard, Mauricio, on the case. Mauricio started the job by laying down tarp on my steps. He was able to save and reuse the tile that came loose and added a new bead of silicone around the shower stall and throughly cleaned up. Everything's as good as new! Having Jim renovate my bathroom was one of the best decisions i ever made!

I call in to inquire about an estimate on Monday, April 22, 2013 and since nobody answered I left a voice mail (for Nichole). Nichole called back on Tuesday morning and left a voice mail asking me to call back. They did not make another attempt to call me. I called again on Thursday, April 25. Another person (Windy?) answered and asked me a few standard questions. Then she told me that the first available appointment is on May 29. I told her that today is only April 25 and that the appointment date is way too far in the future. She replied that's the first available date an estimator can come out to my home. When I asked her if I could meet the estimator after 6.p. she replied that the last appointment is at 4 p.m. This company has some very strict rules and does not sound flexible at all - not a trace of willingness to accommodate customers. I thanked the lady I spoke with and told her to forget the whole thing. I would not recommend this company to anybody. They may be doing a good job but their attitude and inflexibility is below what I expected.

From beginning to end, the job went without a hitch. I met the carpenter, Charlie, first and was really pleased with how well he communicated the work schedule with me. I am quite a stickler when it comes to being updated with what is going to happen and when it is going to happen. He always kept me in the loop. He worked very neatly and explained all that we was doing. The tilers, Mauricio and Julio, were superb. They were working for at least 3 solid days(maybe more, I can't remember) on the tile work because I had a lot of small, "tricky to install" pieces. The tile work is absolutely beautiful. I can't praise them enough. When I had a question concerning how a small area should be tiled , Jim came out and resolved my concern. Plumbers and other workers that came to my house were polite and professional as well. I just don't remember their names because they were not in my house for a very long time. Jim was also there at the end of the job to see how everything turned out. I could not be more pleased and I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone else wanting home renovations.

Really great people to work with, he had very exact itemized pricing. Mr. Jim Graves personally came out and went over the plans and estimates with us. We were very pleased with his personalized service and they did outstanding work. We love our new bathrooms. There was always a supervisor on site, Joe worked with us. He gave us the opportunity to purchase some of our own fixtures to save money. I would highly recommend James L. Graves Construction to anyone, in fact our neighbors will be having work done with them soon.

This company never responded to the phone message I left seeking an estimate.

Overall it was a great experience. After I picked out the new vanities, tub, toilet,faucets, tile, etc, a very detailed estimate was presented. It was fair and well reasoned; at the end of the job adjustments were made on the final bill when a few changes were made. So, there were no surprises on the bill, always a plus. From the start of the job, to the finish, we felt involved and taken seriously. Each person who worked on the job was as I would expect an experienced and talented tradesman to act. It was obvious each of the workers took pride in their work and they knew what Jim Graves expected of them. The final product is beautiful and perfectly functional due to some suggestions Jim made; that's where experience come in. It's been a year now since the work was done and the bathroom is still as attractive as the day it was finished. The entire operation was without fault. If and when I have other remodeling needs, I would contact Jim Graves Construction again; and, even if I had to wait awhile for an estimate, it would be no trouble since I would already know I would again have a great experience!

From day of estimate to completion; everything was perfect.

They returned my initial call within a couple of days, which I thought was reasonable. They never returned my call a second time, though. They weren't sure if they could service my area, so I was told they would check with a supervisor and let me know. They could have easily closed the loop with a 30 second phone call. They lost a customer who was eager to use them based on their good Angie's List reviews.

They were very professional and friendly. There were a variety of workmen for a variety of tasks but they were all pleasant and knew what they were doing. Jim stopped by on a regular basis and checked on the work in progress. A couple of times he stopped the workmen and had them do something over that didn't meet with his satisfaction. They cleaned up after themselves, put tarp down on the floors and stairs so that dirt and dust was not carried thru the house. There was a wait for the shower glass because they could not measure until everything else was done and it was made to order. We were really pleased with the work and the people. I love the bathroom. I think it's beautiful. Jim sent us to certain local suppliers that were very helpful in helping to design the bathroom. We are very pleased and wouldn't hesitate to use them again or to refer them to friends. Great job!

James L. Graves construction renovated our kitchen over 5- 6 weeks from the middle of August to late September. We have already recommended this company to several friends. Jim Graves managed our project himself and is a bit of a perfectionist, which is terrific for customers. He uses high caliber experts for plumbing, electrical work, flooring etc... One of his employees, Joe Scalley is particularly creative and skilled at carpentry, cabinet work etc... This was important for our kitchen because it was a pretty complex effort involving closing up windows, knocking down walls and handling some surprises like finding mold underneath the old sink. We replaced our old tile floor with hard wood and had some issues with the flooring company matching the stains to the floor throughout the rest of the home, but Jim interceded and worked with the company to ensure we were happy with the final result. We highly recommend James L. Graves Construction and hope to use them again for other projects.

While the project start was delayed a bit, once the work began, everything pretty much went according to schedule. The foreman for the job was great at checking in with us, leaving us questions/decisions that needed to be made, and informing us when things were not exactly as planned. While we had some issues with cabinet fit, the supplier made sure that everything was replaced to our satisfaction. The floor installer located the exact match to our other hardwood floors, despite the fact that the company manufacturing our flooring had gone out of business almost five years ago. The granite counters and island are gorgeous. Everything came together, and the final product was far better than we had imagined or expected. Jim Graves' office could not have been more responsive, and Nichole Velez was great to work with. We had previously remodeled a bathroom and our master bath/dressing room, and that experience was a true disaster. A six-week job took almost a year, with extensive delays throughout. The experience we have just had was the exact opposite. Things were done in a professional manner, with great communication, and attention to detail. There is no question as to whether we would recommend this company - don't hesitate! We are planning some further painting and carpet in our home, and we will go directly to James L. Graves Construction!

Not able to know if the problem has been correctly diagnosed by the contractor? Once the hard rain and strong winds return I will know if the repair fix and has been successful repaired. Thank you WS

Great! James L. Graves was the only roofing company that returned our call when we contacted several requesting an emergency temporary repair. They came out a couple days later, right on time, and did a great job with the temporary repair. Very happy...

I must say...from the first phone call to the very last call it was an extremely pleasant and excellent experience to work with Jim Graves and his employees. From everyone in the office (Nicole and Bonnie) to each contractor I came in contact with...it was nothing but pleanant and professional. All the contractors knew what they were doing and remained professional from start to finish. The job started on time and took approximately a month to finish and it finished on time. I used my own electrian for the job and he worked well with Jim and his crew. Jim called almost daily to touch base with me in case I had any concerns. If any concerns arised Jim immediately addressed them and was patient with me at all times. I never felt rushed by him and he always took time in explaining anything I didn't quite understand. No major hiccups during the job and only a few minor things we had to deal with probably not worth mentioning only to say Jim took care of it immediately. The contractors in my house were very professional and nice to have around. They respected my house and left it clean each day they were here. I remodeled my entire kitchen and tore down the adjacent dining room wall. Jim was great with his suggestions along with his kitchen design rep and gave me some really good ideas. Wes was one of Jim's contractors that worked in my house and he was very knowledgeable as well. Don't remember the names of everyone (just a couple more) but they were nice as well and extremely efficient in the work they were doing. While Jim was renovating my kitchen/dining area we also had him look at an adjacent family room to repair and paint the entire room as the drywall was done incorrectly by a previous contractor. Jim was able to add that room to the job and gave us a good price on it. We plan on having a deck built off the dining room and our master bathroom done as well. I won't bother with getting bids from any other contractor because I was completely satisfied with James L Graves Construction!! We will be using them for all our future renovation jobs. We were so happy with the end result and would recommend them highly to anyone looking for excellent service. My brother and his wife were also so impressed with the quality of work Jim had done in my house that they are using them to renovate their entire basement. This has been by far the greatest experience I've had with a contractor.

We are very satisfied. Everything is beautiful and the improvement in functionality and natural flow is even better than we dreamed. We have had lots of family and friends visit in August and September, and everyone is just stunned that we have "a completely new house" after living here 26 years! We expected to run into lots of unanticipated issues on this project and we did. Our house was owner-built 44 years ago by someone who did not do things correctly. I wish we could count the number of times over the years we have had a plumber, electrician, carpenter, etc., in to fix a problem and they would say something like: "I can't believe they did it this way." in anticipation of this situation, we searched Angie's list for someone who seemed to have broad expertise, good communication skills, flexibility and who was fair in handling contract changes in addition to having high quality standards. Jim seemed like a good choice based on reviews, and we had confidence in him from our first meeting. He exceeded our expectations on every one of these selection criteria. He is a perfectionist! His team members all reflect Jim's values. Besides being very good, they are pleasant, and take time to answer your questions. Joe, Wes and Mandy stand out, but all his team members were very good. I would echo all the specific accolades from the other reports on JLGraves. Jim handled all the hidden problems (like termite damage and missing beams) in a fair and professional way, giving us options and recommendations. He loves to "turn a problem into a feature!" He has excellent color and design sense, and helped us a lot in those areas. You may not believe it, but we quite easily lived in the house during the entire project!! Jim moved our old refrigerator to the garage, and we had a microwave in the basement and grill outside. We did laundry at a nearby friend's house. Jim's guys cleaned up well each day, so it was not a hardship at all to carry on with life. We're looking forward to phase 2, a smaller project in our basement that we're going to start soon. In fact, I was going to wait to submit this report until after phase 2, but I've delayed it based on some decisions I need to make. So we're submitting this report now. We'll update it with photos as soon as we figure out how.

We moved into a new house in the summer of 2011 and noticed the master bath (tiled througout, including shower basin, drop in soaking tub), looked like a sloppy do-it-yourself job, but everything seemed sound, so we figured we'd save our money and de-uglify it later. About 5 months later, while wife was in the basement, and husband was in the shower, she noticed dripping comming from one of the pipes. A call to a plummer revealed that the problem wasn't with any of the pipes, but with the shower itself. Having redone a half-bath at our previous house, husband decided he'd begin demo to take a look and see what was up. Just a little bit of demo around the shower reveals that no backer board, and very little waterproofing was done anywhere around the shower, and it appeared to big of a job for us to do ourselves. We tried calling about 3 other contractors on Angies list, but when we gave our budget of 10000 dollars they refused to come out and even give an estimate (partly because of all the water damage we expected, we told them they'd have to rip out everything including sub floor, this turned out not to be the case and was an overestimate on our part, if they came out they would have been able to see this though, but I guess we weren't a big enough job for them). Mr Graves, however, did come out, he took a look at where we demo'd thus far, assuaged our concerns that the damage wasn't as bad as it looked, and worked with us to figure out a way to replace most of the bathroom within our budget (save a few fixtures we wanted to reuse). We decided to reuse the drop in tub and toilet, and Mr. Graves line itemed every aspect of the contract, so that we could save money on things we felt we could do on our own (like painting). We ended up splurging a bit on tiles and sinks, but this was our choice to go above budget. Once work was started within about a week and a half we could use everything but the shower, for which we had to await custom shower doors/surround from a glass contractor. In the course of demo, they did discover additional damage on one panel of subfloor, but this was replaced at no additional cost. The only reason we gave a B in punctuality is because of the delay in the glass surround (which was likely due to their glass company), that it took a little longer than we expected for them to start the project. However once they started, we always felt in good hands, that we communicated well with Mr. Graves and company, and we look forward to working with them again in the near future.

Due to two years of neglect by prior tenants our family home required a complete interior renovation. It would be an understatement to say every part of the interior needed to be replaced. I had never hired a contractor before and was very leery after hearing the problems others have had. This massive project had to be complete in one and a half months after taking back the house. I knew I needed the best and started reading reviews on Angie?s List. Immediately James L. Graves Construction was my obvious choice. I called Jim and explained that I could gain access to the house for one day in February to discuss the scope of this project and had to start May 1st, moving in after June 15th. Jim put me at ease by letting me know I wouldn?t be in this alone. I told him that I had my own plans, but needed someone to give me sound advice when needed. Jim said that was his specialty and he proved it, time and time again. The appointment was set for two weeks later, the day I chose, at 8am. The morning of the appointment at 8am I looked outside and several vehicles pulled up. I went outside and Jim introduced himself and his team. As far as first impressions this one hit the mark. Jim worked well with his team and my project appeared to be his only concern. As I explained my plans Jim ran ideas by his interior designer, electrician, and plumber. I never felt rushed and the ideas continued to get better and better. I spent some time, one on one, with each member of his team so that they knew exactly what I wanted. To add to the stress of the timetable I explained to Jim that I needed an estimate on the entire project by next week. None of my requests ever seemed to be out of Jim?s reach. By the end of the appointment we had covered the house from top to bottom, exchanging ideas all the way. A week later Jim gave me a reasonable estimate in writing and I?ll say now that the estimate never increased. Even though the project would not start for another two months Jim never forgot about me. Nichole from Jim?s office emailed all the places I would need to go or websites to visit to select everything from fixtures to cabinets and countertops. After making my selections she even reminded me of all the little items I had not even thought of. Who knew so many things could go into a bathroom. My daughter and I went to pick out cabinets, tile and flooring. Everywhere we went as soon as we mentioned that Jim Graves was our contractor we felt like we were getting priority treatment. The prep work was complete and it was finally time to begin. Since cost was an issue Jim asked if I was going to perform my own demo to save on cost. I told him I would. Jim took care of having the dumpster delivered May 1st and I started to transfer the entire interior of my house into that dumpster, finishing May 6th. I turned the house over to Jim?s team on May 7th. My onsite contractor was Brian. I was highly impressed with him as a person and skilled craftsman. Since I only periodically stopped by the house he would always call to let me know what was accomplished and what was next. Jim would stop by and make sure the work met his high standard. On occasion, Jim would give his guys advice to make their already excellent work outstanding. All of the subcontractors were professional and highly skilled. I would like to give honorable mention for Mauricio?s skill. Jim orchestrated several subcontractors working everyday without getting in each others? way. When I would stop by the house my neighbors would always comment on how busy the workers are and that they never see them sitting around. Jim would always take care of any small detail that was over looked and always got the results I was looking for. Jim not only completed the project on budget and on time, but he turned what was left of a house back into a beautiful home for my daughter and me. I could go on and on about each member of Jim?s team and how they did an outstanding job, but all the reviews already say that. Thanks Jim and crew.

Jim met with us shortly after contacting him and we discussed what we wanted in terms of the kitchen remodel. Jim made some great suggestions about things we hadn?t even thought of such as new lighting and flooring. We went with Jim?s suggestions on both and are very pleased. The guys Jim sent out to do the work (project manager, electrician, plumber, windows & floor) were excellent, courteous and left the house clean and tidy. Communications with Jim and his crew were also excellent. They always called when they were coming out to work and were always available to talk with us if we had questions/concerns. The kitchen demo went very quickly but we ran into a slight delay because the cabinets my husband and I purchased were the wrong size and we had to exchange them. We should have listened to Jim and purchased the cabinets through him. Because of our mistake, it delayed the counter work and sink/dishwasher/disposal installation, but Jim and his crew were very accommodating and performed other work during that time. In the end, we have a new kitchen, windows and doors that we love and we are grateful to Jim and his team for their work. We highly recommend James L. Graves Construction Co. and will use them again for future work.

For the most part it all went well once the job was started. The guys were knowledgeable, skillful, and professional. Jim really knows his stuff and was able to give guidance to his workforce and advice to us when choices had to be made. The carpenters and plumbers were top-notch, always wanting to do the right thing instead of hiding a flaw. I really appreciated their honesty and good advice when the job would run into an unexpected snag. In such cases they always had a creative solution. Jim also went out of his way to help solve some of the unexpected problems for which we were most appreciative. I really have only two complaints, which deal with flooring and painting. Through a series of mis-communications I ended up with a floor I didn't exactly want. Floating floors maybe good where the sub floor is perfectly flat, but bridging over dips just creates hollow spots that always creak/crack when you walk over them. As to the painting, I'm refering to the varnishing of the closet doors. The process the painter used had the doors reeking with noxious solvent for a month. It got cold at night with all the windows open and fans blowing! I would also recommend that you go personally to see your granite selection for counter tops, as there can be a large variation between what you see in a catalog vs. the real thing. I love the granite tops we now have, though my wife thought it would look different. Take it from me, it's always safer to have your spouse on-board when it comes to color selections! In short, I am wiser now for some of the details involved, and will be more assertive and involved in voicing preferences & choices for any future home remodeling. And yes, my first choice for the future will be James L. Graves Construction!

Met with Jim Graves and went over our plan to enlarge the master bath and replace a tub/shower with a multi-head walk-in custom ceramic-walled shower. Also needed was a ceramic bathroom floor to match the shower and updated fixtures, commode and cabinet along with an exhaust fan which the original bath did not have. Jim gave us a number of Web sites to look at to get an idea of the fixtures and cabinets we would like. We picked out the major items we wanted from these sites like the faucets to shower heads, cabinet and lights. He also sent us to a Ceramic and Tile Store to select the flooring and shower walls. Once everything was selcted Jim gave us an estimate for the total turn-key job. The estimate was above our budget for this job so the negotiations began. He adjusted some of his pricing and we eliminated some of the things we could do ourselves like the final painting. Once we agreed on the cost, everything was ordered to begin the project. Over the next couple weeks packages would show up at the house containing fixtures, lights and plumbing items. Once everything was accounted for, Jim scheduled work to begin on a Monday. The complete job took 2 weeks and was well planned with no down time between the different tasks. Tear-out carpenters as well as the tile and drywall intaller, plumbers and electricians were scheduled in such a way as to not interfer with each other. Clean-up at the end of the day was complete and every precaution was taken to control dust and debris. Items from the tear out were removed quickly and we were always told what the next step in the process was going to be, how long it should take, and if any changes needed to be done to the original plan. At the end of the 2 weeks the project was done except for the custom shower doors and mirror which were the last items to be crafted due to measurements having to be taken after everything else was complete. It took a week for the doors to be installed and we were ready to get wet. Lessons Learned: We decided we wanted to have the finish on the plumbing fixtures and light be Oil Rubbed Bronze. We learned that looking at a Web Site we couldn't tell that this finish varied by Manufacturer. We ordered from three Manufacturers and some of the items were a different shade etc once we received them and we had to re-order. Our suggestion is if one is to select ORB as a finish, you order everything you can from the same Manufacturer, or pick the items locally where you can actually compare. Jim had no problem sending back the non-matching pieces. Another lesson is to pick out everything from the color of the flush handle and water lines on the commode to the color of the drain in the shower. The Plumber who did our project was the one who noticed that these items, as they showed up did not match our ORB theme but were bright chrome. He suggested we make the changes, and we agreed to change them.Special Comments: I have never seen a ceramic wall with intricate design more professionally installed than by the person who did our project. His tile and design work is top notch and no doubt he paid special attention to fine detail and finish work. I also would like to commend Jim for his patience and being there to answer any and all questions. It was a pleasure to work with his Company and Staff. At our final inspection after the doors were installed, there was only one small plumbing related item that needed addressed. It took all of 10-minutes to make an adjustment. We have never before not had a bucket list of item that needed attention prior to accepting a job as complete. This is testimony to the professionalism of Jim and attention to detail that his workers displayed during this project. A job well done!

Popular lore has it that if you want to test your marriage and/or your sanity, have some or all of your home remodeled while you are living in it. Believing that the best way to get the best people and thus retain our best health, we consulted Angie's List for recommendations of remodeling contractors.The Jim Graves Construction company stuck out like a light to guide someone down the path to a better remodeling. We called. The owner came. He is so good that you think you dialed a wrong number and got a very good actor from Off Broadway. But he has been doing building and remodeling for so long that if he does not feel capable of providing the solutions himself, he knows the problems themselves so well that he has learned what sort of expertise is called for.The upshot is that he has people who know and care about what they are doing, and Jim himself is a master at scheduling and coordinating his tradesmen most efficiently. Quality without Compromise, he says, is the motto of the company. It sounds like something that a Fortune 500 company's advertising division would think up and then forget all about as they go on their merry way, blissfully ignoring and insulting the people who really expect to have the company listen to their wants and complaints. If anything is unsatisfactory on a project, Jim wants to hear about it and correct it to your satisfaction. He calls himself a problem solver. If anything needs fixing, they fix it. If it is their fault--or even maybe not their fault--they fix it. You feel like a good friend is working for you instead of a commercial operation that does several million dollars of remodeling every year.We needed a bathroom remodeled quickly, and Jim thankfully fit the project into his schedule within a few days of our signing the contract! The work moved very quickly, and Wes did a great job on all the carpentry and was extremely diligent, pleasant, and patient during the entire job. The area was sealed off to contain dust, and there was little noise or disruption once the demolition was done. We so appreciate the area being cleaned up every day before the workmen left the job. Besides being a delight to work with, Mauricio's tile work and dedication to his job resulted in a gorgeous tile work. It is refreshing to deal with people who care so much about their work. And our heat duct cover that was in the floor was replaced with a beautiful "flush" vent tiled with the same floor tile-beautiful! And thanks to Nichole for all her work estimating, coordinating with suppliers, and answering questions.As I said at the outset, you are not going to believe it when you meet this man. He listens carefully, makes pertinent suggestions, points out things that might cause you grief, writes up an estimate that shows in such detail what you are paying for that you go into shock, and then says if there is anything that is not going the way you want it to go, he wants to hear about it. After you recover, give him a try. Remodeling is not an extremely happy experience. But if there is anyone who can make it more comfortable than Jim and his good workmen, then let us have a contest. I'll be backing the Graves company. We love our beautiful, new bathroom!