Wendy O'Brien Interior Planning & Design

I hired Wendy to remodel our great room and kitchen that wasn?t very outdated and really
had no design to it.  I had collected pictures of rooms and things over
the years that I liked but wasn?t sure how to pull it all together. 
Wendy really listened to all of my requests and transformed both rooms
into warm, family friendly spaces with beautiful,  furniture and
accessories and our kitchen now has a place for everything and is a
pleasure to cook in.  She has an uncanny eye for colors and pulling
together different materials that complement each other, that I would
never have thought to put together, but they totally work! She is very
professional, a great communicator and set my mind at ease by walking me
through each phase of the project before we got started.  She also
referred us to one of her  contractors and was there when needed to make
sure every detail was done right. There?s not a thing I would change!
Thank you Wendy!
Project price: $80,000

From the start Wendy was very professional. She instantly knew what I was wanting, that I couldn't express into words. Her designs were not only pretty but were customized just for me and my family, and how we use the kitchen. Wendy always was on top of it and had every detail planned for. I don't know how she does it.
I have never used an interior designer before , so I wasn't sure on how everything works.  When I asked her to explain her contract, process and rates she was more than happy to go into detail with me. After review I found this to be very reasonable for everything she has to do. She is hands down amazing, and I cannot wait to do the rest of the home with her.

Wendy seems like a nice person and by all reports a competent designer. However, her process did not work for us in any way. There was simply no way I could continue to work with someone who was unable to provide even a basic conceptual drawing or sketch to convey the direction she was headed with the design. Instead, she wanted us to pay her time for a design without providing some glimpse into where she was heading [and allowing us an opportunity to provide critical feedback before she got involved in detailed work.] I could see where this was headed... she'd provide a plan, we'd disagree with either parts of or all of it, and she'd expect us to pay for the time she spent to come up with it, pay for the time to make revisions, or pay for the additional time to redo the plan.
I have worked very collaboratively with artists and architects in the past. This wasn't working out even from the beginning. I had strong reservations about signing her contract, and even though Wendy described her process, when I asked her to provide a concept drawing up front she provided nothing of value, nothing providing any glimpse into where she was taking the design, and she expected us to pay for the time for this. 
As I have been interviewing other designers, it seems a proposal and concept drawing are offered at the beginning of most every other firms' process. Wendy's process might work for you if you are willing to give her cart-Blanche and accept whatever she comes up with. But be mindful of your budget.

REBUTTAL to Designer's comments:

The designer's process might work for her, but is nothing like I have experienced working with artists, architects, and contractors in the past. Which is why this was a difficult engagement. From the beginning her process just didn't make a lot of sense to me.

Designer asked that we sign a contract before offering an estimate of costs, which, as I stated, seems to be something other designers offer in a proposal with conceptual drawings. In my mind, a concept drawing is just that, a presentation of the basic ideas for the space, not detailed drawings. I simply do not understand how one can design anything without having a picture in their mind of what they are wanting to accomplish.

With a ten hour minimum, I expect with that much time the designer would have something to show. After paying her invoice for 10 hours minimum, I am no closer to a view of the space than looking at the pictures we provided of rooms we like. When I see a line item on an invoice for 2.5 hours for  "brainstorming" and another 2 hours for drawings, I expect a deliverable. I did not get it.

As for my other reviews on Angie's List... very simply put, if you do an amazing job, I'll give amazing reviews?if you don't perform I 'll give a negative review. The goal here is to hold contractors accountable.

My husband and I hired Wendy after a referral from a neighbor who had recently worked with Wendy to re-design her kitchen. It was a fabulous transformation from a 1980?s palette to an elegant, rich, stained-wood look that increased the functionality without changing the footprint.  I was headed in the opposite direction:  from a small, cramped natural-pine and paint to a bump out that required completely gutting the existing kitchen and nearly doubled the square footage, plus I wanted white cabinetry and lots of
light.  I handed Wendy my decades old ?Dream Kitchen? file (we?ve lived in the same house since 1986) and linked her
to my kitchen files on Pinterest and Houzz. 
She took all of that information and distilled into the gorgeous, functional, spacious, light-filled heaven that is my new kitchen.  (See it at Wendyobrienid.com?it?s the Cottage Kitchen. Don?t laugh too much at the Before photo, you?ll hurt my feelings.)
That is her genius?she listens to your ideas and hears your hearts desire. We couldn?t be happier.  Wendy?s attention to detail, her drive to see you get what you are after, her work ethic and ability to communicate well with contractors couldn?t have been better.  She showed us options we wouldn?t have even looked at on our own, such as our hardwood flooring, which is one of our favorite pieces of the puzzle now.  Plus, she referred us to Josh at Eight Inch Nails Construction, who is an absolute jewel.  Wendy is worth the investment.  Snap her up. 

From our first meeting Wendy was professional and personable. She listened as I described what I wanted and worked with me to create a design plan for my home while keeping within my budget. Wendy did not impose a decorating style on me, rather, she listened to what I wanted and helped me realize my dream. Wendy coordinated her vast resources of workers including electricians, upholsterers, painters and artisans to help complete the design process. She was present at all deliveries and installations ensuring everything went according to plan. When there was a problem with a delivery or product, Wendy quickly went to work contacting the responsible parties to correct the situation. She has been a joy to work with and has created a home for me that is beautiful, serene and inviting. It is everything I wanted and so much more.

?I had previously built a new house and remodeled one in the past, and have been in construction over 25 years.  Although I thought I had done a great job every time with design and construction there was always something not 100%.  When it came to building my dream home in 2012, I decided to do something different in order to get my 100%.  After interviewing five Interior Designers I hired Wendy O?Brien Interior Planning & Design which proved to be the BEST decision I could have made.  Wendy is experienced, collaborative, open, honest, and driven to do the BEST for her clients. I now have the most beautiful home I have ever owned and certainly within several blocks of my neighborhood. It is now an icon for a beautiful home and a landmark in downtown Lake Oswego.  This is not just my opinion but the opinion of the entire neighborhood and community of Lake Oswego.  Why is it so beautiful? Because every element and piece was designed with intent and then, selections were done accordingly?.And I mean everything.  Every product?s style, texture, color, usage, looks, compatibility, as well as the types of feeling and emotions it would draw from were considered before the selection and installation.  I now have a home where everything in it flows together, perfectly-coordinated, is warm and just PERFECT even when it was empty and nothing was yet hung on the walls?it is the house that draws you in and makes you feel at home.  EVERY SINGLE day that I leave work I want to go home and be absorbed by it.  Wendy brought my thoughts and visions to life and made my dreams come true?and THAT is what separates her from any of her colleagues.?

Wendy was always very communicative in what was happening regarding this job. We thoroughly enjoyed working with her.

Wendy was patient with my indecision and provided very helpful suggestions. Without Wendy's expertise, i would not have the beautiful home I have today. I feel like I have a brand new home. The colors are fantastic! Everyone says my and quot;new homeand quot; is warm and inviting. I will use Wendy again for any design issues I may encounter.

Wendy is simply fabulous! She staged our home to look beautiful and stylish, which resulted in selling the home in 17 days. I would strongly recommend her services to anyone!

It went great! We were kind of wishy-washy customers and she was very patient with us while we changed budgets, debated floor plans, and debated all our options. Also we had a little bit of an unusual schedule, and our 18mo daughter was present at some meetings. Wendy didn't complain about any of it.
The only part of our interaction that didn't go perfectly 100% of the time was that there were a couple occasions early on that we emailed Wendy and she took a couple of days to respond. I think that happened because we were in the decision-making phase of the project, we were wishy-washy, and we didn't have a construction start date. However, mostly she responded within a day, and when we needed information from her during construction she responded very quickly.

She really got my style really fast, she really grasp the vision that I had for the rooms. The thing I think she could improve on was the timing she kept moving the appointments back but other than that I really liked the finished job. I would use her again in the future.

I found Wendy on Angie's list, noted she had the background and experience I was hoping to find - I was very happy with her advice and how the house turned out.

We hired Wendy to help us select colors for the exterior of our home. She was extremely helpful, and professional. We had an idea in our head of what we wanted. She listened to what it was we were looking for, and came up with some excellent ideas for colors. She saved us from spending a lot of money to have our home painted and not getting the results we were looking for. The colors she came up were fabulous. I am sure hiring her will have made all the difference in getting the results we are looking for. She even helped us choose some colors for some interior rooms that we have yet to have painted. Again, she was right on the money.

We had Wendy come back again in late July to look at our deck to give us some color ideas. She picked out a great color, and she once again was spot on.

We feel extremely fortunate to have contracted services with Ms. O'Brien. From our initial contact, I knew we were in good hands. She listened to our needs, made sure she understood our tastes and budget restrictions, and was very professional. She is a good communicator and very reliable and responsive. She provided stylish options and never rushed us into a decision or an inflated pricepoint. She clearly communicated the timeline, and delivered as agreed. The installers she contracted where careful and polite and did an amazing job. She also is extremely creative in problem solving and had two cabinets constructed for our TV/Media areas. Clear invoices with no surprises and the finished look is exactly what I was hoping for. What more can you ask for?

Wendy is wonderful to work with. She was able to get a sense of our style and truly bring it to life in such a functional way. The finished rooms are beautiful, but still very liveable which was important for us as we have two small children. She is very professional and conscientious of our time and budget. I was initially dreading the remodel of our powder room because we have had such poor home renovation experiences in the past, but Wendy supervised everything, and the contractor and subs she works with are excellent. It was all accomplished on time and with minimal inconvenience to our family, and the end result is gorgeous.