Knot Vanilla

due to illness didn't use

Great Very professional looking. Carol finished the job before I expected. Would definitely use again.

We are very pleased with the help we got from Carol. She helped us decide what to do about the opening over the fireplace after providing several possibilities for us to consider. She was very attentive to detail and made sure things were done correctly. The opening above the fireplace had an electrical outlet so she contacted an electrician to find out what needed to be done so the any changes would follow the building code. She then had him come in to do the electrical work. Her husband is a carpenter, and he did the work on the wall and then Carol and an assistant painted the wall. It turned out beautifully. Carol helped us develop a plan for handing the art work and then hung it herself -- with great attention to detail -- measuring down to the 1/16 of an inch to make sure that the pictures in the collage arrangements we decided on were correctly spaced. We especially appreciated a wonderful suggestion she made that would never have occurred to us. We have a collection of Asian art that she hung over a dresser/buffet that had a medium maple finish. She suggested we paint the dresser with a black lacquer finish that would give it an Asian feel. We had that done and the result is spectacular. Another suggestion that we would not have thought of was to paint the frame of a large mirror that we were planning to hang over the fireplace with a silver paint that would match the brushed nickel of the light fixtures and provide a contract with the new wall paint. Again -- a great result. For the flooring, Carol introduced us to luxury vinyl tile -- a product that was new to us. We had some questions about its durability and resistance to damage, so Carol got a sample and subjected it to various stresses to see whether it would hold up. We did get the tile and are very pleased with our new floor. Carol also went through the rest of the house making specific suggestions about possible painting, window treatments, etc. We are not going to make other changes right now, but have a good list of suggestions to consider later. In summary, we would strongly recommend Carol for her great ideas, ability to listen carefully to our thoughts and preferences, attentive approach to every task, and very reasonable fees.

unknown

Our favorite idea that was Carol's was to move a casual dining table into the room with the view of the woods and stream to capitalize on the scenic view often from a table we would sit at many times a day. We ended up loving this idea and ordered exactly what she recommended. I liked that she was forth coming with ideas and critiques, but willing to work at the level of not adding tremendous additional expense, but would also suggest spending more if the fix warranted it.

Carol was very helpful. She gave suggestions for paint color, flooring, decorating, and furniture placement. She considered our style, stage of life (4 kids at home), and functionality. She was direct, honest, and insightful. I feel ready to move forward with redecorating our family room and adjoining rooms. We will hire her again for future projects.

unknown

Very well and professional

I learned about Knot Vanilla from attending some events ten years ago, where they had done theme decorating and painted a huge wall mural. After admiring the quality of their creative work, I contacted the owner (and artist), Carol Coffey-Smith, and asked if she would help me update my kitchen walls with colors that would match other colors in the kitchen. I was very impressed with Carol's thoroughness and professionalism and ended up hiring her to repaint the kitchen walls and make new curtains for my windows (we could not locate pre-made curtains that were a good match, so Carol offered to make them herself). The next project I hired Knot Vanilla for was updating the walls of my son's bedroom. Carol painted three of the walls, then put up a wallpaper border. On the fourth wall she put up a wallpaper mural. It all looked wonderful, but I was most impressed with how Carol took all of my son's and quot;wall stuffand quot; and arranged it in a very eye-appealing way... grouping all his awards, sports memorabilia, miscellaneous things, and even coming up with a creative way for my son to display his many ball caps. A couple years later, I hired Knot Vanilla to upgrade my bathrooms, which included paint color selection, tile floor selection, counter top selection, and lighting. And shortly after that project, I enlisted Carol's help again in redecorating all my downstairs walls, which included locating and installing decorative full-length mirrors. She even rearranged some furniture and installed staggered shelving in my home office. Most recently I used Knot Vanilla's services for advising on replacing the flooring in my kitchen and foyer, additional lighting in the kitchen, and window treatments for my master bedroom. In every instance, Carol brought over samples (when applicable) and affordable recommendations, and the final look -- without exception -- was always better than what I had envisioned. Another big reason I don't hesitate to call Knot Vanilla is that they are so reasonably priced. And Carol's often willing to offer her regular customers free advice on small projects, which I also really appreciate. I've recommended Knot Vanilla to my sister and a few friends, and they've all been pleased with Carol's responsiveness, talent and budget-conscious recommendations.