Ciara won 2nd in the Chief Architect Remodel-Addition Design Contest! Originally from Ireland, she is now the project designer for John Webb Construction & Design in Eugene, Oregon.

“I am originally from Ireland and moved to Eugene, Oregon 5 year ago. I started designing in school and attended the National College of Art and Design in Dublin, Ireland where I received a Bachelor of Design specializing in glass.  I started interior design about a year ago and have been working for John Webb Construction and Design since June of 2017.

“I have been using Chief Architect for 3 months. Our company decided to start using Chief Architect because of the great features it has.” (more…)

Paul Fread won 1st place in the Chief Architect Remodel/Addition Design Contest. Paul and his crew have a passion for working on vintage character homes and bringing them new life. This Kitchen Addition was a great example of their work.

“First, everyone at Original Roots is here because we love what we do and we enjoy working with each other and serving our great clients.  We work on Design+Build projects ranging from bathrooms and kitchens to major additions and pop-tops – and anything in between.  We focus on Denver’s old character homes and we have an intimate working knowledge of the history and typical challenges that these awesome vintage homes present.  The fun part is working through those challenges to consistently create beautiful, well-designed, and solidly built finished projects.  It’s really hard work and we love it.

“Several things make us unique from other companies in our industry beyond the typical claims of quality, timeliness, and ability to stay on budget.  First, we are truly a Design+Build firm with professional/degreed Designers under the same roof as our field crew of Carpenters and Project Supervisors.  Secondly, we offer a completely honest and realistic construction cost range after an initial consultation. We do this for a few reasons:  we want our clients to get a realistic sense of costs early on in the process to help guide their decision making and ensure that we are designing – and ultimately, building – something within their means.  Also, we want to foster an atmosphere where we’re able to do what we say we can from the beginning, leaving folks happy in the end.

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Hiie won 1st place in the Chief Architect Kitchen/Bath & Interior Design Contest. Her passion for kitchen design shines through her work.

“I’m a kitchen designer from Tallinn, Estonia. It’s far away from America. I have my own business, where I make kitchen design drawings for customers. I also work 3 days a week, at a small company, where I make kitchen designs and real kitchens for customers who enter to our shop. I totally love my work. I began doing it about 3 years ago.

“I found the Home Designer program just about a year ago. I wanted a good program for my home computer. After lots of googling and asking advice from LinkedIn groups, I decided Home Designer is the best start for me. I’m so happy Chief Architect has several price levels for this program. After 4 months of working with Home Designer Suite, I realized I needed a more robust version, so now I am working with Home Designer Architectural and I know that is not the end!

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Luis won 2nd in the Chief Architect Kitchen/Bath & Interior Design Contest. His experience in real estate led him into floor plan services and 3D visuals.

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Chace won 2nd in our Residential Design Contest and has found his passion in home design.

“Born and raised in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex of Texas, I’ve always had an eye for design. Supported by my father and mother and their commercial construction business, I was very fond of many local architectural firms. I had set up a few one on one interviews to discuss my future goals, the educational process, and the work atmosphere. My mind was set on architecture since I was very young. (more…)

By Adrean Stephenson

It felt a little like cheating when I opened up Danielle Burger’s winning Small Bath plan and began transitioning it for our NKBA Study Guide project.

Danielle has been using Chief Architect since 2015 and made beautiful work of her bath design using the software. I simply asked to start from the plan file and then made some edits that matched her drawings to the drafting style of the other designs in our project.

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Valerie won 1st in our Residential Design Contest and has been using Home Designer software since 2012! As a repeat Design Contest winner, she has continuously shown her love for design through many styles and spaces.

“I started drawing floor plans when I was 9 years old, and I have been hooked on it ever since. I know I have much yet to learn, but Home Design is my passion, and my dream is to work for an Architect and learn more. I returned to school in 2002 and studied drafting which included Hand Drafting and AutoCAD. I earned an entry level drafting certificate in 2003 with a 3.9-grade level. About 1997 we got our first computer and it was not long before I bought my First Design software. Broderbund was my first program, then Better Homes and Gardens and lastly Chief Architect’s Home Designer software. Someday I would like to own the professional version. I live in central WV, but we will soon be moving back to my home state of PA. Besides designing homes, I enjoy reading, pets, cooking, drawing/painting, camping and more. This is a great honor for me and I thank everyone who voted for my entry for this month. I’m looking forward to next month’s contest. Congratulations to the other two winners!”

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Megan placed 3rd  in June’s Remodel-Addition Design Contest! She discovered Chief Architect a few years ago when she was looking for a program to use to remodel her own kitchen.

“I’m a software developer from Utah who loves to design and create in my spare time (which isn’t plentiful with a full-time job and a toddler).  I have loved doodling since I was little and remember using my dad’s engineering paper to draw up designs as to how I’d remodel my parents’ home and yard when I was young.  I love browsing floor plans and touring homes and imagining my ultimate dream home.  I’m certainly not an expert, but love to play around with ideas and try to think outside of the box.  (And would probably be happy doing something along these lines as a job if the opportunity ever came up.) (more…)

Rene of Daoust Design and Construction placed 3rd in May’s Kitchen/Bath and Interior Design Contest. He has been using Chief Architect for almost 10 years and focuses on the 3D tools to beat out the competition.

“I grew up in Oakland California and went into building custom homes in the Bay Area right out of high school. I have been a builder for over 17 years in residential remodeling, which is what inspired me to start designing. Ten years ago I was fortunate to have the opportunity to do some freelance design for an architecture firm that was using Chief Architect X3. I fell in love with the software and its ability to create realistic visual depictions of the kitchens and baths I would then get to build. I am currently a licensed General Contractor (inactive) working for Daoust Design and Construction as Lead Design/Production Manager. (more…)

Debra placed 1st in the Chief Architect Kitchen/Bath & Interior Design Contest. She develops house plans and has been a Chief Architect customer for almost 20 years!

“I’m from south Mississippi. I live/work in a little town called Wiggins since my husband and I got married 32 years ago.  I’m a Certified Professional Building Designer and a professional member of the American Institute of Building Design (AIBD).

“I started what would be my “career” after taking an architectural drafting class in high school. After college I started working for an engineering firm, drawing road projects, subdivisions, and local projects “on the board.”  After working with them 8 years (and doing house plans at night) I decided to leave there and open DesignHouse Inc – House Plans in 1991, full-time. I knew if I was going pursue this design field I would have to transition off the board onto a CAD program.  I’ve used several programs over the years but nothing has offered my clients the views that Chief does. (more…)