By Jake Murray

Amanda placed 3rd in the Chief Architect Kitchen/Bath & Interiors Design Contest! Her ability to learn from different design perspectives has contributed to her success as a young designer.

“My interest in design all started in high school when I decided to focus on art and design classes. I grew up in Massachusetts where I attended college in Boston at Wentworth Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Interior Design. As a young designer, I am always curious about “what’s the new thing.” I am always wanting to learn from a different design perspective. For example, my last co-op I worked with architects and got to understand more about the structure. These advantages help me understand what I am designing and what I need to improve on as a young designer. (more…)

By Emily Black

Chief Architect has been working with WineRacks.com since 2012 to offer their wine storage product line. Their USA made wine storage solutions provide a unique design for any small or large project.

WineRacks.com is located in New York’s Hudson Valley and has been serving their customers since 1992.  Over the years, their product selections have expanded to include a wide range of small capacity wine racks, wine accessories, cooling units and lighting for wine cellars.

With the goal of providing the very best customer service and product quality, WineRacks.com is manufacturing their own wooden wine storage units within the US with environmentally responsible raw materials.

I had the chance to speak with Jeremy of WineRacks.com to dive deeper into what makes a great wine cellar.

(more…)

By Jake Murray

Zak placed 1st in the Chief Architect Kitchen/Bath & Interiors Design Contest! A start with Lego houses has led to a long career and successful company of his own, Livara Design Inc.

Zak, his wife, and two children. With a passion for design that began at an early age, his work is the product of an experienced and talented designer. Congratulations on winning 1st place!

“I was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Canada with a small stint in British Columbia.  I always knew I wanted to design homes.  I can remember sitting on the floor as a kid building Lego houses and hotels, and I always gravitated to drawing sprawling dream homes over all the other topics little kids usually draw! I was gifted my first drafting table when I was 13 or 14, and I was off to the races.  I had a great Drafting & Design program in my high school and it definitely solidified my want to do this for a living. (more…)

By Adrean Stephenson

Taunton Press’s Fine Homebuilding Magazine has been the gold standard reference, covering quality home design and construction for over 30 years. I remember as a youngster sifting through the stacks of my dad’s coveted back issues, soaking up the details and anticipating the next “Great Moments in Building History” featured on the last page. It wasn’t long after I purchased my first fixer upper that I started an archive library of my own. (more…)

By Adrean Stephenson

January’s KBIS event marked another success on the books. This year, in addition to manning our booth and hosting the annual User Breakfast, our team was delighted to contribute to one of the favorite KBIS announcements: the 2018 NKBA Design Awards! See the full spread of winners and project information in the January/February issue of NKBA Innovation + Inspiration.

We used Chief Architect’s 3D Modeling, Rendering, and Video Walkthrough Recording tools to replicate the winning designs, then recorded animations that virtually explore the spaces.

(more…)

By Kendra Dorosh

Members of the Chief Architect Team visited Nashville for the combined Remodeling Show and DeckExpo. Chief Architect was an exhibitor alongside hundreds of other top manufacturer’s in the industry. We’ve recruited Scott Harris, the Vice President of Sales and Marketing to share a little bit about the show experience.

(more…)

By Adrean Stephenson

I love the friendly, bright, airiness of the winning Small Kitchen for the 2017 NKBA Design Competition. Davida Rodriguez, of Davida’s Kitchen and Tiles, worked some magic on this remodel space.

(more…)

By Emily Black

New and returning attendees joined us for our 2017 User Group Meeting and Training in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho!

(more…)

By Adrean Stephenson

When you have been designing Kitchens and Baths for 32 years and teaching the process to others for 14 more, it is next to impossible to not know your stuff. Robin Rigby Fisher is no exception, and it shows in the Large Bath she submitted for 2017’s NKBA Design Competition.

“I teach part-time at Portland Community College, an NKBA Accredited College. One of the reasons I continue to teach is to make sure that I stay at the top of my game. I want my drawings to be as meticulous as possible because I expect that from my students.  I think they are synonyms. I’m at the top of my game because my students are at the top of theirs. They are highly desirable, highly regarded. They are easy to hire. That’s what I like about teaching.

(more…)

By Adrean Stephenson

The little room that won 1st place for the Powder Room category in 2017’s NKBA Design Competition is big on character! Lori Carroll’s take leverages a vaulted ceiling and the use of light and texture to make this Powder Room a space to remember.

“For this client, luxury is a state of mind; something that goes beyond the ordinary amenities and accommodations.  Wanting their guests to experience something special, the design concept for this powder room didn’t have to be extravagant or opulent; just beautifully simple.  When visualizing aesthetics for this project, a softer, more natural look conveyed the feel the client hoped for. The combination of stone, metal and wood creates a unified design in this powder room.”

(more…)