July 3, 2013 castlebri

Hey Castle Friends!

While things have been hot and heavy in the field, we’ve been a little quite lately here in the digital world. With so much going on we will have plenty to post and talk about through the month of July. This month you can look forward to posts from Designer of the Month, Alyssa Oleinik, Project Managers Noah Martin and Bill Braniff, and Field Guys Dave Ross and Jeremy Wiles. Everyone has plenty of going on and will provide great insight in the remodeling world. This month is also Celebrate Your Independents! This is a fantastic initiative started by the Metro Independent Business Alliance [MetroIBA] that promotes shopping local to help build our community and economics through local initiatives. Castle will be offering 50% off all Design Packages through July 31. [Does not apply to projects in progress or recently signed]

Without further ado, let’s introduce our Designer of the Month Alyssa Oleinik!

Alyssa graduated this May with her Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities. She studied abroad in Spring 2012 in Oaxaca, Mexico and came to appreciate the contrast in architectural style when comparing the courtyard buildings there to the high rises in the Twin Cities. Alyssa grew up in a family that enjoys flipping houses, and was drawing floor plans in chalk on her grandmother’€™s driveway by age five. Alyssa loves skiing, hiking, camping, and anything that will give a rush of adrenaline such as skydiving, white water rafting, and zip lining. She has traveled to Europe and Central America, and foresees plenty of adventure in her future!

So Alyssa, as the Design Assistant here at Castle what types of projects are you working on?

A: I’m working several projects this month. Since I assist all of the designers I get to work on all types of projects. I’m currently helping out with bathrooms, laundry rooms, kitchens, basements, and a couple additions; and nearly all of them involve completely gutting the space and starting from scratch.

Wow that’s a lot of projects. It is the benefit of being the assistant though, you get to have your hands in so many projects and learn from all the various experiences. This will really help make an impact on your career as you grow. Tell me, what are some of your current favorite design trends?

A: I love all of the new storage innovations I’ve seen lately! Here are 5 of my top favorites

I love how a privacy wall can be a storage wall!  #storage #bathroom // Makeup counter. End of cabinet storage for keys, sunglasses, etc Ventilated drawer to store non-refrigerated foods (tomatoes, potatoes, garlic, onions) new kitchen idea/I love this Idea. wine wall... what a useful way to use the awkward support wall!

 

Oh wow, those are great solutions. I especially love the hidden wine rack. What a great idea! Keeping with the trends theme, what about color? Any favorites or trends that stand out here? Words of advice?

A: Yellow has been my favorite color for most of my life. BUT.. be careful when you are using it in your home so it’s not overwhelming!

Here is a good example of yellow as the main color, and as well as an accent color:

Yellow Room traditional living roomBreakfast Nook

 

Here are some rather garish examples:

Bright Yellow Living Room...refreshing yellow kitchen  too  bright yellow for me!

 

Stay tuned as we touch base with Alyssa later this month to talk more. We will also sit down with Bill and Noah, two of our esteemed Project Managers, and Dave and Jeremy, two of our experienced Field Guys.

In the meantime if you have a question for our designers, project managers or field guys, email hannah@castlebri.com and she will post the answers on Facebook on Tuesdays!!

 

 

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