Meet Laurie March: project manager, remodeler and problem-solver. She’s on a mission to talk about real home improvement projects across the country. What’s your remodeling story?
Repair, Remodel, Relax
By Laurie March on September 18, 2012
Posted in On the Job Site, contractor, homeowner, house counselor, remodeling
Congratulations! This is so awesome. HGTV is my fav. I know your sister, Katie. She is raving about you on facebook! I am excited to have the first comment
Kristen –
Thank you so much! I hope you check in here and there and follow along!
Congratulations! Need a house to remodel in Florida? haha
Thanks Suzanne!!!
Hmm Florida in the winter could be fun
Awesome Laurie!
You are a natural, I love your presence and poise in front of the camera. I went to school with your Mom & Dad and a big HGTV fan. Congrats!!!
Thank you Sheila!
Hopefully my Mom is still happy with the backsplash we did for her over Christmas two years ago.
Needless to say, I broke plenty of my own rules, scheduling a remodel for the week of a holiday party!
We got it done before everyone came over, but I never slept so hard afterward!
Welcome, Laurie! Can't wait to see what you're cooking up.
Great job Laurie!!
I sure do need some advice! I've got a "fixer" condo on a lake with a great floor plan. Problem is…I don't know where to start. We're talking 1980…in the entire place. I'm not "handy" either. What do you do first? carpet/floors? paint? kitchen? bathrooms? master? I can't afford to do it all at once but I need a plan!
Hi SeattleSheila!
Thanks for reading the blog – it's all about homeowners in the same position you are – ready to explore some updates and a little unsure where to begin. We are working on a project right now that's got a little more 80's flair than the client would like.
Here's a sneak peek of the before: http://blog.hgtvremodels.com/2012/09/14/upgrading…
Stay tuned – we make some very simple and affordable improvements that change the entire feeling of the kitchen!
Hi Laurie,
I have a house in Shadowhills, CA country setting, I would like to remodel our front porch was wondering if you had any ideas. Also we are looking at remodeling our living room (dining room) we have dogs and was wondering what type of hardwood floors should we use. Would appreciate all ideas.
Carla –
There is something special about a great front porch. It's neighborly, peaceful, such a magical way to socialize and enjoy the front of your home. Check out this post on porch planning for loads of tips on how to start the planning process. http://www.hgtvremodels.com/outdoors/porch-planni…
If you follow that link to the bottom, there is a post that breaks down the types of porch, and a fun gallery of charming porches in the middle! Some of the rustic ones could be great inspiration for your country inspired porch.
The best alternative for surviving damage done by your furry friends is a porcelain tile (in costal, humid climates) sealed concrete, or a hardwood floor that you can refinish as their claws do damage over the years. I like to suggest to clients to select a wood stain color that's very close to the color of the natural wood – as the claws scratch through the stain over time the inside color won't be strikingly different than the stain color.
Distressed finishes and hand scraping also help hide imperfections.
Many people also use very thick laminate floors, but I find it slippery, noisy with doggy feet, and larger dogs tend to tear into it on their way to the door to bark at the mailman.
Keep me posted!
We live on Long Island, NY. Our 1940ish, very dated/unworkable kitchen, could be opened into our adjoining den/TV room, replacing the load-bearing wall with a penninsula. Part of our narrow but long kitchen backs onto our garage, and that wall could be opened to borrow a few feet to create a new working/storage nook. The visual contrast to the final product would be truly stunning for our family and for your viewers, and it would keep us from being separated from family and friends while cooking. We need design help and we need a plan to get this job done in a reasonable amount of time. And we would also like to improve the side entrance to the kitchen which overlooks a large fish pond and patio.
Can you help us?
Rick –
It sounds like you've thought about your space very carefully, and have some great ideas for how to make your home suit your lifestyle better. Have you asked around for a great contractor to start to explore the cost of these projects?
It's also worthwhile to consider the cost of your home, the equity you've got in it, and the size and type of homes near you so that you don't over-improve as you rework things. Kitchen remodels tend to be a great investment though. A new work/storage nook sounds fabulous… you can never have too much storage!
We are not working on any projects in your area at the moment, but it does sound like a fun one. I hope you'll check back for some ideas and stay in touch with us here on the blog!
Looking forward to your show. I have an 80's deocrated house with teal carpeting, verticle blinds and white tile countertops throughout the house. Since we are now retired and on a limited budget, I'm hoping to learn about how to update.
Learning in Las Vegas
Aloha Laurie, I live on a small island call Molokai, one of the 7 islands in Hawaii!! I have a problem for you to solve for me… and i bet you cant do it… i have a 850 sq. ft home, 2 bedrooms, and 1 bath, living room is not so big which is connected to the dinning area. My question is i have 3 girls, 12, 11,and 9, which shares the room of a 8×14 sq ft ….. tell me how am i suppose to make them all fit comfortably with dressers and 3 beds!!! I BET YOU CANT!!! hehehe… if you can,…. you are welcome to Hawaii to show me… Aloha Molokai Mom,
Hello problem solver. Our garage entryway is a joke and whomever came up with the plan is probably
drawing cartoons now. We have three doors opening up into a three foot space. One of the doors was for the little laundry room and we finally just took it off. We have a family of five and pretty much do laundry every day.The space is too small to allow you to fold the clothes. We desperately need a mud room. I wanted to add onto the back of the garage and open up the laundry room into the addition. The problem is we have two different roof lines between the garage and the house. Would it be a better idea to do away with the entry hall and remodel so the entry is into mud/laundry room then into the house?………..
Great job Laurie! I can't wait to see more of your amazing remodels.
Wow, wish that you were in Atlanta. Maybe if we had your services our home wouldn't haven't gotten so off-track, although our GC was pretty incompetent. Would love to hear your advice or tips. You can view our project at http://www.morningsiderenovation.com . Can't wait to see more of your projects. Robert
We have a small 1000 square foot house in Highland Park, CA and we love our place but we need more room. We a adopting two teenage boys from the foster care system and we only have one bathroom. We want the job done right and a modern, fun, Eco friendly place for our boys. The more we learn about the many kids who need "forever" families, the more space we want to add on to our house. In this market, we feel it is best to renovate our existing home. We really want it done the right way the first time. Any advice on who to hire?
I've been hoping for a show like yours.First time home owners are especially in need of services such as yours in my opinion.Save the first timers! If we had had wonderful resources such as this we might not have made so many mistakes.Mistake number one: our contractor was a family friend.We thought it smart to choose someone we knew.The mistake:as problems arrose we did not handle them as well as we should have not wanting to offend the friend.Today my heart sinks the minute I step into this place.(I rarely call it home).I envy the people who step through their doors and say "Ahh home sweet home".For the most part I know exactly how I would remodel though I need some advice.Many times I've searched online or picked up the phone to call a different contractor to remodel and repair only to find myself paralyzed to act because I just don't know who to trust.I'd love to see others 'counseled' before they begin so they don't end up in a similar situation.
Our Master Bath needs help! I have 6" x 8" soft gray ceramic tiles and 1 was cracked so I tried to remove a whole one planning to use it to shop with. So far no luck, even thought of a ceramic mural to use as a decorative replacement, by removing existing tiles to make room for it. I'm now lost, frustrated and husband isn't pleased with my efforts. Any reasonable idea would be appreciated. HELP
Hi Sandra!
Are you talking about your wall tiles? If so – you're already thinking creatively! You can replace sections of your tile with a skilled tile person, depending on where the cracked tile fell in the wall. Obviously, this might make more sense if your cracked tile fell in the center somewhere instead of on an edge.
If it fell on an edge, perhaps a 'band' or a 'stripe' of another tile? similar to a decorative mural but simpler to do.
Another option you could explore is having a tub refinisher come and give you an estimate. Did you know you can resurface tile just like you can resurface some types of bathtub? If you're stuck in a pinch on this one, stay tuned this month because we do exactly that for a client of mine here on the site.
You'll be able to see images and a video of the results! You can even show your hubby…
Oh – they can repair the cracked tile for you too. Just don't lose it!
Hi Laurie, I'm so confused!!! My husband and I have finally made the decision to remodel our kitchen rather than buying a new home. I don't know who to trust. We have a pretty decent budget and I feel like everything is so overpriced! My main concern was to hire the "right" contractor. I've interviewed 6 contractors within a year and finally settled on one I thought was the "right" one for the job. I liked the layout design, the price was in our range so I told the designer I wanted to get the numbers down just a bit then let's start and I never heard back from them – uhg! So now I'm back to square one. I know that renovations are not easy so I really wanted to hire someone who could do the job well, on budget and in a timely manner. I don't know if I just have unrealistic expectations or that everyone is just looking to make as much money without caring about the client. I'm so turned off to renovating now and I haven't even started! Help!
Frustrated is right.
I'm sorry you've had such a stressful time of it.
Finding the right contractor is a big part of it, but there are so many other components that matter in how you want to update your space – and how you want to be treated in the process.
Have you done your homework on the materials you want to include in your kitchen? There are real costs associated with the materials you select, and sometimes you can select something you like from a magazine and not realize it might be more expensive than you anticipated!
It's very valuable to educate yourself up front about the type of cabinets you like, the countertop materials that are available in your market, and the types of appliances and faucets you prefer. This information can help you understand the differences in your material costs vs. a contractor's labor costs.
I'm glad you interviewed a few contractors. That's important so that you can start to see a culture fit. Sometimes there is a simple misunderstanding in the course of communication with your contractor – maybe your email or voicemail got lost or hit their desk on a bad day! If you liked their approach and layout, you could give them another call and let them know you want to explore their estimate and understand it better. I'd save the part about bringing the numbers down for when you sit together in person!
Don't lose hope. There are wonderful contractors out there – remember that working on your home is a process.
We are actually seriously considering tearing the rental (we will be buying it in March 2013) totally down and starting over. The property we live on is beautiful and worth the $60,000 our landlord will sell this place to us for without the house. So, if we spend about $60,000 more to tear down and build a house, it would be worth it. We think since the the house is so old and in bad shape, the bones aren't worth saving. What a great story huh?
I just watched your video!! You seem amazing at what you do. I have been in the process of remodeling our bathroom for about a month now. I am in way over my head trying to get this thing finished so our bathroom can be back to normal again. I haven't been able to find the right paint color, flooring, ect.. Everything seems to not be working out as I thought it would. I need help!!!!! Thanks!
Hi Jordan!
I know just what you're going through – lots of people get stuck on all the decisions!
Are you exploring porcelain tile for your floors? It's a versatile, affordable choice that is available everywhere. Lots of good options there…
I think the paint color choice could wait a bit – especially if you don't know your tile color yet. Paint should make the room even better! You can't go wrong with a crisp white, though. Other very popular colors are a light gray, or a warm taupe/tan. I stay away from greens unless you're skilled at color choices – green can cast a funny color on you when you're looking in the mirror sometimes.
I hope you'll check back and tell me more about your bathroom!
Hello, my name is Sherry Hughes. My friend is remodeling. She is doing her DR with a Peacock theme. Any ideas, or suggestions? I am very lost with this theme..
Thank You!!