The Casey Home

Last year, the Caseys contacted us again. This time, they had a larger project in mind: a reconfiguration and renovation of their kitchen, eating area and bathroom as well as the addition of a mudroom and sun deck.

"Custom was on our short list, but we also talked to other contractors," said Giovanna. "It was clear that Custom was the perfect blend of good design and intelligent building."

To Giovanna, "intelligent building" meant "giving us options and recommendations on what to do as various challenges emerged during the project. That's Custom's real value - the experience they bring to projects of this scope."

Swapping the Kitchen & Eating Area

At the project's outset, the most significant challenge involved the configuration of the kitchen and eating area. General manager Scott Blain proposed swapping the two areas, which addressed the Caseys' layout concerns and created exciting new possibilities.

The final design placed the new mudroom next to the eating area, which also opens out onto the sun deck. On the far end of kitchen went the bathroom and washer/dryer closet.

"Custom didn't have to touch any load-bearing walls but was able to improve the flow of the entire first floor," said Giovanna.

The kitchen now has new appliances, forest blue granite countertops and beautiful maple cabinetry. Two of Chris' favorite features are the bay window above the sink and an exposed, built-in wine rack that always lets him know how much vino is in stock.

For her part, Giovanna loves the mudroom along with the window bench, which was custom-built by our own Kirk Stanford. "I get to sit here and have coffee with my girlfriends," she said. "And there's a hidden opening on top, so we can store a bunch of stuff."

Amazing Attention to Quality

The Caseys were so happy with the project that they asked us to move on to other parts of the house. By the time we wrapped up last fall, we had also painted walls and replaced flooring on the first floor, upgraded insulation, replaced the boiler, installed a new front door and more. Giovanna credits lead carpenter Bryan Lamoureux for keeping the project on schedule despite encountering the occasional surprises in the home's bones (like the labyrinth of joists we uncovered upon opening up the kitchen ceiling to put in recessed lighting).




"Bryan was here every day during the project," she said. "He was wonderful, with such great focus on the task at hand and amazing attention to quality." Georgia and Jerry Harris (whose home we featured in the Winter 2009 issue of our newsletter) first referred Custom to the Caseys over a decade ago. Now, the Caseys are happy to pass on our name to their friends.

"The quality of Custom's work was fantastic, as were the service and support," she said. "We've already recommended Custom to others, and we'd hire them again in a heartbeat."