Rock House Design

Lauren came to me highly recommended and I was also very happy with her work and would highly recommend her to anyone else. She made the process very easy. She designed a beautiful floor plan and picked out the most beautiful materials for my remodel. My kitchen look gorgeous now. She made it look even better than I was expecting. She is very available to your needs and I was having trouble choosing paint at the last minute and I called her and she came over immediatly and fixed my issue. I will use her again when I remodel our bathroom down the road! More...

Reviewed on Houzz

Lauren is a wonderful person to work with, she listens and has great ideas to help design and manage projects.
We are a cabinet shop and have worked with Lauren on quite a few projects and have always loved hearing her ideas and watching them come together to completion from the color choices to the hardware, her choices are right on, beautiful every time.
We look forward to working with Lauren on many more projects. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

I have been working with Lauren for over 6 years! She has designed almost every room in my house. She blends her style and your style to make beautiful spaces. When there has been a budget she has helped us keep that budget. Currently she is working on a remodel for my restaurant. The fact that we are still hiring Lauren Brandwein after 6 years should speak for it self. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

Lauren was the architect for two projects/remodels that my wife and I did in wine country. We hired Lauren due to the amazing job she did on another project in wine country that we were very familiar with. We were thankful to leave much of the project to Lauren to choose fixtures, colors, floors etc. due to her outstanding taste and understanding of what we wanted and were very satisfied with the results. We would not hesitate to use Lauren again. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

We had Lauren just recently do the re-design for our kitchen. I can't say enough good things about working with her. She did the re-design of our bathroom a few years ago, which, by the way, looks amazing! So there was no doubt she would help us with the kitchen.

I'm in the kitchen quite a bit, so my only requirements where that, first and foremost it had to be totally functional (I didn't need a show piece, though it's certainly beautiful!) and second the wall between the kitchen and living room had to come down. To say I disliked the box I had to work in before was an understatement. Now I spend more time than ever in it, much to my husband's delight.

I'm sure that Lauren adjusts her style for each client, but, as I told her, the thing that I like best about working with her is that she doesn't give me any choices. Which is perfect for me. I can't stand being overwhelmed by choices. She picked the flooring, the color of the walls and I'm pretty sure the counter tops. Of course I agreed with her choices, but I didn't have to look at a 100 different color swatches, counter chips, etc. Fine with me because the less I have to deal with that sort of stuff the better. I'm just not a fan of shopping unless I'm in a cooking store, so Lauren was a huge, huge help in material selection.

The design and flow of our "new" kitchen is awesome. Lauren set it up to be totally functional for me. And the lighting is fantastic. Not only is the new kitchen beautiful to look at it I can actually see while I'm cooking/baking. One thing that I didn't know I needed was a pantry with pull out drawers. I knew I needed a pantry, but pull out drawers!?! I love it!

If there is any doubt after reading this review if I would hire her again the answer is, without hesitation-YES, YES, YES! More...

Reviewed on Houzz

Lauren designed a complete kitchen renovation for the 1990 condo we had just purchased. Being a condo, we were not free to restructure beyond the basic footprint, but Lauren managed to make maximum use of the space we had. That included adding a full wall pantry in an area that was basically dead space , maintaining the original smaller pantry space and incorporating an antique Hoosier kitchen cabinet that was a "must keep" for us.

While an updated look was of interest to us, most important to me, personally, was a practical and functional layout. I really cook in my kitchen, and this was the first time in my 40+ years of home ownership that I had the opportunity to create a space where everything could be exactly where it was most convenient for me.

Lauren did a great job of listening to my needs and desires, and making sure they were central to the design. That meant that even if it was small, I had to have a center island. It meant that even if it meant loosing some drawer space, i had to have lazysusans in the corner cabinets so I could get to everything in there without crawling on my knees. And there had to be room to accommodate the extra large sink and the 6-burner range that were essential for me.

Once all that was settled, then we had fun with the aesthetics of the design. I originally selected Lauren based on her designs that I saw on Houzz kitchen photos. I could tell that her personality met mine in her design style, and once we met and talked about materials and color, I knew we were speaking the same language. That did not mean we always agreed on the choices, but we were able to discuss the options , and go over the pros and cons comfortably together. I trusted Lauren's judgment, and she respected mine as well. Between the two of us, we came to decisions that made us both satisfied with the results. At the same time, she also understood and worked well with the design specs and technical details with my husband, the engineer in the family.

Another important factor in working with Lauren was that she stuck to her agreed fee schedule, while still always giving us the time we needed to consult with her, either in person or via e-mail or phone. Along the same lines, she was flexible about making the actual purchases, so that if we felt we could get a better price for certain items, she was fine with us getting them on our own. We also appreciated her access to products that we could not get as general consumers, and that added to the style elements of the design. Most important among these was her connection to a cabinet maker who could provide custom cabinets well within our budget.

As with any major construction job there were moments of frustration and even uncertainty along the way. However, once the work was finally completed, our immediate reaction was---Lauren got it just right. She heard what we wanted, she had a good sense of our style and color comfort and designed a kitchen that was exactly what we had hoped for. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

We had the pleasure of working with Lauren on the complete interior remodel of our home. The house was previously my parents' home and we loved the space, but wanted to make it 'ours'. Lauren's amazing ideas helped us transform our new space while respecting the original design concept. She assisted us with everything from construction to finishes. Lauren respects your wishes and ideas while sharing her endless knowledge with you to make your home just right for you. The end result is cozy and fresh. We love to come home!
We would absolutely use Lauren again..wouldn't want to do a project without her! More...

Reviewed on Houzz

Lauren was a wonderful partner in the gut renovation of a 1 bedroom 940 square foot home I purchased in Healdsburg, CA. I could not be happier with the results. Nearly every inch of the now 1000 sq ft house is usable space. It flows beautifully, there is plentiful storage space, and it feels much bigger than it is. The layout, tile colors, paint, and fixtures yielded a polished look that is also warm. She managed to marry my love of modern design with elements that reflected the age and character of the house. Lauren quickly narrowed in on the eclectic style I was looking for, pushed my comfort zone, and helped me understand the direction she was going. Fantastic designer who I would love to work with again.

The 1920's building hadn't seen much updating since the 60's. Aside from the conversion of a laundry room to makeshift bathroom for the aging owner and a low shed roof addition to the back.

Needless to say the place needed a lot of work. I came to Lauren with a few thoughts on potential layouts and a list of what was important to me in the renovation, including a tight budget.

Lauren converted my sketches into actual drawings and worked with me to really understand what aspects of the design were most important. She also made some awesome suggestions that moved me closer to my desired intent for the property.

I'm incredibly detail oriented and wanted a partner that would challenge me, and push my comfort levels. Lauren did that. I was also insistent that when I didn't like something or didn't understand it, that it wasn't a 'no.' I wanted to understand why she felt that was the right way to go. She was patient and helped me understand the concepts. I didn't always agree, but she pushed me in some directions I wouldn't have gone. And I love the result.

Lauren initially asked me to identify some pictures on Houzz so she could get a sense of the style that I was after. After that, we talked further and she really nailed the look I was going for.

It was helpful for me throughout the process to be able to pick from a curated list of options, and Lauren provided that. She found some absolutely wonderful, interesting pieces that I wouldn't have found on my own. And they work together smartly.

For tile selection we went to the store and pulled samples together until we had something I was really happy with. A fun process that resulted in beautiful bathrooms and kitchen.

Lauren's paint color selections perfectly match the rooms they are in and the transitions are seamless. The play with the paint colors and the light in the house is truly magical. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

Lauren helped us with a complete home remodel of our 1983 contemporary style home. This was a complete gut down to the bare studs. She assisted in all phases of design from room design, color, texture of walls, stone, tile, window coverings, furniture, rugs, art work, etc.
Easy to work with and figured out our contemporary taste and was always available. She always gave us three ideas to choose from which was very much appreciated. Her fees were fair and we would definitely use her again. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

In one week we move back into our Lauren Brandwein designed remodeled home. Wow! I have the home of my dreams thanks to Lauren.
From the first meeting 6 months ago, working with Lauren has been a true pleasure, in fact even fun. Lauren listened closely to my ideas, and then magically brought to fruition everything I wanted and more. Honestly, I think I have the most beautiful kitchen I have ever seen.
The construction process went very smoothly, in a large part due to Lauren's detail working drawings, knowledge of construction and codes, and her excellent communication skills. For these reasons our contractor was delighted to be working with Lauren again. Also, Lauren remained involved and very accessible through out the construction phase.
In my opinion Lauren is a gifted designer. I am indebted to the friend who recommended her. And I would enthusiastically recommend Lauren to anyone. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

We recently purchased a home that was in need of updating and a kitchen remodel. I found Lauren on Houzz and from the first phone call and initial meeting, we knew she was a perfect fit for our needs. She was highly professional and very timely. She has outstanding relationships with local resources and other industry professionals, making finding the perfect subs and products, very easy. When talking with local vendors and people that have worked with Lauren, they all have great respect for her, her style and her work ethic. Her eye for detail and for what is not only stylish and hip but timeless as well, is impeccable. She walked us through the daunting process of selecting a totally redesigned kitchen, cabinets, hardware, lighting, flooring, colors, windows, and so much more. We move in our new house in just days and I can hardly wait! It looks stunning, functional and stylish!
We would definitely use Lauren again and would recommend her to anyone. More...

Reviewed on Houzz

It was truly a pleasure to work with Lauren Brandwein! She is highly creative and knowledgeable. She truly listened to our ideas for our dream kitchen and was also sensitive to our budget. Lauren not only designed a beautiful, functional kitchen for us, but guided us through and facilitated the entire project. She always made herself available when we had questions or when there were decisions to be made regarding details in the plan that we simply had not considered. We love our new kitchen and are inspired to remodel other spaces in our home and will definitley hire Lauren to design and facilitate those future projects! More...

Reviewed on Houzz

As general contractor I've had many experiences working with designers over the years and working with Lauren has always been a pleasure. I specialize in residential projects almost exclusively and all of my projects require attention to the details. Lauren has shown me that she has an incredible talent to think of the details and plan for them from the very beginning. She's been able to take my projects from the initial concept/layout phase through completion seamlessly and I've never had to stop a project and wait for her to make a descision before moving on.

Lauren's taste is impecable and her projects speak for themselves (look at her photos).

Feel free to contact me for a reference.
Dan Boyle Construction 707 486-9225 More...

Reviewed on Houzz