Architects in West Lake Sammamish, WA

“We engaged the services of Don Larkin, Architect, to design our new custom home in Manchester, Washington. We selected Don after reviewing and interviewing several other architects because of his previous experience in construction, his design style, and his easy-going manner. We were not disappointed. We brought Don a conceptual layout, discussed with him our priorities -- needs, wants and desires -- and after a site visit, he flipped our concept 180 degrees which resulted in a far superior layout for the site. I guess that's why you hire a professional. His initial exterior design so captivated my wife and me by delivering on our tastes and styles that we hardly made changes to his exterior concept. Throughout the design process, Don brought us excellent ideas, and as we suggested changes or modifications, he was always good natured in dealing with our ignorances by pointing out why what we suggested would not work, but offering alternatives that blended our vision with reality. Once we settled on a design, he was there with us throughout the permitting process and the construction phase, making necessary or desired changes as requested. He has remained in contact after we completed construction to ensure we are satisfied with the home he designed based on our vision and our lifestyle. Throughout the process, both Don, and my wife and I learned a lot about the architectural design process. Don recognized some of our spatial visualization issues and developed some 3-D depictions of his 2-D drawings. These 3-D renderings helped tremendously in our ability to visualize the finished product, and to communicate with our contractor and trades people on the desired finished look. If Don does not offer these to you, I recommend that you ask him about them. They were an excellent aid in our design and build process. I absolutely and without hesitation commend and recommend Don Larkin for anyone who is interested in new or remodel construction architectural services. He listens to what you want, brings to you what he heard, and works with you to refine the product to meet your dreams. Don certainly delivered on our dream. Dave Pabst”

“JT was clear, helpful, open to design ideas - with plenty of his own. He clearly has a lot of experience and patience with his clients. He is a clear communicator, and was very helpful to work with.”

“We are the owners of the Yum Yum Farm in Iowa. We immediately connected with John and he was truly our Sherpa throughout the conception, design, and construction processes. He translated and expanded/enhanced our ideas into a wonderful home that continues to reveal itself to us and feels more like a part of our family than the shelter in which we live. We strongly recommend a conversation with DeForest architects before making a final decsion!”

“Board and Vellum designed my retail store and did an absolutely amazing job! They were pleasant to work with, super creative, and affordable. I'm already working with them on my next project.”

“The team at McClellan Architects were fabulous to work with and we love the home they designed for us. It's not only beautiful, but it's very functional. McClellan Architects listened to our needs and created an amazing house for our family to build a lifetime of memories in. The home was even given a design recognition award by the American Institute of Architects. I'd highly recommend McClellan Architects.”

“We LOVE working with Heidi at H2D A+D. Down to earth, super creative, and exceptionally organized. Having completed projects of all types and sizes we know first hand how important it is to have an effective leader guiding things from the beginning. Each time we work with Heidi the plans are thorough, clear, & easy to interpret… so that by the time we show up to perform our tasks, we are set up to do nothing but succeed. Each job has that enjoyable, team approach and energy. And who wins? Everybody! Thanks Heidi!”

“Gerald was excellent at creating a unique design for a home that was located on a highly difficult to develop lot. This lake property had many restrictions and a difficult county to work with. Gerald was able to stay within the restrictions and still create an amazing design. He was also able to connect us with several excellent general contractors. We will definately work with Gerald again!”

“Professional, friendly, skilled, clever -- that's how I would describe the experience of working with Prentiss Architects. In any design project, problems come up, but it is how the problems are solved that is telling. We walked away happy. We are proud of and are still in love with our house in the San Juan Islands, 10 years later.”

“Bottom line: as a contractor who has worked with many architects Eric Gedney is one of the best I've worked with. Here's why: 1) Eric places the highest priority on serving his clients needs first. He has nothing to prove and no ego that needs constant stroking. 2) Eric is highly personable and is a great listener - he also has a wry sense of humor that makes his projects fun to be a part of. He works hard to establish a good connection with his clients and has an amazing ability to translate client wishes - even odd ones - into build-able reality. 3) Eric understands the importance of collaboration and team building and seeks to build the team early in the process. Contractors can easily be marginalized in this relationship and its not uncommon for them to be made the "bad guy" especially as costs grow with design. Eric listens and even defers to contractor input and will revise his plans to accommodate. 4) Eric has a great sense of design, scale, proportion, balance, flow and style which of course is important in an architect. But Eric also possesses a clear understanding of "real life played out in a space". Nothing frivolous, rather, there is a purpose for everything even if the purpose is just to create a deeply personal statement which sums up the clients taste and style. Further, nothing Eric does is run-of-the-mill everything is custom tailored to support the clients desires. 5) Finally, Eric can design to meet budget requirements and even though compromise may hurt he is able to scale a project down to help it get built (he is also happy to scale it up!). This is a very important trait in an architect as many projects in our industry die after design and clients are left with a really nice project that will never be built. A final word of advice to potential clients: when Eric suggests you choose your contractor early on in the process - do it! This is the best way to ensure your project hits your budget goals and building the team early pays off in many remarkable ways.”

“Lane Williams took our dated and very tired looking 1960’s one story, pitched roof home with a daylight basement and transformed it into a beautiful modern home with strong horizontal and vertical planes and cantilevered masses. Lane's vision for the house really came together when we decided to spend the money to expand the carport to two cars. We were thinking it might not work, but when he showed us the renderings we both just thought wow – it balanced everything out and got us a look that was spectacular. The finished house got great reactions from the neighbors, and it still thrills us when we overhear the bicyclists as they zip by saying ‘Cool House!’ http://coop15.com/images/house_shows/Enatai/Enatai2before.jpg http://coop15.com/images/house_shows/Enatai/Enatai3.jpg http://coop15.com/images/house_shows/Enatai/Enatai1.jpg”