Nothing makes our Monday quite like receiving a delightful note from one of our fantastic clients. Have we mentioned we have the pleasure of working for the best clients in the business?
All the men are gentlemen. Respectful and pleasant to work with. Excellent Craftsmanship. Wonderful Experience!!
– Happy Client
We are thrilled that our project, Contemporary Tranquility, was featured by Dwell Magazine in an article titled, “Cabins and Connectors Form a Family’s Lake Michigan Retreat.” We had the pleasure of bringing the unique design of this lakefront home by our friends at Booth Hansen to life and we couldn’t be more pleased with the final result. To read the full article, visit Dwell.com.
When faced with building or renovating a home, we know you have a number of choices here in West Michigan. So why choose us? What sets Scott Christopher Homes apart from the rest? The answer: Experience. Hear exactly what that means to us from our founder, Scott Christopher.
Happy clients make the world go ’round here at Scott Christopher Homes and we are thrilled that the end result of the renovation work we did at The Cakabakery‘s new location turned out to be not only a beautiful space, but gave our client an enjoyable build process the whole way through.
“When our custom dessert business, Cakabakery, needed a permanent home we searched Grand Rapids for a building that would suit our unique needs. We found such a place but knew upon purchasing the building that a massive renovation would be needed to shape the layout to fit our use. When deciding to hire a construction team we paid critical attention to selecting a company we thought might work hard to meet deadlines, listen to our concerns and deliver a quality outcome. We selected Scott Christopher Homes and we’ve been thrilled at the results. We worked with Jim Stull and he helped us source sub-contractors for the work needed. Jim’s communication with us was professional, effective and structured. I was especially impressed that Jim actively looked for ways to help make the process less stressful. His attention to detail and resourcefulness were an added benefit. While most companies look for additional ways to profit, Jim kept all the trades people on track and challenged them to be inventive and cost effective. This is rare. Not only are we happy to recommend Scott Christopher Homes to friends, family and fellow area business owners, we also look forward to hiring Jim and team again on future projects. Our sincere thanks to all involved.”
We are proud to have been awarded “Best of Houzz 2017 for Service,” rating at the highest level of client satisfaction. This will be our fourth year in a row winning a Houzz Award, including previous awards in both design and service.
“Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” Planned for a challenging build site, our Dunes project took loads of teamwork, creativity and out-of-the-box thinking to bring this stunning retreat to life. Read about the process from start to finish and take a remarkable pictorial and virtual tour of this one-of-a-kind home in the cover story of Cosmopolitan Home Magazine’s most recent issue. Click here to see the full issue.
We recently posted the finished photos of our Urban Oasis project. The creative brilliance of this project highlights the exciting idea that not every home needs to be structurally rearranged to gain the cosmetic and practical beauty of a thematic update. With flooring choices, ceiling enhancements, thoughtful lighting and color selections, select cabinetry upgrades with custom cabinetry, fresh feature accents (ie: fireplace areas), and even new furniture, it’s exciting to creatively bring a classic home into the 21st century. Such was the case in the kitchen, dining, formal living, family room, recreation rooms, and bedrooms of this home. To truly appreciate the “afters” of this renovation, take a look at how far it has come from the “befores.” [ commence temporary descent of jaw altitude ]
ArtPrize is in full swing! In preparation for the eighth year of this delightfully diverse art competition, Scott Christopher Homes has been hard at work behind the scenes. You may have seen information kiosks around ArtPrize last year, which we had the unique pleasure of constructing. After a few modifications and a new color scheme, we installed the new and improved kiosks in four spots around Grand Rapids. You’ll find one in front of the entrance to Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum, one in front of DeVos Place, one on Monroe Center in front of the Art Museum and one on Rumsey Street, adjacent this year’s SiTE:LAB venue. ArtPrize volunteers will be staffing these kiosks to provide ArtPrize-goers with information and answers to any questions they may have along the way.
Scott Christopher Homes also worked with ArtPrize and Via Design on revamping the new location of the ArtPrize Artists’ Clubhouse with a custom built bar serving as the main information desk, the installation of functional room dividers, as well as paint and drywall work providing the backdrop for unique installations by Clubhouse sponsor Wolverine Worldwide.
We also worked on the Learning Lab Experience at ArtPrize’s main HUB. The room got a bit of a facelift and we installed TVs throughout, where ArtPrize attendees can test out Tilt Brush, a virtual painting experience, Code.org, an online coding program, and Planet3, an immersive game-based platform that explores the planet’s history and future.
It is truly our pleasure to partner each year with an organization that turns the city we love into the stunning backdrop for dazzling paintings, fascinating sculptures and an overall experience that hundreds of thousands of visitors come from near and far to discover. For the eighth year in a row, this event will not disappoint, so be sure to check it out between now and October 9. Enjoy!
We had the pleasure of partnering with ArtPrize again this year to host their annual kick-off event – ONE WILD NIGHT. It took place on the grounds of one of our favorite lakefront projects, Lakeside Chic. The delightful fare was as good as it looked, courtesy of Chef Steve at Mr. Eat Right and Doorganics, with some amazing sweet treats by Cakabakery and refreshments by The Crushed Grape. We got a little taste of what is to come during ArtPrize 8, as artist Joey Ruiter displayed his stunningly creative sculptures throughout the property. There wasn’t a dull moment as guests and hosts alike were entertained by a stunt water skiing group, an opera singer and fire dancers. It truly was one wild night! Peruse through a few photos from the evening, as captured by the talented Amy Carroll Photography.
When it comes to home maintenance, humidity control is probably one of the most important factors for your home’s well-being and the air quality you experience in it. Have too little humidity, and you’ll stress your home by over-drying. You’ll see it manifested in the separation of drywall & trim joints, flooring, tile joints, fastener “pops,” and even in your furniture. Adding to that, you’ll personally experience dry skin and hair, static electricity, and increased susceptibility to respiratory illness. Too much humidity, and you’re dealing with the effects of expansion of these same construction components, condensation on your windows and surrounding woodwork, a ripe environment for dust mites (they absorb moisture from the air to survive) and bacteria, virus, and fungi growth. Put all that together, and humidity control is a pretty big deal.
The Right Mentality
A common misconception is that humidity management is a “set it and forget it” event, or that it can be fully automated. The bottom line is that you will have to manage your humidity based upon some key home design & environmental factors like, the quality & type of windows you have, type of HVAC system(s) and the level of engineering that went into it, your window treatments and how they’re hung, where your furniture and home décor is placed, what the temperature outside and inside are, whether or not you live next to water, whether or not you have a fireplace and how often you use it, etc.
The Goal
During the warm summer months, we recommend keeping the indoor humidity level below 60%.
The Science
Two things are important to understand about humidity:
Resetting Misconceptions
Achieving the Goal | Warm-Weather Season
Most of us in Michigan don’t think too much about the effect of humidity on our homes in the summertime. Instead, we usually monitor our personal comfort when we feel “sticky,” or aren’t sleeping well because of it. Yet, in the warm-weather season, you will probably need a dehumidifier to mitigate the negative effects of humidity on your home and to gain simple health benefits.
Typically, your AC system will be your dehumidifier and the tool which provides that critical air circulation. In addition, using ventilation fans during & after bathing, and when running the dishwasher and/or cooking, will prove helpful. If you find your indoor humidity levels are consistently above 65%, either a whole-house dehumidifier or the strategic placement of “right-sized” portable dehumidifier(s) may be necessary (especially in basements), as levels at or above this may prove problematic.
System Maintenance
Special Circumstance | Long-Term Cold Weather Absences
If you have a seasonal home or will be taking a winter hiatus to warmer climates, we encourage that you consider leaving your thermostat temps at the low end of the range we suggest, and that you leave your humidifier (and its water supply) functional.
