City Studios

I used Denna to help me make selections for a total kitchen renovation: all new appliances, countertop, paint, floor, backsplash, lights, etc. She was wonderful and extremely easy to work with and she seemed to read my mind. She had suggestions for things I would not have thought of but I am so glad she did. She has a great calming demeanor which I needed after dealing with a contractor that I had chosen long before I met Denna. He was clearly in over his head and did not seem to read the plans or listen to me at times. Since I travelled a lot I asked Denna to serve as project manager while I was away. She was great in making sure things happened, the contractor understood what we wanted, and responded to us. She met with him and had numerous talks. She also handled a separate electrical contractor. All this was beyond the call of duty and speaks to how much she really wants to make sure clients are getting a great experience. My kitchen is beautiful thanks to Denna and more importantly I am still sane after a contractor problem that she deftly handled for me once I brought her into my project! I cannot recommend her highly enough - she is a gem!

We highly recommend Denna McLaughlin for any design challenge, big or small. What words describe Denna? Always upbeat! Positive energy, extremely creative, always mindful of our budget, never over sells. We feel very comfortable with her. She always listens to our opinions and never imposes her design tastes on us. However, her suggestions have usually been followed after much thought and consideration. Always to our complete satisfaction. We have learned so much from Denna over the years. Everything we know about paint colors, tile, carpet/ rugs, bathroom fixtures, and wood flooring is because of her tutelage. We first met Denna about 10 years ago. She was referred by a close friend, another satisfied client. Denna helped us select the paint for the exterior of our house. I remember frequently standing outside my house admiring the wonderful result. Our next project with Denna occurred about 8 years ago. We remodeled our first floor creating an open floor plan involving the kitchen, dining room and living room area. Denna also helped us update our two bathrooms. What a difference her creativity made to the comfort and enjoyment of our home. Last year we completed a total remodel of our ground floor level including a guest bedroom, separate Bathroom, a family room and office area. In addition, we selected new custom made furniture for our living room because the living room furniture went downstairs into our family room area. We have always had a budget. Denna has worked with us within those constraints while helping us achieve a look that is first rate and top notch. A friend expressed it this way "Your house looks like it should be featured in Architectural Digest. It looks fabulous and yet is so warm and welcoming".

I am in the middle of a complete bathroom remodel with Denna McLaughlin of City Studios. I would recommend her without hesitation. Three of the four walls of my bathroom are going to be tiled, all fixtures are being replaced and the tub is being replaced with a shower. She has excellent communication skills and showed good intuition, quickly discerning what styles I liked when shopping for fixtures and tile. Her designs showed great attention to detail; such as tile placement that was precisely measured and marked on the final plans. When Denna and I met with the contractors at my home to review plans for the bathroom, she balanced both practical and aesthetic concerns when small adjustments had to be made to accommodate the bathroom’s plumbing and city codes. She created revised plans promptly. Her ability to respectfully dialogue with my contractors throughout this process has made this remodel much easier than I had expected. My contractors have also expressed their appreciation of her knowledge, skill, and availability throughout this project . As we have worked together, I have found her to be both professional and personable.

We are a general contractor and have the opportunity to work with Denna McLaughlin of City Studios three times and every time has been great. She has great design ideas and works well with both the client and the contractors to get here ideas completed. She always listens to us, the contractor, to make sure we can build and install her and the clients vision. I look forward to working with her on future projects.

My husband and I have the pleasure of living next door to Denna. When we needed window treatments we turned to Denna for help. (We were concerned about maximizing views and light.) It was great to have Denna navigate us through decisions concerning draperies versus blinds, color, texture, and the effects of indoor and natural light. Once we settled on draperies, the fabric selection was overwhelming. Again, Denna’s extensive experience and exceptional taste helped us to create a warm and inviting home. We have since become friends and I look forward to engaging her for future projects. (One regret is that we didn’t meet her before we remodeled the kitchen!)

Our project was a bathroom remodel in a San Francisco Victorian. Denna was a delight to work with. Very competent and professional. She came with several designs for the project and we worked together to fine tune her ideas and ours. It was definitely a challenge, because we were working with a small space, tearing out walls and adding a bathtub. She worked well with our architect and our contractor. The lines of communication were always open. She knows where to go for decorative tiles and unique lighting fixtures. It was such fun going shopping with her! If you want someone who will really listen to you, who can think outside the box and respect your budgetary limitations, I can recommend Denna McLaughlin of City Studios.

Denna McLaughlin and City Studios are great to work with. I hired them for the 1st time 18 years ago and have rehired them several times since for additional projects. I first worked with City Studios to remodel, repaint and decorate my home in Woodside. I then rehired them to work closely with a general contractor when we built auxiliary buildings on the property which included a separate 1500 square foot structure that included a full kitchen and 2 baths. I hired City Studios again to help me decorate a vacation home and to help remodel the kitchen there as well They are well connected to all the showrooms and have a wealth of knowledge regarding resources be that fabric, bathroom tiles, kitchen hardware, you name it they can find it. I found them to be great listeners who really understood what was important to me and what feel I wanted for each of the spaces that we worked on. They are easy to work with, very responsible, they show up when they say they will, and they get stuff done! I can not recommend CIty Studios highly enough. I continually get compliments on the design, color, etc of my home and I owe it all to them.

We first learned of Denna McLaughlin and City Studios when we read an article in the SF Chronicle which featured the remodel of her kitchen in the Inner Richmond. Our home is similar in age and design and I thought who could be better than someone who has already done a remodel in a similar structure. It was the best decision we ever made. Even though our schedules were hectic, Denna was extremely accommodating in meeting us regularly during the critical design phase. Her process is very methodical and thorough. We spent many hours thinking through every aspect of the design and product selection which translated into an easy build phase. She also was a great help in guiding us through the contractor bid process. Denna leaves nothing to chance and her organization and follow through skills are flawless. She thinks way outside the box when it comes to tricky space planning and she always offers new interesting design ideas. Without her color sense and recommendations we would have been lost. She held our hand through a total kitchen, master bath, and added powder room remodel. Two years later we hired City Studios again to add a family room with bath and laundry room in what was part of our garage. We now have a beautiful space for family or guests that opens up to the garden. Both projects were done on time and within budget (except when we decided to add some punch items). We highly recommend Denna and City Studios for any project big or small. You won’t be disappointed.

Denna McLaughlin from City Studios provided design services for our kitchen, family room and living room remodel in our ranch style home. I had never worked with a designer before and I was very pleased with how easy it was to work with Denna. Her design esthetic, listening skills, and attention to detail contributed to a very successful project. I now have the most efficient kitchen I have ever worked in! Her suggestions on what materials to use (granite for the fireplace, leather under the kitchen peninsula, metal trim on kitchen cabinets) resulted in a beautiful custom look we could not have achieved with her. In addition, Denna worked very well with our contractor and architect ensuring our project ran smoothly from start to finish. I would highly recommend her.