What drew me into the world of residential interior design is the deep personal connection our clients have with their homes, and the visions they have for their future. It is why we describe our method as heart-and-soul centered, and we take the time to explore your inspirations, experiences and values that we transform into designs we reveal to you.
Clients do tend to discover and work with us due to their alignment with our style notes as seen in our project photos and descriptions, but from there everything is made personal and tailored to who you are. We always lead with our best picks and ideas based on our getting to know you... and we always have great options for consideration that give you the ultimate choice in what you bring into your home. We design for you, and your home will become your "signature look.”
Before there were “designers,” there was the “Renaissance Man” – part Architect, part Naturalist, part Scientist, and I have identified with and have loved learning about people like Leonardo da Vinci… His original thought and nature-inspired inventions have astounded me. The designers who inspire me the most tend to understand two significant things: one, the moment in which they are creating, and two, the precedent from where they draw their influence. People who stand out to me include the classicists Vitruvius, Palladio and Sir Christopher Wren, the game changers Frank Lloyd Wright, John Lautner, Billy Baldwin as well as Charles and Ray Eames, and a host of contemporaries whose books I pour over and line my library.
Our best projects include both design and decoration, and our firm has extensive experience and education in both. I tend to use the language of soft changes and hard changes, when describing the differences. A “hard change” impacts the physical structure of a space, adding or subtracting walls, windows or focal point features like fireplaces and staircases. We see these as design changes. A “soft change” impacts the elements added to a space whether in layout, furniture selection, color, art and accessories. We see these as decoration changes.
Inspired by nature, I love grounding projects in deep, rich earth tones to give them foundation… think of the hues of the west and desert southwest landscape deepening at sunset or how they soften at sunrise. I use the fresh and airy colors of a daytime sky to make a room feel expansive… think of the colors of the rolling grasslands on a breezy day and the soft clouds that stretch for miles around. Expressing these colors in a space to define it and bringing in highlights of jewel tones and glints of metallic finishes to add interest and energy, bringing life to a space and are some of my favorite palettes to work with.
I love the unexpected moments in life that take your breath away. I am fundamentally grounded by nature’s ability to astound us, and I luckily live in a state with incredible beauty.
I find fulfillment and expression by being in nature and tuning into my senses and connecting with my emotions. Whether camping at a pristine alpine lake or absorbing the rhythms and stimulation of a boisterous city, nature in all its forms drives my creativity and imagination.
Our client discovery process brings out what inspires you, and our design work results in interiors where unexpected moments are realized – this is a home that grows love.
For me, I’m looking to create experiences for myself and others that connects to all the senses and brings us together. I’m heavily influenced by the melodies and rhythms of music as the foundation for the interiors I create and the stories they will capture. For as long as I can remember I’ve lost myself in the adventures and emotions of movies and music. I’ve always put myself in the scenes and imagined how I’d be a part of it. Today, I do this for the designs I create for my clients by imaging how they will live in their spaces. Finally humor… for its visceral response and raw expression of happiness. These are the things I love, and I design homes that grow love.
I think of my own style as dynamic and naturally evocative… A feast for the senses. I achieve my style with an essential core of natural elements like hand-forged metals, woods with expressive grain, rich leathers and fabrics with subtly in texture and weave. I bring these all out by rooting them in deep colors and highlighting in intriguing jewel tones. Our interiors are inspired by sculptural objects, stirring artwork, and furnishings grounded in craft and comfort.
Style breathes life into spaces turning them into a home, and my work, the joy of it, is the journey to do exactly that for my clients.
I believe good design has the capacity to grow love. Our lives are enriched by our experiences, what we collect, and the people we bring into our homes. Designing beautiful homes that inspire togetherness, capturing moments and memories, hence growing love, is why I became an interior designer.
As you can probably imagine, an interior design project whether decoration, remodel or a complete custom home build is a complex endeavor requiring the participation, skills and talents of many people. There will be challenges and there will be problems that need to be addressed.
Mistakes are human, and delays in manufacturing or damage during shipping are a reality. Sometimes the challenges or problems discovered will have schedule and cost impacts. Anyone telling you otherwise or trying to gloss over these realities is not being forthright.
Our goal is to keep these stressful moments to a minimum by being proactive in planning and working to create solutions for you first with the goal of handling these issues for you behind-the-scenes. For those moments that will require your participation and may have schedule or cost impacts, we will always collaborate with the team to bring you solution options and their impacts for your consideration and decision.
For issues we may create, you have our word that we will take full responsibility for our actions. It is our culture to take responsibility and bring solutions to situations.
Whether we are approaching a renovation, building a new home from the ground up or decorating an existing space, a successful collaboration is like the perfect diamond. The diamond represents your team, and the four points of the diamond represent the four main roles of the project – the Interior Designer, the Architect, the Contractor/Builder, and the Landscape Architect.
The quality of the diamond, hence the success of the collaboration is driven by what we call, “The 4 Cs”:
A. Communication – Regularly schedule project management meetings and status reports are a must.
B. Commitment – Professionalism and delivering quality results on-time and to-budget with high standards drives us.
C. Continuity – We “show-up” and are frequently on-site “being there” to answer questions and get the team the information they need… It’s the foundation of teamwork and efficiency.
D. Creativity – Unique ideas and challenges encountered require creative solutions, and we bring solutions to our clients that give them choice – not problems the client is forced to figure out on their own.
Every interior design project requires time to design and time to implement. The total amount of time required is directly related to the scope and complexity of your project.
For example, a single room decoration project can take 9 months to complete (taking furnishings production into account), an extensive primary bathroom remodel project can take 10-12 months to complete, and a new custom home with extensive construction and engineering can take 18-24 months to complete.
A successful interior design project, one that delivers on-time and to-budget, is directly influenced by your ability to maintain a fixed scope and make decisions in a timely manner. It is also directly influenced by things that can be outside of our control like the availability of the materials specified, and the availability of every participant who will implement the project from contractors, to trades and artisans.
For over 10 years, Chris has relied on his years of engineering experience to develop his design project method to guide clients to success. His method of requirements gathering and getting early input from makers, contractors, and trades allows him to system engineer a well-defined project scope. A well-defined project scope that is kept from "creeping" (growing) also allows for more exact cost and time estimation, resulting in estimates, investments, and project schedules you can rely on.
In summary, most interior design projects with some level of construction average 10-12 months to complete from our Step-3 all the way through our project close-out in Step-15.
The project budget is where the realistic picture of your project begins. We see interior design as a personal investment you are making in yourself, and we work with you from the very beginning to set good expectations for your project scope and the level of investment it will require. We always start a project by establishing a budget with you.
We have discovered our clients tend to know what they want to invest but may not know what a reasonable cost is for materials, furnishings and the design fees. We will guide you through our process based on our extensive experience of project costs. Our process allows us to create a budget that will be our guide showing us how we can do our best work for you.
As a design professional, I shop, or as designers say "source," from our curated list of high-quality and exclusive manufacturers, makers and artisans. Over the years we have found our go-to resources due to their commitment to craft, expression, enduring quality as well as their longevity and ability to deliver as promised. We tend to work directly with these makers or through their design center representatives. With so many details to pay attention to, and so many nuances in finishes, our trade representatives are invaluable resources that help us tailor all we design for you.
While we never charge more than retail (MSRP), it is rare when we source from mainstream retail stores... our clients are rarely mainstream and desire uniqueness. Furnishings like those described tend to have a higher investment than standard, mass-produced goods found in retail establishments.
Yes, we do charge for our Step-1 Consultation and the resulting requirements document we deliver as a part of the service. The cost for the consultation is based on our Vista design consultation model (see above). This 2-hour consultation includes a full tour of your home and/or review of your architectural plan. We listen to your desires and ideas and are excited to share our ideas and insights. We do not hold back on sharing our ideas with you. During this meeting you will get a sense of what it is like to work with us, and we will deliver a full project requirements document containing all we discussed during our time together.
The Project Requirements document is a powerful and extremely valuable tool because it clarifies and puts into language everything we discussed. It organizes your thoughts (and our ideas), makes sure no heartbeat is missed, and becomes the guiding document to finalize scope, create budgets and clearly communicate with Architects, Builders and other supporting trades.
For Pinnacle projects we will provide an estimate for our interior design services which encompass steps 2 through 7 in our design method based on the size and scope of your project (determined during Step-1). We do charge for our services in 15-minutes increments following our current fee structure:
We do offer Vista design consultations as needed for projects of various sizes and scope following our regional fee structure:
When it comes to the design work we deliver, the time it takes from project initiation to your full project presentation tends to follow this schedule:
From our initial 2-hour consultation (Step-1) to our delivered requirements document and design time estimate: 5-7 business days
If your project requires the expertise and collaboration of an Architect, this is the perfect time to start meeting and interviewing candidates. Our requirements document is a valuable tool assisting architects in creating their own scope.
Upon your signed agreement and retainer paid (Step-2), the time from our Heartbeat Journey afternoon together to present our draft moods and design concepts (Step-3): 7-10 business days
We then move into schematic design (Step-4) to prepare basic drawings and ideas for contractor and trade estimates: 14-21 business days
This is followed by a Trade Day requirements and schematic design review (Step-5) and request for estimates: 14-21 business days
Our deep dive into the details of your design including all design drawings and full specification of all items (Step-6): 6-10 weeks
At this point we are ready for your full design presentation (Step-7)
In summary, the total amount of time from signed agreement to your full design presentation averages 15 weeks.
At this point you will be engaging with contractors to vet your options with the goal of finalizing an agreement and getting on their schedule.
Every interior design project requires time to design and time to implement. The total amount of time required is directly related to the scope and complexity of your project.
For example, a single room decoration project can take 9 months to complete (taking furnishings production into account), an extensive primary bathroom remodel project 10-12 months to complete, and a new custom home with extensive construction and engineering 18-24 months to complete.
A successful interior design project, one that delivers on-time and to-budget, is directly influenced by your ability to maintain a fixed scope and make decisions in a timely manner. It is also directly influenced by things that can be outside of our control like the availability of the materials specified, and the availability of every participant who will implement the project from contractors, to trades and artisans.
For over 10 years, Chris has relied on his years of engineering experience to develop his design project method to guide clients to success. His method of requirements gathering and getting early input from makers, contractors, and trades allows him to system engineer a well-defined project scope.
A well-defined project scope that is kept from "creeping" (growing) also allows for more exact cost and time estimation, resulting in estimates, investments, and project schedules you can rely on.
Christopher Shields & Company, Inc. is a residential interior design focused company. We are not licensed to provide architectural, structural engineering or general contracting services. We will discuss the differences as well as the roles and responsibilities of each entity during our design agreement review (Step-2).
It is the client's responsibility to vet, retain and sign agreements with these services. While we will collaborate with these services to create and work toward planned project milestones, we do not supervise or provide construction management or financial transaction services for these entities.
We do maintain a list of quality Architects, Builders and Structural Engineers we are happy to share with you. While we may refer various services to give you options, these referrals are provided as a courtesy only and the client is solely responsible for researching the business’ background, practices, reputation as well as the quality of products and services sold by the business.
We do maintain a pipeline of project work that drives our availability. So, if you are ready to take the next step, please schedule a discovery call today.
When considering a design or decoration project for your home, I believe the best practice is to hire an interior designer at the very beginning… before you engage with an Architect or Builder. My design firm offers a comprehensive functional and lifestyle requirements gathering process that can set a good foundation for the Architect and Builder.
We have received feedback from both Architects and Builders telling us that the insights they’ve received from our requirements gathering process are enormously beneficial in creating and locking down project scope. I see our process as the first step toward a successful project. Our guidance and advocacy help capture all that is important to you and ensure a successful project collaboration.
With our office located in Lakewood, Colorado we have easy access to serve clients in a wide region of the greater metro Denver area including Denver, Boulder, Evergreen, Cherry Hills Village, Greenwood Village, Highlands Ranch, and Castlerock. We also serve clients in Colorado's mountain communities.
Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. Some of our services offer Saturday appointments.
