REVIEWS

"Brenda was so great to work with and helped us to prioritize the multiple projects our home needs. She made sure to understand our lifestyle and needs to provide a design that works for us!"

~ Gina (May 2022)

"We found Brenda on Houzz and were fascinated with her and B-Squared Design's technology. Being that we live in Southern California and building in central Michigan we knew there would be some big challenges. And two and a half years later we are finished and I'm almost sorry this amazing journey with Brenda and her staff of the really talented people has come to fruition. Starting with a hand drawn floorplan that my wife and I sent to them, what came back was a an electronic model of that floorplan that became the basis for everything that happened from preconstruction to post construction. Being able to virtually walk through our house 2500 miles away throughout the construction was truly an amazing experience. You want to move a wall, a window, let's do it see how it looks. Their incredible ability of listening to our wants an whims however crazy they were, put them in the model, you get immediately a prospective of those ideas and it really helped us avoid some bad decisions. I have worked with other architects and designers in the past and sometimes you wondered if they were at the same meetings with you, that is not the case with B-Squared.

It didn't take a lot of time for our relationship with Brenda to develop a lot of trust and we welcomed her ideas and many times relied on her abilities as a professional to make some really big decisions for us in our absence. She introduced us to some unbelievable artisan craftsman to work on our home.

Even our General Contractor that we waited two years to build our home ( he's really good and worth the wait ) became a believer in their process and all of the subcontractors too. You couldn't walk into any room during construction and not see her drawings and schedules tacked to a wall or in a tool box.

Enough said. The journey was long and was sometimes stressful, but the end product speaks for itself. We would do it again with B Squared Design."

~ Rick and Brenda (January 2022)

"For many years, we planned to build our dream home in mid-Michigan while still residing in NYC. We discovered B-Squared Design Studio at a home show in Michigan and talked about our project at length. We were very impressed with the B-Squared team's level of expertise and design acumen. Since I had not built a home in the past, I had many questions and Brenda and her team had viable answers to help me understand the scope of new construction. I was excited to learn that they use a software called SketchUp that can transport the viewer into the scope of project and provide simulated views. It was really helpful to see myself in the space to best figure out how we would be using it day-to-day. From in-person meetings to conference calls, we were able to develop an architectural plan that captured all of our ideas and inspirations. Working and brainstorming with the team was fun, educational, and low stress. I highly recommend B-Squared Design Studio for all of your projects from news builds to renovations. Both Brenda and Ali provided super helpful information about local vendors too when I was shopping for lighting, tile, flooring, etc. The most important aspect of our working relationship was a mutual respect and ability to listen while the process developed and ultimately turned into our forever home."

~ Anthony (June 2021)

"Brenda and her ladies were great to work with throughout the process of designing our dream home! Would highly recommend!"

~ Ashley (October 2021)

"We hired B-Squared when we downsized to a significantly smaller home. Brenda and her team listened to our wants and needs in our kitchen renovation...and even made suggestions of things that we hadn't considered but now love! The Playbook they created made everything very clear to both us and to our various subcontractors. We're very happy with the plans they created and look forward to making decisions regarding the second phase of making this "our" home...the master suite!"

~ Allyson (April 2020)

"B-Squared has made a difference in our remodel plan already and we haven't even started the renovations yet! The primary job was to renovate two bedrooms to make a master suite with an accessible bathroom for aging-in-place and an upstairs laundry. We had her design plans for our basement rec room too. Brenda did a great job listening to us to provide the best plan to meet our needs. She was very patient with our numerous questions and tweaks that we requested for each draft of the plan. She improved upon our intentions for the space(s) with suggestions that hadn't even occurred to us. Now our laundry room will double as a Cabana for our pool parties with easy access to a bathroom (previously wet swimmers would drip through our dining room). Somehow we've ended up with more space AND more storage upstairs and down. We're so glad we got her involved instead of trying to make a plan ourselves. I can't wait to see the finished product."

~ Michelle (September 2019)

"Brenda is an absolutely amazing and gifted designer! She is easy to work with, kind, and fair to work with. She made our project in renovation so much easier and I would tell you that we could not have done this without her. We liked her enough that we decided to bring her back for a second addition on to our home. Thank you so much Brenda!!"

~ Ryan (January 2019)

"Brenda helped us tremendously in our design process, it is an excellent professional to work with. We are enjoying our new home more because we took her suggestion. She will go extra mile to make sure the client is happy with the outcome. I recommend her without any reservation. All the best Brenda."

~ Abu (March 2017)

"Brenda Skeel was hired to design a renovation/addition to our 1830's farmhouse. She did an excellent job of learning exactly how we lived and what type of space we needed to make our home work, not just for now, but for the future as we plan to age in the space. Her designs were imaginative, practical and respectful of the age and style of our home. It was a true pleasure to work with Brenda! We have not decided when to begin work on our home as we want to be certain every detail has been examined before we begin. We are continuing to evaluate our needs and wants before we commit to a huge project."

~ Denice (April 2016)

"Brenda provided expert consultation and advice on our design project. She put a lot of time and effort into gathering information about how we lived in our home and what kind of project results we were looking for. The design proposal she returned to us was very professional and well thought out. We would highly recommend B-Squared Design Studio to anyone else looking for someone to consult with on a home renovation or re-design."

~ Ed (February 2016)

"We hired B-Squared Design Studio to assist us in converting a 1901 barn into a wedding event venue. Brenda was wonderful to work with and we are very pleased with the end result. Right from our first meeting, Brenda seemed to know exactly what we were trying to accomplish. She listened to our ideas, offered suggestions and did a great deal of research on her own time, ultimately creating a design that we are very excited about. Her warm and outgoing personality, along with her high level of professionalism, were appreciated and enjoyed. We are delighted that we chose to work with Brenda and I am certain we will be using her services again on future projects."

~ Kim (November 2015)

"When we lost our home to a flood situation, I googled for names of architects in my area. Brenda's name popped up, so I contacted her. As it turned out, we decided we did not need her services, so a year went by. The project became quite an undertaking, having to demolish most of the home. I again, reached out to Brenda, after a YEAR, and she was just as congenial and willing to work with us, as she was a year prior. That in itself, was impressive. I knew I had a person with passion for helping people with their dreams and inspirations. Brenda has been so helpful, working with my builder; back and forth between him and myself. She immediately went to work by setting up my own Houzz account, labeling it, "Fresh, Clean Lake House", so all sub contractors could retrieve the picture ideas that I chose. I have spent hours on Houzz website and am so grateful for all of the postings and pictures. I want to give back what has been so helpful to me. What is refreshing, is Brenda uses your ideas and tries her hardest to implement and weave them into the project. In turn, if she doesn't think it will work, she will tell you, in an understandable way. I can't wait to post some of OUR pictures!!! We will be part of the "Houzz" club!!"

~ Sandy (June 2015)

"My husband is a commercial builder and was unsure about the need for any help when it came to remodeling our kitchen, but I was sure Brenda was just what we needed. She was able to help combine my husband's plan and budget with my dreams and the outcome was better than any of us could have imagines!

From the beginning I wanted a screened in sunroom but with our tight limits on space (we live in town) it would have ended up looking more like a bowling alley than the sunny little nook I wanted. Brenda was able to create my sunny corner in my big open kitchen that I can enjoy all year around.

I love the computer program that she uses, it helped me see what my plans would look like at different times of day from different locations in my house. Once we perfected the floor plan, she was able to pull in the finishes I was considering so I could actually see what it would look like, (it was much different than I thought) and then help me make choices that fit our taste and lifestyle perfect without being too trendy!!

My husband and I both feel like hiring Brenda to help us plan was the best first decision we made and actually saved us money in the long run!"

~ Judy (March 2015)

"My husband and I purchased a midcentury modern home in spring 2013 that had not been updated since the 1970s. In particular, the kitchen was a narrow galley with dark wood cabinets. We had renovated our previous home, but felt this one needed a more practiced eye, because of the unique layout. We met Brenda at the Home Show in Mount Pleasant and were impressed with her energy and enthusiasm, and her clear love for her work. She visited our old and new home, and built a 3D model that allowed us to explore various options with ease. Brenda proposed a colourful and bright concept for our kitchen, dining area and living room. She then helped us locate a person who could make the kitchen cabinets, and another company to do the flooring.

Brenda offers various levels of involvement in the design, so she can fit into any renovation budget. We love our new home and appreciate that without Brenda, we would have a nice conventionally remodelled home. With Brenda's help, we have a FABulous living space that fits the architecture, and has a midcentury modern aesthetic. We would recommend her highly - the investment pays back many times over."

~ Janice (March 2014)

Our kitchen was trapped in the 1970's, and there did not seem to be an easy way to bring it into the present. Brenda walked us through the design process with ease. She has a wealth of ideas, and steered us towards likewise-creative professionals to help with each aspect of the project. She is a design genius - taking careful note of what we liked, where we wanted to end up, and found such a creative way to get us a kitchen better than we ever could have envisioned. We love our new kitchen! It is exactly what we wanted, and is the perfect blend of function and fun. She has also helped design our adjoining family room space, giving us a new dining area. Hiring Brenda from B-Squared Design Studio was one of the best decisions we made for our project. We would recommend her to anyone wanting to breathe new life into their home.

~ Karen (January 2014)