PARDON our "pixie" DUST:
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A Welcomed Introduction
Thank You for Being Here
Hentz Inspired Living has been providing architectural and interior design services since 2019, helping our clients create their ideal living spaces through new builds, additions, and renovations. We take the time to guide, educate, and advocate for our clients, balancing exterior elevations with interior floorplans and incorporating ADA and Age in Place design for clients all over the US. However, you found us, we're glad that you are here, thank you for the click! After 15 years working in Architecture firms, I took the leap and decided to pursue the dream of opening a residential design studio that would be the answer to helping families build their forever home. During the first year, trying to get my name out there I joined a lot of the custom home building, home building help groups on Facebook. I have spent a lot of my free time in Facebook's numerous custom home building groups reading, listening and answering questions from homeowners in the middle of construction projects that were looking for help and needing answers. These homeowners having found themselves in over their head and not knowing where to go for answers, gravitated to these facebook groups. I knew that the process of designing & building a custom home did not have to be stressful developing custom home plans and the financial toll it took on the families that had not planned for the overages could be prevented if only there could be a way to educate the client before it happened, before they were smack in the middle of the home building processes, the change ordered that kept coming in from the home builders, it seemed like a hole that could easily be plugged and prevented from ever even happening if only I had gotten the opportunity to educate the clients, talk them through the alternatives, that it did not have to be as stressful on the families that wanted a chance to truly have a home that was built for them, their family, their lifestyle.
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Hentz Inspired Living was founded to answer the numerous questions of financial struggles families were going through that simply when it came to building their forever home were overwhelmed, not able to foresee the financial mistakes that cost those families is at the heart of our family-owned business. Established in 2019, our founder Susan Hentz knew the process of planning, designing, and creating the family home could be better for those clients she was serving while still working in her 9-5 position the in-house Architectural Designer for a large residential builder. Home building could be better for those clients she was working with while still in her 9-5 position as an in-house architect for several builders.
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The home building process could be simpler, if only she could get to them before they were in over their head and the only way of getting out was to go through. She saw over and over again, these families that once been so excited starting the process to be only mid-way through and dreading each time an email came through from their builder requesting yet again another change order, that they had to make tough decisions eliminating design elements from their home just so they could afford to finish this project, not really liking the end product having had to compromise and sacrifice so many of those design details that would of made it their dream home. To know that if planning had been involved from day one, with her she could have given these families their dream home, one that they would be proud to show off a truly unique custom home.
Our Design Services We Offer
Get to know
Hentz Inspired Living specializes in Residential design, creating permit ready plan sets for new built residences, multi-family homes, or that renovations and/or addition. We also offer several levels of services for those clients who may already have their plans, but are looking for that extra helping hand through the exterior & Interior selection process for hard surface materials, light fixtures, & furniture selections. Our Architectural & Interior Designer can help you tie up those final details & help you choose your selections with confidence that once delivered & installed it will be a seamless process & while educating our clients about the process. Starting a project from the ground up is a very special experience and one that I grateful to be apart of as I help families though the journey of building their own home, that is truly designed just for them. Using tools from Architecture & Interior Design, we deliver one of a kind design solutions and custom home plan sets that are carefully crafted and drawn so that the home's interior and exterior reflect and balance the functionality and beauty found in a thoughtful livable space.
Custom Home Plans
Every project we create is centered on the people, yet few forms of architecture are more intimate than a custom home. After a long day, you come home to unwind. It could also be where you do your best work or play like there's no tomorrow. It could include outdoor areas. It's where you're raising your children — or plan to raise them. Perhaps it's your ideal, child-free haven. Your current home may be just a pit stop, an investment until you embark on your next adventure. Perhaps it's your "Forever Home," and you'd like to age in place. Whether you want to remodel a house to fit your changing lifestyle, optimize and personalize your home in ways you've never had the opportunity to before, or simply make a few tactical updates — we've got you covered. We aim to design spaces that graciously accommodate and reflect every aspect of our clients' individuality—from daily routines to inspirations and values—by seeking an understanding of your needs and wants that extends far beyond a list of rooms and requirements' also aim to guide you through the entire messy adventure of building your new home.
Pre-Design/Feasibility Studies
A feasibility study will assist you in immediately comprehending and visualizing the potential for development or renovation of a specific property as well as in identifying any potential issues or factors, minimizing surprises during the planning and building process and saving you time and money. We work with you to determine whether your site can accommodate your vision before you purchase a property, keeping your ideas and goals in mind. A Feasibility Study will help you quickly understand and visualize the development or renovation potential of a given property, as well as identify any potential concerns or considerations, reducing surprises during the planning and building process and saving you time and money.
Renovations & Additions
We also specialize in residential renovations and additions. Our dynamic team handles projects of all sizes and complexity, from large to small. Our superpower is balancing your budget with your dreams in order to bring a project to life that you truly love. There's a lot to think about, and we'll help you define not only what you want, but also what makes sense for you to invest in, allocating resources where you'll benefit the most. We understand that staying put and enduring the months of disruption that a remodel entails demonstrates your dedication to your home, neighborhood, and community. We've developed our design approach to honor those instincts as well as your decision to invest in the future of your home. We look forward to assisting you in shaping it into its next best version. As-built drawings are a preliminary supplementary step that is needed for the projects but is not necessary for new construction. This involves measuring, taking photos, and drawing the current house in order to record it and use it as a starting point for the architectural design process.
Interior Design Services
"Designer By Your Side & Designer For the Day"
At HIL we offer several levels of Architectural & Interior Design services accommodating clients at all stages in the home building process. We offer a variety of service levels, depending on when a client comes to us looking for help & advise during their home building journey. HIL main bread & butter service is custom home plans, but for today’s post let’s put a spotlight on our other services we provide for our clients. If you found HIL after already having your house plans whether having purchased them from a website, picked from your builder’s catalog of plans, or had your custom home drawn up by an architect, architectural designer or drafter, HIL can still be an consultant on your project with our “Designer by your Side or Designer for the Day” hourly services.
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We offer Architectural Selections & Interior Design Services that would be helpful during the final stages of construction. Once your home is dried in (has a roof & walls) when selections for interior & exterior materials are being made for your home such as: light fixtures, entry doors, friendship entry doors, garage doors, windows, color & type of roofing material, shutters, stucco, hardie board, brick, tile, tile patterns (examples: shower wall, floor in laundry room, kitchen stove backsplash), wall coverings, paint, cabinetry, cabinet hardware, and door hardware, etc. need to be selected or if you need a professional to review your selections to make sure they will all come together seamlessly at the end or that extra bit of confidence before purchasing. HIL also can help with finding those additional furniture piece selections for your new home that are to the trade only with procurement & purchasing we can help!
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A lot of home builders have design packages with pre selected fixtures/materials for their clients to pick from for their home. Those packages, most of the time, are not a one size fits all selection situation. There are better options available with higher quality materials for a similar price tag, if only you had known right? If you find yourself asking, for this $ allowance, is there bettter options fitting more to our style? Are you questioning or want assurance that what you have picked will go together or want a design professional to give you that 2nd opinion, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Our “Designer for the Day” has an 8 hour time block, and “Designer by Your Side” is in an 10,15,20, etc. time blocks of billable hours. Hope this helps explain our other design services available.
Interested in having Hentz Inspired Living help you bring it all together for that cohesive look, here’s a shot of one of my favorite playgrounds….the Design Library! When working on interior design projects with clients, samples are pulled from the design library to go on the presentation boards. Our trade Vendors that we work with want our clients to have the best experience even if we are in different states. My trade representatives are your team members on the project. They want to make sure you are confident about your selections by sending samples right to your door, once selected that excitement can start to build as you are one step closer to reveal day.
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Having samples in hand, you are able to see the outstanding quality of their products, asking them any questions you may have and builder’s questions about installation methods. Its important that you see, feel, and touch the samples before they are purchased & installed in your home. Question if the tile or hardwood flooring will be durable, hold up to what my kids will do?… (will it take abuse, if you get hardwood or tile sample do your worst see if they hold up or mark easily) the feel of fabrics (know the double rub rating of any fabric) how the threads are woven, place your paint samples on different walls to see how light affects the color throughout the day. Last thing, please don't shy away from using color in your home. The agreeable gray paint in every room with white cabinets, its so overdone.
Full Service Interior Design
Susan Hentz,,
Contact HIL
2169 Pelham Parkway, Suite C.
Pelham, AL 35124
205-839-2140