BLOG
Here you’ll find case studies on some of our most compelling before and afters, actionable advice for your next design project, and tips for a productive working relationship with a design partner.
RECENT BLOGS
What Should Stay? Why Repositioning Shouldn’t Begin With a Replacement List
When ownership teams talk about repositioning a property, the conversation quickly turns to what needs to change. The clubhouse looks dated, furniture has reached the end of its useful life, and finishes no longer support the direction the asset is headed. Before...
The Real Value of a Commercial Design Partner Is Better Filtration, Not More Options
A design partner who hands over fifty options hasn't done the real work yet. Clients often expect to see every option we considered, and I understand the instinct. But handing over everything we found usually backfires. Our responsibility is to make a client's...
One Project, Multiple Decision-Makers: The Decisions That Aren’t as Isolated as They Look
On complex commercial projects, the question isn’t only who owns a decision. It’s who will inherit its consequences. A project can have experienced people making sound decisions and still begin to drift. A scope reduction affects more than the budget. A program change...
Capital Planning Kickoff: Why Design Belongs in the Conversation Before Budgets Lock
In late summer and early fall, multifamily owners and asset managers start the same exercise, building next year's capital priorities. Roofing, amenities, unit turns, common areas, exterior repositioning. The list gets long fast, and the instinct is to price it all...
Curb Appeal That Performs: How Strategic Exterior Color Repositions a Multifamily Asset
A multifamily exterior begins influencing leasing decisions, resident confidence, and perceived asset value before a prospect ever reaches the front door. For owners, asset managers, C-suite executives, and third-party managers, that makes exterior color more than an...
From Expense to Advantage: 5 Ways Multifamily Interior Design Protects Capital and Improves Property Performance
When multifamily interior design is treated as a discretionary aesthetic expense, leadership often overlooks its greater value: protecting capital before avoidable mistakes, premature replacements, and underperforming spaces reduce the return on an improvement...
Case Study: Curb Appeal That Converts
Title: Signature 1505 Location: Raleigh, North Carolina Markets Category: Multifamily Services: Exterior Design & Paint Color Date Completed: June 2026 Subtitle: Repositioning a Downtown Multifamily Asset with a Strategic Exterior Recolor That Strengthens...
Design Risk: Why Multifamily Properties Cannot Afford Generic Color and Design Decisions
A generic paint palette may look like a small decision on a capital improvement plan, but to a resident, prospect, investor, or asset manager, it can quietly signal whether a property feels current, cared for, competitive, and worth the rent. In multifamily, color is...
Case Study: From Underused Amenity Space to Resident Retention Tool
Title: Quail Springs Location: Tri-Cities, Washington Markets Category: Multifamily Services: Interior Design, Project Management, Custom Art Date Completed: June 2026 Repositioning an Underused Clubhouse into a Resident-Focused Amenity That Supports Retention,...
Capital Clarity: Why the Design Process Matters Before You Spend Capital Dollars
Capital improvement projects can move quickly from “we need to update this” to “we are already spending money.” Paint bids are requested. Furniture is priced. Signage ideas start circulating. A vendor is brought in. A property team begins making decisions one item at...
Case Study: Resident-Focused Design That Supports Satisfaction, Retention, and Property Performance
In competitive urban markets, the most valuable amenity spaces are not always the largest. They are the ones residents actually use, remember, and associate with the lifestyle value of the property. At The Triangle in Downtown Redmond, Washington, Color Works Design...
The First Bad Decision Costs the Most: Aligning Owners, Architects, Designers, and GCs Before the Project Starts
The most expensive moment in a commercial or multifamily project often happens before demolition, procurement, or paint: it happens when the first misaligned decision quietly sets the rest of the project on a more expensive path. In complex projects, conflicting...