Architectural and Interior Design
for your Island Lifestyle

 

"Designward took away 95% of the stress of building our new home. Bonnie designed an exquisite home for us. Bonnie and Don's knowledge and experience in the islands and the design industry enabled them to hire the best team of people to work on our project.

The weekly meetings they held with the builder and the communication with us via phone, email and digital photographs helped us stay up to date and involved with the progress of the construction from 1500 miles away. We felt completely comfortable putting our full trust in them as they treated our house project as if it were their own.

Their passion and excitement was constant throughout each stage of our project. It began while working at the site to find the best location for the home and continued through to the final details prior to our move in.

In addition to providing us with an exceptionally well designed home, they have been invaluable in helping us select our furniture and window coverings which compliment and enhance the design and feel of our home.

As we write this we have been working with Designward for a little over a year and have only rave reviews about their superb and professional way of doing business. Thank you Bonnie and Don, you've made our dream home come true."



"Instrumental to the successful completion of my home was the exceptional design services provided by Bonnie and Don Ward through their Designward firm. From the beginning, the Wards presented imaginative and thoughtful suggestions of their own as well as entertaining and implementing a diversity of ideas from my perspective. This interaction resulted in a much more innovative and personalized house. The Wards have an ability and a willingness unusual in design firms to make one feel as if one were their only client: they are generous with their time and with their research and are always responsive to new ideas. Finally, my relationship with Designward is now in its thirteenth year, and I continue to be impressed with the quality, the expertise, and the creativity of the Ward's services."



"When we decided to build our dream house on San Juan Island, we quickly realized we needed professional help, not only with the interior design, but the whole project. Since this was our first experience building a house and we were living in Los Angeles at the time, we needed someone locally to oversee the construction as well as guide us through each phase of the building process. Soon after meeting Bonnie Ward of Designward and viewing other homes she had designed and decorated, we knew we had found someone with whom we could work in designing our home. We were very fortunate that Bonnie was there for us. She kept the new experience of building our own house from becoming too overwhelming. She saw right away that we wanted our house to be unique and that our building site presented lighting problems from lack of sun. She met both of these challenges by designing ceiling-high windows on each end of the house as well as adding eleven skylights to bring in as much overhead light as possible.

Bonnie was present during all the critical phases of the construction and was responsible for making some key changes that saved us both time and money.

Everyone who has seen our house raves over the designer kitchen that Bonnie created. Bonnie has a special talent of quickly transforming a design idea into a professional drawing, which made it easy for us to see exactly how the finished design would look.

If we decide to build another house in the future, Bonnie Ward would be one of the first people we would call. She makes building a house worthwhile."



"We have found Bonnie to be a very talented designer. There are four things we look for and found with Bonnie:"

Design talent.
"She has the ability to see the big picture and to come up with the right balance of furnishings, fabrics and accents. She can do this on any scale be it one room, a whole home redecorating project or a from-scratch new home design working with the architect. She has done all of these for us very successfully."

Knowledge and relationships with people in the business.
"She knows the people in the Seattle Design Center well and has very good relations with them. She is able to get them to work for her to accomplish the needs of the project. She know the shops and boutiques that carry the items needed to make a house a home."

Space design and planning.
"She is a master at space design from sketches to computer aided design. She has the ability to come up with solutions to difficult problems. Her design aids are most helpful in putting yourself in the room. She has a sense of style that brings the project to life."

Relations with contractors and workmen.
"We have completed several projects with Bonnie and in each case she is most professional in her work. She gets the most from her contractors without being over bearing. She is patient yet firm with great follow up and execution.

Overall working with Bonnie is a wonderfully fun experience and we are pleased to recommend her as an interior designer for anyone contemplating redecorating."



"We are two of Designward's many happy and satisfied customers.

Having retired to Orcas Island, we built a new home here four years ago and contacted Bonnie Ward for help and advice in doing the interior design work of selecting color schemes, floor coverings, furniture, window covering, cabinets and all the other decisions that go into putting a new home together. We are now in, enjoying it immensely and truly appreciating the value of getting a real professional involved in the process.

Bonnie has a wonderful sensitivity to the tastes and preferences of her clients and doesn't come to the project with pre-conceived ideas of how your home should look. Couples don't always know or know how to put together the look or feel they both want..or can agree on. Bonnie is extremely creative, gave us lots of options and helped us put together our home interior that we both love.

We couldn't list all the great ideas Bonnie and Don thought of, we implemented and now take for granted and enjoy on a daily basis. They both have impeccable taste and will go locate the pieces you have selected and find subcontractors and craftsmen to make it and or install it.

Since Bonnie does architectural design, she is superb in assisting with floor plans, traffic plans and the myriad details that can make or break your interior living experience.

Since much of our home was being constructed while we absent, Don also assisted us in supervising construction and budget matters.

Bonnie and Don bring a truckload of experience to their clients including insights into how to reach your construction or decorating goals in this local island environment. They are both very professional and fun to work with and we highly recommend them."



"Bonnie is a genius with colors and finishes. Our new kitchen is a dream to cook in! Bonnie has a great working relationship with the local crafts people. She helped us get the finest quality workmanship for our remodel."


"Bonnie Ward saved my sanity and my marriage. I started out thinking that, all I needed was a couple of chairs upholstered, and ended with a complete redo including the best kitchen and pantry a cook could want. She helped us realize our dream with style, economically. She is a great facilitator! And guess what..my husband and I are still married!!!"


"When we bought our Orcas home we knew changes were needed to its decor. Prior remodels lacked continuity; some changes were beautiful, many were dismal. Before discovering Designward we worked with a few designer-decorators with varying results ranging from lackluster to disastrously expensive disappointments. We now had new furniture, purchased or designed, but still nothing seemed to flow. We turned to Designward for help.

Our first project was to upgrade the guest suite; the bath’s harvest gold tile and brown wallpaper had to go. Bonnie suggested that the area reflect the Japanese influence of the house. She promptly came back with drawings, plans, and recommendations for a builder, tile setter and cabinetmakers. They converted the ugly dark bath into a bright, beautiful, award winning space (1998 Bath of the Year/Seattle Homes & Lifestyles) that functioned perfectly and appeared much larger. She also created a lovely bedroom by adding a few new pieces to the existing furniture and choosing fabrics and colors that totally transformed the space. We were so very pleased that we moved into the guest room and went on to redecorate the master suite, three more baths, the studio, office, and even the courtyard. Bonnie worked well with both of us. She is a good listener, very diplomatic, flexible, and understanding. She brings to her work not only creativity but the education and experience to give the client what they really want and need, even if they are not aware of it when they begin the process.

When we bought a 60 year old ranch house in California we planned to use a local designer for the total renovation. After consulting several people it was quickly apparent to us how spoiled we had become by Bonnie’s professionalism and creativity. We found ourselves saying “It is too bad that Bonnie isn’t here.” We knew that Designward could do the job but they were working on a large project and wouldn’t be available to work with us onsite for several months. Unable to wait, we called Bonnie for advice. She agreed to look at our preliminary drawings and give us her suggestions. Using our photographs and drawings, (several telephone calls and e-mails later), she produced a computerized walkthrough and plans for our new home. The renovation included major interior and exterior changes; the interior was basically gutted. She designed an amazing kitchen and another beautiful bath. We were given a handsome entry, a wrap around porch and a bright new sun room. By eliminating a dark central hall we gained closets, a pantry and bookcases. The final bonus was that despite our move from a large open Northwest contemporary home to a 1440 square foot vintage farmhouse the furniture, accessories and fabrics that Bonnie had chosen for the Orcas house work wonderfully in the new ranch setting that she designed.

Another fine service that Bonnie rendered was to consult on a home that we were interested in buying. She did a preliminary design and cost estimate which we used to determine that the time and cost would be more than we were willing to invest.

Over the past eight years we have been extremely happy with Designward’s services. The results of their efforts have been beautiful and functional and working with them has been a pleasure.

Don and Bonnie visited the ranch recently and saw for themselves the results of their efforts made from 1500 miles away. We plan to enjoy our home for years to come, but if we ever have another home anywhere we know who will design and decorate it."


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