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Our homes form the backdrop of our lives. We laugh there, cry there, grow families and get old there. Here at Candid, we believe that function trumps fashion; that good design doesn’t have to be complicated; and that every family deserves a home that fits them and feels good to them, no matter what budget range they have to work with.
We also believe that no one knows how you like to live in your house better than you do, so “good design” can mean something different to each person we work with. We start with a deep understanding of the goals you’re trying to accomplish, we put together our best ideas, and then we sit down and talk to you about them. We’ll explain the pros and cons, the budget ramifications of each suggestion, and help you understand and verbalize which ideas best meet your family’s needs. There are no closed doors, no secret design charettes or hoodoo-voodoo sessions to pull completed designs out of the air. You’re an integral part of every stage of the process, and you’ll never have to just take our word for it; we work WITH you to turn your vision into a reality, with tons of 3D renderings and virtual walk-through’s, so the final space looks and feels exactly like you dreamed it would.
About Kymber
Hi there!
I’m Kymber – founder and CEO of Candid Design. I’m a small-town Southern girl with a love of all things outside, and when I’m not at work you can find me adventuring all over the country with my husband Josh and our fur-child Stella the Great Dane.
I started the company in 2015 after a big move from Oklahoma to Portland, Oregon, and I’ll admit it looked a little different back then! I’m not working from my dining room table anymore, and we’ve continued to grow over the years, but the mission remains the same: I and my team work every day to give our homeowners the confidence to make their home dreams a reality through honest discussions, collaborative design, and hard-won expertise.
Working with me and the Candid Design team
We’re a little different here. Our design process has been fine-tuned over the years to create a well-oiled machine, backed by the knowledge and experience our team has gained through nearly 200 design projects to date. We’re also working hard to bring the home design and construction industry into the current century, so there are some things you might not expect:
Our design process is 100% remote.
I know, I know, crazy! But how! You have to see my basement/kitchen/current space! Here’s the secret: I was trained as a commercial space surveyor in my previous life before Candid, and I’ve trained our field techs the same way. We start every project with a painstakingly detailed, incredibly thorough “building survey” of your current house. The whole thing! And then we build an accurate 3D model of your house from the ground up, so we can “see” every nook and cranny. We analyze the existing structure so we fully understand how the house is built, how the framing is put together, which walls are bearing, where the utilities are and how the plumbing is stacked. The detailed model allows us to make fully informed design suggestions that wouldn’t be possible while we’re standing in the space. Our design discussions are held via Zoom while we’re “standing” together in your house model, looking at the space in 3D. Not sure what it’s going to look like with a 4′ opening or a 10′ opening? We can show you, right then and there!
We do work all over the country.
Because our team is trained to operate remotely – and because, you know, the internet – we can meet you virtually wherever you are and help with your project. We’ll always start with an in-person field tech to measure your home and kick off our unique process; we can locate a partner in most major metros, or we’ll fly out one of our experts, or if I’m in the area I might even stop by myself. From there, we do full code research for your specific jurisdiction and then design for your local conditions.
We're experts at building design - which might not be what you think.
We’re really good at the big, hairy stuff: opening up bearing walls, small and large additions, whole-home space planning (like relocating a kitchen or creating open concepts), and attic, basement, and garage conversions. We specialize in making whatever big remodel you have planned integrate seamlessly with your current house, so it looks and functions like it was always meant to be there. We’ve fine-tuned our permit drawings so they have exactly the information needed by your jurisdiction for permit approval, and in most cases, not much more. This leaves you the freedom to work with your builder to figure out the details without intense scrutiny from the building department on every soffit type and shower pan choice. Most of our homeowners have a pretty good idea on the look they’re trying to achieve; our realistic renderings will help you narrow down the aesthetic, which the builder will use to connect you with their preferred materials providers and local suppliers, whose reps are super excited to help you lay out your kitchen cabinets to perfection – usually at no cost to you. If you need extra help making choices on finishes, fixtures, and cabinet pulls, we’re happy to work with any interior designer you choose.