JW Creative

JWCreative, led by Jake Wittrock, is undoubtedly one of the best in the industry in Chicago and the surrounding areas. His knowledge goes far beyond creativity, design ideas, colors, and finishes—he offers a comprehensive understanding of construction and materials. Jake has built strong, mutually beneficial relationships with vendors, manufacturers, and some of the most skilled labor forces in the business. Jake is a designer who has truly integrated with the construction team—something I’ve never seen before. He has mastered the strategy of design, interpreting the needs and goals of his clients with precision. His process is clear, adaptable to different types of projects, and free of surprises. He effectively educates and manages expectations for both experienced and inexperienced clients through a proprietary approach that is unlike anything I’ve seen. He communicates eloquently, making complex concepts easy to understand.

Jake and his team were fantastic to work with. They were able to lead the process as I struggled with decision paralysis and the result was beautiful, functional, and within budget. I will continue working with Jake for any future projects for myself or for vacation/corporate housing.

JW Creative was great with helping me find direction. I appreciated the variety of sources and creative solutions that were brought to the table. The work was handled efficiently and I appreciate the attention to getting the little details right after the major work was complete.

I have lived in my condo for over five years and was about to move out because I thought I needed more space. This changed when I met and consulted with Jake Wittrock Design. Working with Jake and having his expert advice allowed me to imagine and see my home transform and become a more utilized and functional space. Jake has a great sense of design aesthetics and worked with me to create a space that suited my needs, while expanding my space to feel bigger and become more functional for my storage and space needs. He also did this all within my budget. He designed my bedroom closets, my dining room and kitchen and made them into spaces I love and want to spend time in. The whole space now functions better and I do not want to move anymore. Jake is a professional and a creative that supports and looks after his client beyond the call of duty. I would recommend him to friends and family and want to do other projects with him in the near future.

Jake was great to work with, I would highly recommend him for any interior design project. Our kitchen prior to the renovation was a narrow galley design with an odd layout. I was stumped on how to make it look good so I hired Jake to help. He listened to what I hoping to do in making the kitchen and dining more open concept. The outcome was spectacular. From the layout to choosing custom cabinets and countertops, paint colors, ect, he did not skip any detail to make it one of kind. Jake is not only a talented designer, he is patient and takes great pride in ensuring his clients are happy.

Jake really came through for me when making a small kitchen upgrade to an induction range and convection oven. The project required three different specialists, including a carpenter to modify the counter and cabinets, an electrician to rewire the circuit, and a plumber to cap the old gas line. Great communication throughout the project. All three of his subcontractors were on time, polite, and did excellent work. Very affordable as well.

I recently had Jake and his team renovate my bathroom shower, and I'm very happy with the results. They did a great job of installing new plumbing, retiling the walls, and painting the bathroom. Jake was professional, efficient, and communicated clearly throughout the project. My only watch-out and what brings this to a 4 star was my experience with the head contractor working for Jake. Once the project started I barely saw him again. And the contractors that worked for him, while amazing, seemed to be extremely busy with other work, so scheduling was kind of a nightmare. I was estimated 3 days of work that ended up taking almost 2 weeks. While part of that was things out of anyones control, some of it felt like it came down to bad planning. Overall, the job got done, and it looks good so I can't complain too much. Jake was always available and ready to solve any problems that came up.

The team and affiliates at Big Design Energy, have assisted me in design efforts and the coordination of skilled labor for improvements to many of my rental properties as well as each of my personal homes. we have always been offered competitive pricing and a level of service that is superior. Anyone who knows construction or remodeling is aware that there is no such thing as perfection in the industry, however Jake is far better than most and always exceeds expectations.

Stay away from Jake Wittrock, JWCreative, and Big Design Energy, and don't be fooled by the many positive, fake reviews. While Jake does come up with decent design ideas, he has serious time and money management issues. He will lie about when items are ordered even though he has already taken your money well in advance. He provides no oversight over his vendors, and they will, more often than not, screw up measurements and the installation of items. Jake claims he is too busy to inspect his contractors' work even though it is shoddy, and you send him pictures to prove it. When confronted with these serious issues, Jake becomes defensive and lies outright to feel blameless. Jake also refuses to refund money never spent on items and services. I was fortunate to have paid Jake with my American Express card. When Jake refused to return approximately $35,000 advanced to him, I initiated a fraud claim with American Express. Jake protested the fraud claim by making material misstatements to American Express. After reviewing the fraud claim, American Express saw through Jake's lies and returned the entire amount to me. I am one of Jake's more fortunate victims and could not be more grateful to American Express for seeing through the fraud. Hire Jake Wittrock at your own peril. I regret ever meeting him and welcoming him into my home.

Jake and his team provided creative designs and were also very easy to work with.

I hired Jake and his team of quality resources to give a facelift to my rental bathroom. The bathroom had existing shower tile that I hated….but It did not make sense to pay to have it removed and replaced. Jake’s design service made all the difference as the selections made for paint colors, floor tile, vanity cabinet and lighting made the entire bathroom look new, including the shower tile. He also improved the functionality of the bathroom by adding a second door to make this space a “Jack and Jill” ensuite bathroom, added thruway switches and dimmers, and framed in a recessed medicine cabinet for extra storage. All around excellent results and within my 20k budget.