Creative Walls & Spaces

As always, it went great. We have been customers of Donna and Tony's for years, and we have always been more than satisfied with the excellent results of their work. We recently had our home repainted in order to get ready for a move out sale, and Tony did a fantastic job. Additionally, their customer service is fantastic, which is yet another reason we have consistently chosen to work with them.

they did a great job.

Diana was very responsive to my questions and requests.  The painters were on time, if not early, every day for the entire THREE WEEKS that it took to paint the house!  What dedicated painters!  My neighbor even commented on how reliable the painters, because he saw them waiting to come in every morning.The painters, Chris, Jose and Alberto, were respectful of my time and also mindful that I had two little kids and a dog running around while they were painting.  They asked me to look over their work and were happy to do any touch ups that I wanted.  I'm very happy with the service they provided.

First of all I have to say that, Diane, is extremely knowledgeable about colors, contrast, the type of paints to best use in bathrooms and has a keen eye for highlighting architectural features of a home. 
I was confident that because of her work with me during the preparation phase of the project that the her employees would be the same way. Keen eye to details and their work. But to my dismay a few days into the project (and for the duration) I would come home to paint on light fixtures, patio door panels, droplets of paint on the wood floors and stairs, carpets,etc.(that with drop clothes in place) Because my home has multi-leveled and they have to go down to the 1st to wash their brush...once I caught them washing them in my stainless steel sink in the kitchen! There were other issues but I think you get the picture.
Any home project like this is trying but this was even more so because I had to travel in the midst of project. So I opted to place the project on hold until my return...thus extending the project beyond the 2 weeks to about 3-4 weeks. Diana was very flexible about it that helped.
I have to say that I had more issues with a single employee than another. He would be given instructions (Diana or me) to do one thing and would do something else completely. I eventually asked that he not be sent to my home because I felt that he had complete disregard for me and my home.
I responded yes to if I would use the company again because...they would apologize and every single time corrected deficits.That showed me that they were sincere and that they wanted me to be happy with their work.

We have used this company for many years for both inside and outside painting. Diana is extremely knowledgeable and helpful picking out colors for rooms, taking into consideration how the color will work with the flow of the house. She has a good eye for decorating. The workers they employ are friendly and hardworking and we are always pleases with the quality of  the work and the way that they clean up every day. I highly recommend this company.

This is the fourth or fifth time we have used Creative Walls and Spaces and they are the only company we call for painting! Diana has an excellent eye for color and always helps me make the right choice. The painters always take great care to do a beautiful job and are very easy to have in my home and never leave a mess. They don't cut corners by using cheapo paint and Diana has always made sure she understands exactly what I want done so the estimate is correct. I will continue to use and recommend Creative Walls and Spaces-

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Provided me with color choices throughout my home and complimentary colors for accents.

I have overseen many painting projects in my lifetime, all of which can be divided into two camps: the quick, dirty & cheap and the time-consuming, expensive & high-quality.  In every instance, I have been satisfied because I knew what I was getting and the value was commensurate with the cost.
Until now.
Looking back, I wish I had paid more attention to Diana's description of her company here on this page (as of this write-up): "...We are excellant [sic] painters with unmatched attention to detail and a flair for color and design. We have excellent painters who have great attention to detail...". That just about sums it up: Diana will tell you over (and over) that she is doing high-quality work, but the results don't match the claim. There is so much I could say to prove this point, but instead I will limit my comments to two things that happened: the Steel Wool incident and the TRIM incident.
The Steel Wool incident occurred on the second day of painting when I walked into my apt to see that Diana's painters had been cleaning  their brushes in my  never used before, white porcelain powder room sink. Green paint ran down the side of the new toilet. There was garbage on the floor and marks in the sink basin from where the steel wool had been used to scrub the brushes.  I cleaned up the paint from the toilet and the floor. When I showed what remained of the mess and the marks to Diana, her first response was to get indignant and tell me, in no uncertain terms, that  I was absolutely MISTAKEN and her painters would NEVER do that. Both her tone and manner were surprising--she was glaring at me when she said this--and made me uncomfortable. I had photos, but before resorting to them, I suggested she check in with her painters.Diana did, came back and told me, without apologizing for her earlier attitude, that they would repair it or replace the sink. The marks were eventually removed but her initial attitude of defensiveness, coupled with a kneejerk response to blame me for whatever went wrong,  remained throughout the project.
Case in point, the TRIM incident. I had asked Creative to wallpaper a small bedroom as part of the project. Diana pointed out that the walls would need to be sanded and smoothed prior to wallpapering.  I had purchased an expensive, Pierre Frey paper, wanted high-quality work, and told her to do what was necessary to ensure a good result.
The paper was unpasted and her wallpaper clearly had trouble: in more than a dozen places where the paper joined there were small rips, gaps, and places where the top half of the word TRIM appeared. Yes, you read correctly, the paperer cut the paper so far over that the word TRIM appeared on my walls , not just once but six times along two seams.  I asked Diana to look at it, and this is what I got back:
"The mark that you pointed out as a "t" is not part of the word TRIM. It is actually a match point mark above the word trim. I will bring a piece of the paper to show you. If it bothers you I have a way to remove it. Just let me know. I looked over the wallpaper job and I feel that is Excellent.  This paper was very difficult to work with. All of our future quotes will double the price for papers that have to be trimmed. That does not affect your price, but just so you know. The walls are.old and not square at the corners. [paperer's name] did an amazing job getting the match as good as it is!"
First of all, Diana was wrong: the top half of the word TRIM did appear on the walls six times, as mentioned, in addition to the many match point marks ( large Ts). But honestly--your name is on your business and your response to seeing that your wallpaperer put the ends of the rolls up all over a customer's wall is to say he did an "Excellent" job? Note how she also blames the "old" walls (they did not, in fact, spend any time sanding them).   Honestly, after my experience with Creative Walls and Spaces I was shocked that the company has received as many positive reviews as it has. Then I looked back and realized that most of them were for "Big Deals" in which you receive several hours of painting for a bargain price. That explained a lot: what makes people happy for $399 is not going to make them happy for $11,000. The painters continued to be very sloppy (a gallon sized paint can was left overnight with a brush in it on a brand new, unlined marble shelf, etc, etc).  I  tried to get better results, but Diana just became even more argumentative to the point that I finally decided to eat the cost and get someone else to fix the TRIM fiasco et al  (note, Diana's "method" or removing the end marks was to paint them over, which the paperer did, only he left the many TRIMs untouched, which prompted me to wonder--does he even realize that this word isn't part of the design?). In my final conversation with Diana, she told me, in her inimitable fashion, that I was her worst customer  of all time. If not being happy with end rolls on my walls, messy brush work and a slovenly workplace (my home!) makes me a terrible customer, then I wear it as a badge of honor...not that I expect to be the reigning champion for very long. With the low quality work it's putting out and a customer-is-always-wrong attitude, Creative Walls and Spaces will have plenty of unhappy campers. Please don't let one of them be you.

The plasterer worked the entire four hour coupon deal. Very hard working. Walls came out smooth and after painting looked great.

It was fine.

This is the second time I've used Creative Walls and Spaces and the service was just as good this time as it was the first.  Estimates are quick, the prices are reasonable, and the work is top notch.  They used high quality paint that had a primer in it (important for Chicago winters!) but took the extra step of priming the areas they sanded just to make sure the finished product would be great. We did have a miscommunication around what was in the quote (no one's fault, simply a miscommunication) and Diana was willing to perform the work I thought was in the quote even though it wasn't what she had quoted.  I appreciated the professional manner in which we were able to work through the misunderstanding and her gracious offer to do the extra work for the original cost.  I honestly don't believe many providers would have done this and it made quite an impression on me.  You can bet I will be recommending them even more strongly than I have been!  The work is impeccable but the people running the company are what makes it an above and beyond provider.

Diana, Tony and the crew were amazing!  I used a
designer for the concepts and Diana was able to work with her to ensure the
results would match her vision for the rooms.  The crew were very nice and
polite.  I trusted them to be there even when I wasn't.  I have a lot
of trim and they were meticulous with the finish lines.  They even went
so far as to follow the crooked lines of the last painter in my spare bedroom
since I wasn't having the ceiling painted in there and they didn't want the old
paint to show.  Jose was even able to paint just one side of the slatted
doors that cover my laundry machines.  I'm not sure how we managed to not
have runs all over the back but he sure did! 
Diana was especially helpful with the living room ceiling
which required metallic paint.  She knew I would not be happy with the
application the designer was suggesting, so she experimented with several
techniques and found one that both the designer and I were happy with.
 Apparently metallic paint is a bit of a pain, but Diana and crew worked
with me extensively to make sure I was happy with the result even though it
meant several more trips to touch up, etc than they had planned on.  Diana
was also meticulous with the accent wall she hand painted.  The designer
gave her some inspiration pictures and Diana took it from there.  It
turned out beautifully!!  Again, she came back time and time again to
paint and let it dry so she got the exact effect she was looking for.  My
designer had ordered mirrors to put over the top of the wall but in the end we
returned them because the wall turned out so well that we didn't want to cover
it.  People often mistake it for wallpaper when they see it. 
I have since used Creative Walls and Spaces again in my own
home and recommended them to others. 
My designer has also had several clients use them for both residential
and commercial projects. I would hands down recommend them for run of the mill
painting you want done properly for a good price by people you can trust and I
would even more strongly recommend them if you have special finishes or one-of-a-kind
work you?d like done.  

unknown

Excellent! He finished early and we had him to do few other things. He was very good at what he did. He was on time and we had no problems and his work was excellent.

We found Creative Walls and Spaces on Angie's List, and they did a beautiful job of repainting two schools for us and the auditorium of a third school.  Diana has an unparalleled ability to select colors for a space -- colors that make a space look larger, more beautiful, and/or match an ambiance/mood -- and her painters are very detail-oriented and professional.  They have also patched/repaired drywall and done faux brick painting at two of our schools, and they have been willing to work evening and weekends to accommodate our schedules.  Our students and staff love Creative Walls and Spaces' work, and I can't recommend them enough!

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It wasn't the greatest experience, but it wasn't the worst experience. They had touch ups and stuff that they were really good at coming back and touching up, but we have hard wood floors, and they had paint on the hard wood floors, and we had to get it off of our floors because they didn't do it. It didn't take 2 or 3 months, they were pretty good about that. The owner came out and picked samples with us, and then brought back color swatches of those so we could see how they would look on our walls, so we were very happy with that process, and it didn't take very long for the team to get here and did the job. I wouldn't use them again, but the reason would be more the pricing then the work.

The first question that I think anyone searching for a painting contractor in the Chicagoland area that one has to ask is...do I love my house? Because not everyone does. You are painting because you want to sell. You are fixing things up because that's what you're supposed to do. You don't want your house to be the most beautiful on the block, but you don't want it to be be the worst. So you paint. But if you LOVE your house. I mean really LOVE it- then call Diana. And here's three reasons why....

Number one. I've built three houses from scratch. I know what work ethic and work quality is. I worked along side Diana's workers for three months as they handled drywall repair and painting (and I, electric and carpentry) in our 120 year old corner grocery store-turned single family home. Chris, Alberto and Jose were incredible. They were knowledgeable and tireless. When I say I cannot say enough good about them, I mean in this review there is really not enough room to say all the good about them that I witnessed. Time and time again they made our house the recipient of their mastery. They were on-time, pleasant, and very, very good at what they did.

Number two. Her husband Tony. Tony is salt of the earth. In our old house renovation we came across fifteen or so 'issues', which included rotten wood, corners that weren't plumb, etc. Tony handled all with aplomb. He came up with elegant solutions for every problem that we inevitably faced in the rehabbing of this 120 year old house. For those that understand rehabbing it's not the problems you know, it's the problems you don't know that become the biggest headaches. Tony was fantastic at dealing with all of these as they arose.

Number three. The primary reason to hire Diana's company is, finally, Diana. She has developed a sense for color that I think few can match (including myself, a full time artist of 25 years). We have, over the years, tried introducing color into our house, with varying degrees of success. Diana spent a full day making suggestions, some of which we thought were spot on, others not so much. She took the time to make large color swatches which we lived with for several days. We still felt uncomfortable with a couple of her suggestions but she was so confident in her choices she told us she would repaint if we didn't like the color. She didn't have to repaint. All of her color choices were perfect. Ultimately she could see what we couldn't see. If you're just going to paint one room white, use her for the quality alone. But if you're going to try color, and make real changes, then she is the one to call. I can't recommend her enough.

I remember it being good. They came within a week after I purchased the Big Deal. There were no additional charges to the $99 Big Deal purchase price. They were very reliable. Everything was all good after they left.

It was fine. There were no additional charges. They were nice to work with but it seemed they did not put their heart and soul into it. He was skilled but he forgot to come with a ladder even though he was going to work on the ceiling . I think they regretted having the 99$. I cannot blame them because I think they were exhausted when they came.

painting had to be scheduled around various contractors; Diana was very flexible and understanding about time constraints; work was done meticulously and when the dividing ombre wall wasn't to Diana's satisfaction, she repainted it. Any problems were dealt with promptly and to my satisfaction. I would hire Diana and her crew, Tony, Will & Jose again in a heartbeat!

Diana and Tony (owners) were both professional and personable, responsive to needs and timelines, and involved throughout the entire project.  Crew was polite and respectful.  Work was completed in a timely manner, even given short turnaround time (we had lost the prior contractor due to medical issues a week before he was to start) and a day lost to a power outage in the area.  As promised, any requests (decided to only paint the bathroom vanities and keep the wood kitchen cabinetry unpainted, except for sides of peninsula, after new flooring installed) and touchups were immediately dealt with upon notification and work coordinated with our schedules.

The quote provided at the start of the project was very comprehensive and transparent...no cost detail was left out leaving no room for surprises.  The crew was knowledgeable, detailed in their work, displayed professionalism, pride in their work, and a strong work ethic.  At the end of the work day, the crew cleaned up the work space and ensured all tools and paint materials were moved out of the way.
Diana monitored the project on a regular basis either through phone calls or personal site visits.  The schedule was always kept on track.  Diana and her team were always extremely collaborative to ensure our needs were met and kept the lines of communication open throughout the project timeline.
We've used many different providers over the years; however, Creative Walls & Spaces set a new standard!!
I wouldn't hesitate to give Creative Walls & Spaces a 5-star rating!