Bill Zielinski's Kitchen & Bath

He showed up on the date & time accompanied by a woman I assume was his wife. My wife & I described our vision of the new kitchen. He & his wife were very attentive. We thought they understood exactly what we wanted. However when the plans arrived they in no way resembled what we had in mind. It was as though they hadn't listened to us at all and instead presented us with their vision of our kitchen. This was a waste of time & money

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This is a follow up after the provider response shown below:  After my honest response to multiple requests for a review from Angie's List about my experience with Bill Zielinski's Kitchen and Bath, the vendor responded with the personal attack below.  I have worked with numerous contractors on numerous home improvement projects over the many years I have been a homeowner and have had many good experiences.  I expected the same this time, but it was not to be.  It happens.  And now this response from the vendor.  Wow!  I have never had a contractor react (even when I had criticisms) in such an unprofessional manner.  His response is angry and untruthful.  I do not attempt to rip anyone off.  I did not send him nasty email, but did send one in response to the designs he sent letting him know that I did not feel either design incorporated my ideas and that we did not plan to move forward with him.  However, he did send me a nasty email after seeing my review here and included with it yet another design option.  Interesting.  Very glad that I did not invest more time/money with this business.

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Working with Bill is hands down the best experience I've had working with any contractor in my new home.
 
Design: First he came in and actually measured out and brainstormed design ideas for the new layout.  Many people seem to want you to bring measurements into their shop so they can build a design without coming on site.  You should demand they come to your home first.  Doing this, Bill was the only person who recognized the opportunity to expand the kitchen into what had been a separate eat-in area and make the whole room flow together.  Great design, I'm so glad we chose him for this.
Profesional, Knowledgeable and Responsive: Next, I have to say that Bill's professionalism and kindness really stood out.  He always took my calls day or night, and would chat with me as long as needed to make sure I was 100% comfortable with where the project stood and any decisions he was making.  He'd walk me through in detail exactly how he planned to do the work and explain what short cuts other people sometimes take and why he wouldn't do it.  He was clearly very knowledgeable.  Plus, he saved me several hundred dollars - I would have probably had him apply floor leveler, but he convinced me it wasn't necessary. I really appreciated the honesty instead trying to upsell me.  There were other smaller examples of this as well.  Bill was also very good about cleaning up the workspace at the end of the day - we didn't move into the house until near the end of the project, but even then, we have a toddler, and (without asking) he took appropriate steps to make sure the room was safe and clean when he left. I trust that if we'd been there the whole time, Bill would have worked with us to minimize the inconveniences - he actually teaches seminars on that topic.
Attention to detail:  You can tell Bill is someone who absolutely has to do things the rights way, for him, not just for the customer.  There were times during the project when something didn't come out quite the way he wanted.  When even I was willing to take a shortcut to make it work he consistently said absolutely not and went back and redid the work (without upcharging me a dime). His attention to detail also came out in the tiniest ways - like how he selected the prettiest peice of trim to go over oven centered on that wall.  He's always thinking about how to give you the best outcome.
Bill's Peanutbutter Pie:  Work it into the contract -its good.
Work done: The work we had bill perform was a total kitchen remodel - Everything was torn out including drywall in places and everything (the stove, sink, fridge, window, I mean everything was rearranged. Iinstalled solid plywood cabinets, built in seating with storage and a kitchen desk.  Installed uplighting and downlighting, a vinyl floor, painted the room, installed the trim - everything you can think of except for the countertops.  Total cost of approx 21k was split roughtly 50/50 between cost of the cabinets and everything else (material and labor combined).
If you're thinking of hiring Bill, do it - you wont' be sorry;  Check out his website - Ann & David Kitchen Video for the finished product ( http://www.freelancekitchendesigner.com/) link - near the bottom.

Bill did a wonderful job. Arrived on time, discussed what we wanted and several options. Received designs within a few days. We will certainly work with  Bill when we are ready to move forward.

Bill was prompt and accurate. He his skills to design to the space provided. He utilized his software tools with 2D and 3D renderings. The work was so good it looked like a picture of the actual kitchen. He is very talented and I plan to use his services on some other projects as well.

Bill laid out the kitchen design and provided the cabinets. He was prompt, helpful and the result was great. The cabinets were all wood, well constructed with excellent hardware. The difference between cabinets constructed with wood and laminated MDF is amazing. If MDF gets wet and the laminate separates, the MDF (particle board) falls apart. The cabinets were RTA (ready to assemble). Assembly was relatively easy. The result was a very functional layout with beautiful cabinets. Bill was very prompt in providing additional trim materials (moldings, fill-strips, etc.) for finishing the installation when more were needed. I'd use his services again.

Bill has completed a number of projects in our home. He designed and built an incredible space for us that we loved so much we use it as a living room. He listened to what we wanted, then turned our ideas into a warm and inviting space. He is a very competent designer and was able to show us digital renderings of what our project would look like when it was complete, this made our decisions so much easier, and I must say, the finished project did look just like the renderings. On top of all this, he gave us quite a good deal on the cabinets. I will continue to count on him for future projects and would highly recommend him.

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