Rae Duncan Interior Design

Rae is a master at what she does and a true visionary. She and her team spent time getting to know us -- how we live in our space, our personalities and our design aesthetic. We had an idea of what we wanted going into this process, but she elevated our vision beyond our wildest expectations. Rae incorporated innovative elements and artistic value in each room she designed for us --- things we would have never thought of on our own. She and her team of contractors executed the design flawlessly, with precision and the highest attention to every last detail. And the project came in on time and at budget. To say we had a positive experience with Rae Duncan Interior Design would be an understatement. I never thought that redesigning my house would be such a fun, inspiring and stress-free experience. She has made our house a home and a real show stopper. Rae is now our 'designer for life' and we have plans to work with her again to design more rooms in our home. I can't thank Rae and her team enough; I wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone looking for a talented, professional and fun interior design firm. Thank you, RDID! Side note: We came to RDID after months of working with another well-known interior design firm in Chicago. Long story short, that design firm completely missed the mark and presented a design that was nothing like what we wanted, after months of working on it without any check ins. We were out tens of thousands in design fees with the other design firm, but the end product with Rae was worth hiring her instead of continuing with our previous firm and a design we weren't excited about.

Rae has turned what should have been an exciting, enjoyable experience for us into an absolute nightmare. We hired Rae to help us with the design of a kitchen and bath remodel after meeting at our home, explaining in detail our vision and budget, and being assured that the number Rae had provided was a reasonable estimate. Despite Rae's claims that she has worked with the same contractors and materials providers on her jobs for years and had completed a number of projects with them recently, the estimated project costs provided were nearly double our estimate. While we had been prepared for the potential that the costs may be a bit higher, we were flabbergasted at how far off the original estimate was. When we questioned why the costs were nowhere in the ballpark of what was discussed and asked her to stop work until we determined how to proceed, Rae attempted to blame us and responded in an unprofessional, offensive manner that included personal attacks on us. She then unilaterally terminated the contract, leaving us with thousands of dollars of bills for her alleged "services" on the project and without a completed design for our project. Perhaps recognizing the overreaction, shortly thereafter, Rae's firm offered to enter into a new agreement, under new terms, including the material provision that her colleague (not Rae) would be the point of contact on all matters related to the project. However, Rae's firm failed to honor this agreement. Among other things, when we asked to speak with our point of contact about the project, much to our surprise, we were informed that she was no longer working for Rae's firm. Later, when we attempted to negotiate the contract with the contractor, Rae intervened unnecessarily, and, remarkably, despite working for us, began advocating against our position and interests. The contractor's proposed contract lacked terms and a performance schedule and included payment terms that were wildly unfavorable, as it would have called for us to hold back only a small percentage of the costs until completion, forcing us to front nearly all of the money and giving the contractor no incentive to finish the project. We asked for a construction schedule (since half of our house would be torn up for this project) and proposed reasonable terms that would have tied the payments more closely to the contractor's actual progress on the project, as is common practice. When we did so, Rae's colleague responded on behalf of the contractor stating: "This is not something we are willing to change." When we inquired why she was speaking for the contractor when she was supposed to be representing our interests and informed her we would handle the negotiations directly with the contractor, Rae stated: "[W]e gave our terms. You can abide by them or you can terminate." This was followed once again by additional unprofessional, offensive communications and Rae's attempt to unilaterally terminate the second contract.

Rae was an amazing designer for us from the beginning to the end. Using her strong ability to utilize every inch of space to its maximum capacity, she held my hand through every step making sure I felt very happy with each choice. She allowed me to have my own voice and say while guiding me towards products and styles that fit our needs and were high quality. I am beyond happy with the results of my eat-in kitchen with an amazing designer to thank!

We had a completely blank slate when walking in and so we needed some serious assistance when trying to design our dream space. Rae and her team listened to all of our likes and dislikes and pulled off the perfect modern and cozy space for us. I'd highly highly recommend Rae for any of your design needs!

Rae Duncan is the most talented designer and phenomenal renovation partner with whom I have ever worked. My husband and I are working with Rae on a near complete gut rehab of a home we recently purchased and could not be happier with the results. First, she took the time to understand and help us refine our vision for the home and, after just one initial meeting in our new space, she was able to intuit and articulate how to make our vision a reality. Rae brings a deep and talented network of contractors and craftspeople to the fore to create truly custom spaces, within tight budgets and against tight timelines. And she does more than interior design; she creates transformative interior environments. I have worked with other designers, and none have worked as creatively and efficiently as Rae. She exhibits a rare brand of patience and empathy, expressing her creative vision and point of view while treating her clients as true partners in the design process. She also conceives of brilliant solutions to the design challenges inherent to older homes like the one we recently purchased and smaller spaces like the one she helped us stage and sell. Rae's spatial and aesthetic brilliance, coupled with her sensitivity and responsiveness to her clients' needs, make her a truly incredible designer. I would highly recommend working with Rae; she has truly transformed our space in a way we never could have imagined based on our experience with other designers, and helped transform our lives in the process!