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Saturday, December 31, 2011

Murals, Faux Finishes, Interior Decorative Painting

Serving Northbrook, Illinois and Surrounding Areas

Overview

Bonnie Lecat is a formally trained decorative artist with a lifetime of painting experience. She began taking formal art lessons as a young girl at the age of eight and was painting in oils by the time she was ten years old. She continued her study of art and design at Columbia College in Chicago, Illinois where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree with an emphasis on Illustration. She began her professional career working in advertising and marketing as an Art Director and Graphic Designer. In 2000, she decided to leave the commercial art world and pursue a career in decorative painting and opened “Bonnie Lecat Designs”. Her business specialty is mural painting, although she loves to come up with new and innovative faux finishes to complement and add to her mural paintings. She has recently begun selling and exhibiting her fine artwork as well. Her work now graces the walls of homes and commercial establishments all over Chicagoland.

Bonnie makes it a priority to continue her art education as well as share her decorative painting knowledge by teaching and has studied abroad with some of the most renowned masters in the field of decorative painting. She is proud to be a member of the International Decorative Artisan League and Chicago Artist’s Coalition. She has also exhibited at the prestigious International Salon of Decorative Painters.

Bonnie currently lives in the northern suburbs of Chicago with her husband and two daughters.

Bonnie Lecat Designs is the premier Northbrook painting service. We provide a variety of services and maintain the highest standards of workmanship for all of our projects, big and small.

Services Offered

Painting

Interiors

Exteriors

Custom Painting

Paint Murals

Paint Decorative Finishes

How to Hire a Northbrook Painter

As a homeowner, you may be an avid do-it-yourselfer, but when it comes to painting the inside or outside of your home, the job could get a little overwhelming especially if you don’t have all the appropriate equipment. Finding a professional painter to handle the job might be the better and safer option when dealing with ladders and high places. A Northbrook painter will have all the right equipment and can get the job done quickly.

The idea behind painting your home is to make it look better but if the work is shoddy or the paints and primers are of low quality, you won’t achieve the desired results. Anyone can claim to be a painter, but painting takes a certain amount of detailed skill so when you decide to hire someone for the job you need to become an informed consumer. Whether you’re looking for someone to paint a single room or the entire exterior of your home you want to make certain you’re hiring a qualified painter for the job.

Where to Locate a Professional Northbrook Painter

When you make the decision to hire a Northbrook painter there are a number of places you can start. Check with your local paint store or home building center. Many of these stores will have bulletin boards where painters and other contractors can post their business cards. Do a search online for a directory of certified local Northbrook painters. The certification process that is sometime involved can be take time and money and usually only professionals will make the effort.

Ask friends, family and co-workers if they’ve ever hired a painter. Possibly they can show you the work that was done and let you know if they were pleased with the job or if they have any complaints. If the Northbrook painter did a good job, it could be an excellent way to get a recommendation.

Interviewing a Northbrook Painter

Hiring a Northbrook painter based solely on his estimate is not usually a good idea. Spend some time talking about your project with each painter you consider hiring before you ask for an estimate. Choose a few painters to come to your home and look over the project. Start by asking each one some questions concerning their past experience and knowledge in the field. Find out if they have subcontracted with any homebuilders or other local contractors or companies. Being hired by other contractors is often a good sign that their work is up to standard.

Request proof of current state license and insurance policies from each Northbrook painter. Every Northbrook painter should have liability insurance to protect you in case of damage. You’ll also need to check that they carry workers compensation if they have any employees. If someone gets hurt while on the job, you don’t want to be held responsible for some hefty medical bills. Make certain the painter is also bonded. If he should leave you with some unfinished work you then have recourse for getting the job completed.

Ask for references from each Northbrook painter and follow up on them, but don’t rely on references alone. While references might be a good indicator of a reputable painter, the truth is if there are any unsatisfied customers out there, you probably won’t be given their contact information. Check with the local Better Business Bureau to see if there are any complaints on file. Ask what they were and if they were resolved. Complaints can happen to the best of businesses but how they are handled is what’s important.

Once you have a few painters in mind, it’s time to get some estimates. Since every Northbrook painter handles a job differently, from the brands of paint he prefers to the methods of cleanup he uses bids can get confusing. There might also be different methods used in preparation work. One painter may only use a pressure washer for exterior preparation while another might painstakingly scrape and sand the entire surface. These differences can greatly impact the figures on the bids you receive. You should supply each Northbrook painter with a list of what you would like included in their bid. This way when you look at the bids they should all be uniform in the scope and details of the project which will make them much easier to compare.

Getting a Contract from a Northbrook Painter

Once you’ve found the Northbrook painter you feel is right for your project it’s time to get a contract in place. A contract should include a detailed outline of the job stating exactly what work is to be done, how it will be done and the paint that will be used along with the cost of materials and labor and an agreed upon payment schedule. It should also include all the painter’s contact information as well as his contractor’s license number. He should also attach copies of any necessary insurance policies. You’ll also want a date for completion of the job.

Ask about a guarantee if there should be a problem with the paint such as chipping peeling, chalking or excessive fading within the first couple of years. Get it in writing that the painter agrees to fix the problem at little or no expense to you. While the paint itself may come with an extensive warranty, it will not include the labor cost of having the job redone.

Remember that you want to hire a painter you can trust. A lot of the work will probably be done when you aren’t around so it’s difficult to know exactly what’s being done. Once the final coat is on you wont be able to determine if the surface was properly prepared or primed or how many coats of paint were actually applied. Hiring a reliable Northbrook painter is just as important as hiring any other contractor to come into your home and you want the best one for the job.

Posted on 12/31 at 07:48 AM
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