Homelife Design Studio - Pacific Grove, California

Steve T.

My wife and I worked with Joshua in 2015-2017 on an addition to a historic home in Pacific Grove. We have had numerous persons over the years who have complemented the addition, stopping to ask which design team we worked with. The home also received the Heritage House Award for Pacific Grove in 2018!

Joshua is easy to work with; receptive to input, feedback and modifications. He visited our worksite routinely while the construction was going on and has been available for questions post-construction. He worked very well with our contractor and the city of Pacific Grove.

We have given Joshua multiple recommendations over the years and we highly recommend him for his design and personal character.

Stephen and Nancy Thompson

John W.

I hired Homelife Design Studio to help me coordinate a prefab barn project for my home in Watsonville.
Dealing with the Santa Cruz County Building Department can often be challenging, but we found that Joshua worked well to get the project approved and the building permit issued.
I also appreciated that Joshua was easy to reach! He picked up the phone when I called with questions or responded quickly to my emails.
Joshua is a good team player.

Joe S.

Joshua designed a guest house for our Pebble Beach property. He has walked us through the full process of getting Pebble Beach approval, a Monterey County Permit, obtaining additional water for the project and introduced us to a contractor that is perfect for the job. We are now working with him on a design/addition to the main house. We have found Joshua to be extremely knowledgeable, easy to communicate with, and have appreciated his attention to detail.

P S.

Joshua Stewman is a joy to work with because he is communicative, creative, and flexible. His aptitude in capturing my vision and helping us see the finished goal with 3D models and sketches is super helpful. I have a hard time imagining the finished space I see on paper but he provides lots of pictures, material samples, and examples to help us discover what we really want, and gently guides us to make better architectural decisions. That is to say, his "bedside manner" is great!

If you are doing a big home with Homelife Design Studio (HDS), my recommendation is to use as many as his services as possible. His 3D modeling saves lots of time in imagining the space, He can even have physical 3D models made for you! If you feel the design work is done, his team moves fast and provides thorough technical drawings. Having Joshua Stewman available during construction to double check material selection, and ensure quality is a huge benefit. I don't build lots of homes - so having someone else keep an eye on the process was a huge help. If there is a next time - I would consider using HDS as an owner's representative to help me control cost and schedule.

All said, Joshua Stewman's Homelife Design Studio provides consistent service, good communication, great design sense, and all the experience that you could want from someone in this line of work. Use HDS.

julie G.

Used his services for a new house build and was disappointed from start to finish. He failed on the basics. He designed a wall to end in the middle of a window with no more than three feet between the wall and window—making it a useless space and ruining the view and the flow of the space. When we eliminated costly, exterior window adornments, he had the builder raise the window height. In some rooms this eliminated the view when one is seated, and in bedrooms, the window height DID NOT PASS FINAL BUILDING INSPECTION BECAUSE IT DIDN'T FOLLOW BUILDING CODE. He built in a technology closet with no ventilation which makes the system overheat and shut down. He lacks creativity and is unable to recreate his client’s vision…only his own; he didn’t incorporate the look we were going for and ignored most of what we said was important. He added grandiose flourishes that didn’t match the rustic vibe we wanted. He built in a lot of wasted and nonsensical spaces. Our dream home is a nightmare.

Aachal M.

Called to inquire about a drafting project I needed for my guest room, but the project was too small for him. Joshua was kind enough to suggest another drafting service and it all worked out. Locals helping locals. 👍