Deb Kees, architect
Deb joined SALA Architects, Inc., in 2001 after receiving her degree from the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She worked side by side with Michaela on our Idea Home and is proud of the results. “I love the way the upstairs study area turned out. The transom window and barrel-vault ceiling give the space an intimate quality.”

Guillermo Castellanos, landscape designer
A native of Honduras, Guillermo earned his degree in landscape design from the University of Illinois. Since then he’s worked for prestigious firms, but this project is one of the first through his own firm, Mito Landscape Design, Inc. “I wanted this garden to feel like an extension of the rooms of the house. My favorite space is the rear terrace. That’s where you’d find me if it were my cottage.”

Anne Coyle, interior designer
“It was sort of a fluke,” Anne recalls about becoming a premier Chicago designer. “After my second son was born, I left my advertising career and moved into a Beaux Arts building downtown. When I finished redecorating it, my friends told me I should go out on my own. So I did, and here I am, five years and lots of homes and a retail shop later.”

Greg Jagmin, designer
Greg met Anne through fellow design guru and friend Nate Berkus. Two years ago, Greg volunteered to help Anne launch her retail store. “I was so excited to work on the Idea Home,” he says, “because we were designing a cottage for the way people really live. It was fun to put a new spin on a traditional Craftsman interior with Anne’s signature colors and whimsy.”

Al Hatcher, builder
We enlisted the crew at Al Hatcher, Inc., because we knew that as a father of seven, Al could handle the rigors of constructing a super-detailed house. “I love everything about this cottage, but if it burned to the ground tomorrow I’d want to save the stairs that wrap around to the kitchen, with drawers below. You just don’t see details like that anymore.”