Working with Liz was a dream! We had been planning an addition for a while; our family was growing and we wanted to build a new kitchen and mudroom. But before talking to Liz we couldn’t really picture it in our minds. She understood that the new structure needed to cohere with, but also update, the original house (a quirky 1960s pre-fab) in terms of function and aesthetics. It was also important to Liz that our house suit our family’s lifestyle here. Today our new space feels beautifully integrated with the rest of the house and the surrounding landscape. Timber-clad and nestled into the surrounding woods, our addition evokes Japan and Denmark but is very much in tune with Vermont. Friends often say it feels like it has always been here. We couldn’t be happier with the way things turned out.
Liz is very personable and down-to-earth, so we always felt comfortable sharing our ideas and talking things through together. She has a knack for taking clients’ half-thoughts and translating them into actual design options. We really appreciated how Liz listened to us and allowed for some give and take in the design process. She took our ideas on board but ultimately elevated and refined them in ways we could have never imagined. This was particularly true in terms of our kitchen. We love to cook and knew we wanted certain features, such as a view and seating and a coffee nook. Liz came up with ingenious ways of accommodating these needs, while also carving out space for a small covered patio that is now one of our favorite features of the house.
Because she has such an established rapport with builders, Liz is also very good at responding to the challenges that arise because of budget, etc. When our initial kitchen plan proved too costly on account of footage, Liz pivoted to a new, more efficient design that allowed us to make much better use of the space. Today we can’t imagine it being any other way. It became clear that Liz’s broad experience in architecture and deep ties with Vermont tradespeople made her the ideal person to work with. We couldn’t recommend Liz and her team more highly.
-Ben and Joyce, Middlebury, VT
This was our first new build, and we chose Liz based on her talent, a conversation, and her portfolio. The idea for our home was a beautiful, efficient, thoughtful and easy to maintain place to live full-time. Liz gave us all of these. She guided, inspired, and taught us and most of all worked with our vision and sometimes crazy ideas! The process with Liz and her team was easy and enjoyable because of their exceptional skill, attention to detail, and aesthetic. It is everything we could wish for in our new home.
-Laura M., Burlington VT
We were looking for an architect to design an efficient, practical and attractive home in Vermont. Lis and her associate, Alex, met all these criteria in the design and were involved in every detail of the project. Her team worked wonderfully well with the builder, which is not always the case. She was a thoughtful guide and kept us on track while honoring our desires for the house. Liz has a knack for helping you see what will work best and made the process collaborative but with the scrutiny of an expert. We ended up with the home of our dreams that is beautiful and works perfectly with our lifestyle. She has a wonderful personality and is very easy to communicate with. This was our fourth home project and the biggest we ever did, yet it went smoother than our prior builds. We can’t imagine working with anyone other than Liz on future projects.
–Alan and Andrea, Charlotte, VT
Liz is an exceptionally talented architect who helped us transform our vision into reality. We hired Liz for our kitchen remodel. She came highly recommended from our landscape architect. Following our initial meeting, we could not envision working with anyone else! Liz has a remarkable aptitude for listening. We flooded Liz with ideas in our initial meeting and she transformed that into our dream kitchen. Her ability to articulate design made us feel extremely comfortable with the process of remodeling. She has a vast knowledge in design that allowed us to balance functionality and layout to work for our needs. Liz is extremely patient and had no ego when discussing different ideas of ours. She was always there for us throughout the building process, collaborating with our builders. We are grateful for her work, and are excited to hire Liz again for future projects!
–Chris & Nicole
“Liz designed our dream house and for that, and so many more reasons, she is our hero. We live in Texas most of the year and three years ago had bought a beautiful property in Vermont with incredible views but a steep incline. We knew that to build the house we always desired and imagined — and to do it from 2,000 miles away — required a very special architect.
Aesthetically, our search for Vermont-based architects who had a style that we admired didn’t take long. Liz’s work stood out immediately. Though her work is varied, she clearly has a highly refined and contemporary sensibility — never a wasted note in her work. That being said, Liz is every bit as great as a partner and client manager as she is a designer. She was patient with us when it was required and nudged us towards or away from decisions when some resolution was needed. She helped us stretch on some design decisions and was also practical in areas where we needed to rein in costs or scope. She is curious and informed about both creative and engineering details.
Given that nearly all communication with Liz was remote and virtual it is quite amazing that our home was built on time, on budget and looked and felt exactly like the drawings, documents and animations that Liz created. When we finally stepped into our home, our jaws dropped — not just from the beauty of the home but also from how true it was to the simple, modern and open design that Liz drew to fit our hillside.
I could go on and on but I’ll say simply that our experience was a 10 out of 10 and that both Liz’s service and her amazing eye for design and detail are extraordinary.”
–Matty & Megan Wishnow
“We are building a small (2,000 s.f.) home in Vermont. We started our process by interviewing 3 architects, and Liz won going away. We were impressed with her previous works, aesthetic sense, and clear-headed sensitivity to our budget. We’re now almost finished with the plans and love the design she’s come up with. Throughout, our appreciation for Liz has only grown–she’s been professional, timely, and great to work with. Probably most impressive is her unique ability to listen to our ideas and combine those with her own discriminating style. We can’t wait to the see the finished product!”
-Bruce Stevenson & Kay Towers
“Liz was a pleasure to work with from our first meeting. She clearly understood, embraced, and enhanced our vision for our small, modern, cozy haven. Liz not only has the design chops to create beautiful buildings, but the practical focus and experience to make spaces that really work and feel right. Her extensive knowledge of materials and building techniques and systems, as well as her close working relationships with talented builders, were invaluable to the success of our project.”
-Chad Yonkman
“I wish I could give Liz more than five stars. Simply put: she’s amazing! I bought land with a barn on it that we decided to turn into a home and I needed the right architect who could help me fit my wish list into a small(ish) space, maximizing the view of the mountains behind it. Liz designed a beautiful home that I marvel at every single day. It feels so big and spacious–much more than its 1250 sq. ft.- because her attention to detail, including room size, layout, windows, doors and lighting was meticulous. The first plan she drew up incorporated all the things I asked for (and she came in under budget!) The design process with her was so easy -she was always responsive via email and phone and visited the building site with me as the house was being constructed. She’s delightful to work with and designs unique homes that fit the space and your specific needs. I can’t speak highly enough about her. I’m living in my dream home and Liz helped make this happen.”
-R.T.
“Liz Herrmann is a conscientious and talented architect who blends a clean design aesthetic with functionality. After interviewing three firms in the Champlain Valley area, it was a no-brainer to hire Liz. We knew she would listen to what we wanted and respect our ideas while guiding us intelligently through the design process. She created a plan for the home we had dreamt about for six years and to this day, the details and refinement of the architecture make our house unique, spacious and timeless. We LOVE where we live and how we live and we have Liz to thank for that.”
-Carolinne G., Ferrisburg, Vermont
“Elizabeth Herrmann is an amazing architect–she is clear, creative, efficient and wonderful to work with. We brought our needs and hopes to her and she has translated them into a beautiful, unique and practical addition to our home. The design Liz has created is true to its purpose and our aesthetic sense, at the same time that it is uniquely her own–clean lined, inventive and quietly stunning. We have loved working with both Liz and her Project Manager, Paula Sherr. Throughout the planning process, each of these talented architects has given us as much time, information, and support as we have needed or wanted. It has been a truly collaborative and enjoyable process. And we think the resulting plan is perfect!”
-J. Mackler, Bristol, Vermont
“When my husband and I decided to renovate a large front room in our old farm house and turn it into a first floor master bedroom, Red House (builders) suggested we work with Liz. From start to finish, working with her was a terrific experience. Liz helped us achieve our goals, she listened well, and gave excellent advice based on her experience and tremendous vision. We have lived with the renovations for a few years now and I am often struck that if we were to do it over, we would do it the exact same way. Thank you, Liz!”
-Sandy Rendall, South Burlington, Vermont
“Liz makes the process of designing and building a house so much fun, and so engaging that it’s easy to forget how talented she is. We looked forward to each meeting with her (and Tracy), so much so that completing construction was–this will sound aberrant–nigh upon a disappointment. In addition, Liz is a superb ally and advocate, and she understands how to navigate the shoals and shallows of the approval gauntlet. We always felt protected.
-David and Rochelle, Leicester, VT & NYC
“Elizabeth Herrmann far surpassed our expectations and created for us the house of our dreams! The house is perfect for us and fits us and our lifestyle in every way. There is nothing I would change about the design of our home. Liz was a pleasure to work with; professional, highly responsive, and thoughtfully creative. She also worked very cooperatively with our contractor.”
– S.V. & B.A.
“Liz Herrmann is a conscientious and talented architect who blends a clean design aesthetic with functionality. After interviewing three firms in the Champlain Valley area, it was a no-brainer to hire Liz. We knew she would listen to what we wanted and respect our ideas while guiding us intelligently through the design process. She created a plan for the home we dreamed about for six years and to this day, the details and refinement of the architecture make our house unique, spacious and timeless. We LOVE where we live and how we live and we have Liz to thank for that.”
– Carolinne & Dylan, Ferrisburgh, VT
“We have been planning and dreaming of our new house for 15 years. When the time came to build, we knew we would need the expertise of an architect. Elizabeth was the fourth architect we talked to and she was the ONLY ONE who listened to what we wanted. She went above and beyond to accommodate us. Working with her was an amazing experience and we were actually sad to see it end. She helped deliver our dream. We are in love with our new house and it would not have been possible without her.”
– Becky & Carol, Brookline, VT
“Liz took the time to really listen to us when we first discussed the style and function of the home we wanted to build. She came up with a plan for a ‘contemporary cottage’ that was perfect-we loved it from the beginning. She maintained open, honest communication throughout the design and building process. She has a natural sense of creativity and aesthetics, as well as expert technical knowledge and integrity. She was a complete pleasure to work with.”
-Eileen & Charlie Brunetto, Cornwall, VT
“I have known and worked with Liz for over 15 years. She is a great communicator. The projects I have done with her have been very successful because while she has great design skills, she also encourages dialogue with me to keep the budget and vision in line.”
– Alex Carver, Northern Timbers Construction, Ripton, VT
“While the experience of a renovation is filled with many challenges, we were pleased to find that working with Liz was the highlight… The design process was organized and grounded in reality. Liz understood our budget limitations and our aspirations for the project. She surprised us with a layout concept for the project that we hadn’t previously considered. This made our budget go further and our overall design more accommodating and delightful… We couldn’t be more pleased with the contribution Liz made to our home. With her help we turned our fixer-upper into an inspirational place we don’t want to leave. We will go back to Liz when we are ready for phase two.”
– K & J, Shoreham, VT
“Liz Herrmann came to our project with tremendous excitement and enthusiasm which was exactly what we needed… we had attempted a few other architects and design-build folks and kept walking away discouraged and frustrated. We had what seemed like to us, insurmountable design problems. Liz very quickly saw the issues and resolved them. She then helped us from soup to nuts on every front..her eye for detail is fantastic and her style is both respectful and encouraging. We loved working with Liz and now we live in a wonderfully comfortable, well-lit, beautifully designed home.”
– The Demetrowitz-Kirschner Family, South Burlington, VT
“As a builder, working with Liz has been extremely rewarding and beneficial to the home building process. Her practical approach and down to earth style is refreshing. Liz understands that it is the client’s home and not simply her design and therefore listens closely to clients’ desires and needs. She has a knack for capturing a vision on the first shot. Liz considers constructability when designing, which helps keep the building process smooth and efficient. We have very much enjoyed working with Liz.”
– Jed Malcolm, Salamander Construction, Middlebury, VT
“We’ve known and worked with Liz since early 2003 on various projects. She is a talented designer who combines her artistic sensibility with practical knowledge of how a building goes together. Liz has the ability to solve design challenges efficiently and provides us with drawings that are always clear and concise. She encourages collaboration in the design/build process and understands that the team approach leads to successful relationships and a beautiful finished product. Liz is a true pro. She is dedicated, fun, and always a pleasure to work with.”
– Chris Conner, Conner & Buck Builders, Bristol, VT
“Our builders, Salamander Construction, highly recommended Liz for our project. They said she would put the vision of her clients in the forefront. Liz was able to take our initial ideas and work with us throughout the process to create the home we want to stay in for the majority of our lives. Our house is a solid structure that fits well with the landscape and looks at home in Vermont. On the inside, she incorporated fantastic storage and shelving, and she did an excellent job of creating well-sized rooms and maintaining proportion throughout the house.”
– Sarah and Adam, New Haven, VT
“The relationship between an architect and a builder can sometimes be a tricky one. However, when it works well a project has a far greater potential to be efficcient, affordable and most importantly, spectacular. Our experience working with Liz has been nothing but positive. Our clients have invariably been impressed with her ability to bring her talented eye to their projects while still managing to design within the scope of their budgets and desires. From a builder’s perspective, I have always been impressed with her knowledge and respect for our “nuts and bolts” side of the business and how easy she is to deal with on the practical, day-to-day problem solving that comes with any project. Liz is both a pleasure to work with and a professional who consistently produces beautiful work.”
– Sean Flynn, Silver Maple Construction, LLC, Brandon, VT