Standing Renovation

In 2014, we bought a 1950s house in a nice tree-lined street in a lovely Brussels neighbourhood. It had plenty of space and so much potential, but the more we lived in it, the more we realised how much the previous owners had mistreated it with their DIY renovations. They had painted over the wooden staircase, redone kitchen and bathrooms with dubious choices and low-cost materials, cut the original doors, placed new flooring very poorly, not to mention their neglect for installations such as electricity, heating, and plumbing. In short, the house needed a makeover. We started from the technical side, but after living in the house for a while, we were soon looking for more: changing the kitchen layout to make it more spacious and functional, removing partitions and enlarging doorways to increase the light, redoing the bathrooms, replacing all doors, giving the original staircase and parquet a much-needed renovation. We knew what we wanted, but we were not sure how to make it happen. We shopped around with a few entrepreneurs and architects, we asked quotes to various suppliers, but we were not happy. We dreamt of having one single point of contact, someone who could take care of the whole process, deal with all suppliers, while listening to our needs and ideas, and why not, someone who could also advise us on our furniture and lighting choices. Enter Francesca. From our very first meeting in 2019, it was clear to us that we had found “the one” who could do all of this and more. So we started our renovation journey, carefully going through the options, choosing layouts and materials, getting closer and closer to the start of the renovation until… COVID hit. We had to put our plans on hold, while getting more and more frustrated by the difference between the house we lived in and the house that Francesca had designed for us, which had to stay on paper for two full years. Thankfully, in spring 2022 we were able to start our renovation, moving out for 3 months. From day one, we knew we were in good hands. Francesca and the brilliant entrepreneur she chose worked together to transform our house in what is now a completely different place. Not only it looks different and a hundred times better, it feels different, more “like us”, not only a house, but “home”. None of this would have been possible without Francesca. She was able to capture and improve our vision but also proved to be an excellent project manager, juggling suppliers, deadlines and the inevitable hiccups along the way with aplomb and expertise, as well as a brilliant interior decorator, coming up with a colour palette and a selection of furniture and fixtures that looks stunning. We were super happy to work with Francesca, so much in fact that we are already planning to work together on the next chapter of our renovation journey. Two floors done, one more to go – and we already know it will look great!

I called Francesca for help in upgrading an old and run-down laundry-room and cellar. Before she joined the project, I had low expectations of what we could achieve, due to room lay-out and many practical obstacles in the way. However, thanks to Francesca, the space has been completely transformed into a modern, beautiful and practical laundry and storage area. Francesca had ideas for the renovation that I could never have imagined and worked very closely with our builder to ensure that the works ran smoothly and the plans came to life. In addition to her strong creative/aesthetic skills, she has a very solid knowledge of the architecture and structural functioning of a house, which was invaluable when renovating a room full of pipes, drains and electric sockets. She also saved me so much time (and stress!) by sourcing and ordering the tiles, furniture and fittings for the room herself, while providing me with plenty of options at each step. On top of all this, Francesca has a lovely communication style and a extremely client-oriented approach. I have already recommended Francesca to friends and would highly recommend her for any renovation project.

In 2020 I became an owner of a newly built apartment in Brussels. The only things I had were white walls and a kitchen. As I do not know the local market I felt I needed professional help. Francesca has a good sense of style and provided the whole package - she listened to what I like and offered a few options to choose from. It saved an amazing amount of time and I love the end result. She also took care of delivery, assembly and installation. Instead of talking to every supplier separately and arranging delivery dates and assembly for each item separately I just had 1,5 days when everything was delivered and assembled and installed. She has an amazing crew to do the job and also takes care of any defects. Overall, I am very happy with having chosen Francesca and would recommend her services to anyone creating or renovating their home.

Our Brussels townhouse was rundown, it felt dark and depressing. But with a busy work-family schedule we did not have the time - nor the talent! - to manage the renovation ourselves. Where do you even start? Renovating is hard enough on its own, so many decisions to be made, so much choice - and to renovate in a foreign country just felt completely overwhelming. Enter Francesca. She saw the potential straight away, and visualised ideas for improvements, colours and furniture that came together beautifully, while keeping as many original details of the house as possible. We absolutely love our new classic, bright, warm home. Francesca was an incredible project manager, from start to finish. Making sure everything went according to schedule, attentive to details, and making sure we were informed and involved, while limiting our visits to once a week. For us, that was perfect. The contractors she worked with were honest, hard-working, and solution-oriented. The entire renovation process went incredibly smoothly, despite the inevitable surprises hidden in an old house. I truly cannot recommend Francesca highly enough to anyone feeling overwhelmed at the idea of renovating and not knowing where to start.

Just a short note to say thanks for Francesca 's assistance . Very professional and nice person with helpful advice and with excellent ideas. Her attention to details made our cold house a very warm home with design . She helped us to create our custom wardrobe as well as she had a good taste to choose designer lamps for the kitchen, just to highlight some of her jobs. Communication was always excellent from the beginning, receiving very speedy response to my questions by mails or by phone. She was really on point every step of the project. Would highly recommend Francesca.

Before we decided to embark on our house renovation, our main issue was that we were not living in the country and that our house was rented out. Our tenants sudden departure made things easier and we decided to embark on the project with Standing Renovation. I have lived many years in Belgium and have experienced problems with various smaller renovations that went wrong. I knew after our first meeting that it would be only with Francesca or not at all. Almost two years after my initial email to Francesca, we are now in our newly refurbished house and couldn’t be more satisfied with the level of cooperation and quality of work. This was such a transformation that the house is almost unrecognisable. The only issue we have had is that, once you start opening and changing, you end up wanting to do more. Therefore, we went over budget and decided to do more than planned. Francesca’s team catered to our wishes, changes of plans - and sometimes even going back on the decision making. It really was a big and demanding project. I would recommend Francesca to anyone who wants to be free of fear that something might go wrong. Because even if it does, rest assured that it is not because of Francesca or her team. They are trustworthy and hard-working people, they are considerate and respectful. We visited the site only two times, given the fact that we lived in another country and that the travel restrictions were imposed. Everything was done in agreement with us, we were informed and consulted, advised and listened to. If you are thinking of putting your home in their hands, you will make the best decision! It is well worth it!!!

We wanted to have a more cosy and order living since 5 years, but we were not able to find a satisfying solution. Francesca helped us to find a design meeting our requirements in terms of beauty but also comfort and daily use with young kids, and we could visualize the results before implementing them. We are happy of the results that we also asked her to help us with the bathroom and the wooden floor of the living.

We bought an old town house with a huge potential, which was in dire need of redevelopment. We wanted to bring it to the 21st century with state of the art insulation, electricity as well as design. Today it is a beautiful, light-flooded, warm and cosy home, combining the best of the traditional structure of the house on the one hand with modern facilities, lean design and a floor layout that suits our personal needs and taste on the other. Francesca and her team have respected the nature as well as the character of the house during the renovation and paid a lot of attention to detail when planning and executing the project. Our needs and wants have been taken into account at every stage of the process. Francesca’s team of craftsmen have great expertise, are proactive and very committed. There are two domains where improvements can be made: find a better balance between time management of the works and attention to detail; a more proactive approach when it comes to flagging the impact of clients’ demands on the overall cost structure and timeline of the project, so as to ensure that full transparency is guaranteed all along.

I had two main issues for which I needed the guidance of a professional. I had two bedrooms which needed complete refurbishment and furniture which would be suitable for attic rooms. Francesca planned the renovation of the 2 bedrooms and chose furniture, furnishings and lighting which were right for the size of the rooms. I also needed to replace the flooring in the rest of the apartment as well as finding suitable blinds for the large French window I have in my living room. Francesca was able to find solutions for both and ready to answer my questions. The works were coordinated very well and I am very satisfied with the results.

I think Francesca must be a magician: She never stood in my apartment. And yet from our call, pictures and films of my home sent to her through WhatsApp, she could quickly "feel" my home and myself and gave me few concrete advices, which I then implemented and which showed stunning and more than satisfying results. She made me so happy with her advice and I enjoy that room she changed and my apartment so much more now.

Francesca is the ultimate professional. Not only is her work of the highest quality, she is friendly and consultative. She really understands spaces and colours and also my unique personality as a client and she blends it together to create something really beautiful. Francesca carried out the work remotely and having seen pictures of the space was able to advise on the best colours and options for the lowest cost. The spa was transformed and our clients consistently compliment us on how beautiful the space is now and how welcoming it is. Francesca has an attention to detail and was willing to provide alternatives, for elements that were unavailable. She is patient and attentive and was a joy to work with. I highly recommend her to anyone who wants good quality and phenomenal service

Francesca was great at listening to what we wanted, respecting out ideas and translating it into something we are very happ with.