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When Katie Kurtz purchased the 1900s-era former repair shop on a busy corner of downtown White Bear Lake, she could easily see past the long-vacant structure’s deterioration, garage doors beneath sheetrock, and cars painted on the concrete-block walls. “I had a vision of what I could do with it,” says Kurtz, an Engel & Völkers realtor, and interior designer and principal of Adorned Homes. She purchased and renovated the interior and exterior, and opened a new studio and showroom nearly a year ago.
“The renovation received a lot of attention and positive buzz from the community, as it’s on the corner of a busy, main hub in and out of downtown White Bear Lake,” she says. “The previous building was a major eyesore before we transformed the corner.” Still, married with two small children, Kurtz wasn’t totally convinced she had made the right move creating a brick-and-mortar custom kitchen and bath studio. Then, this year, Adorned Homes won the “Traditional Independent Showroom” category of the Innovative Showroom Awards in the NKBA Design Competition judged at the KBIS (Kitchen & Bath Industry Show) | NKBA opening night event.
“Something told me to keep going, that opening this new studio was good for the business and right for my family,” Kurtz says. The award “is so special and a validation that opening this studio was the right move to make.”
In renovating the building, Kurtz made sure the style of the exterior blended in with existing properties in the area. The interior projects subtle elegance, with a monochromatic look featuring “clean classic lines with modern furnishings,” she explains. Kurtz also likes to include personalized items in her designs, such as the large photograph of her husband’s grandmother enlivening the studio.
The full-service studio, which specializes in kitchen and bath design, includes “everything we need to show our clients how to create a custom space,” including custom cabinetry, Phillip Jeffries wall coverings, bespoke lighting brands, tile, furnishings, and wood flooring.
“I love bringing in unique artwork and furnishings to every client’s home—an aesthetic that’s reflected in the design of the studio,” she adds. And by opening the award-winning Adorned Homes, Kurtz has also transformed her business into a “go-to showroom for interior design and furnishing services in this affluent area of Minnesota,” with expansion happening soon in Naples, Florida.