Sasen Renovations is excited to be amongst the ranks of our most skilled peers as one of the Ovation Award finalists. We thought we would share some of the story about how this project came to be: Purpose of the project: To turn a tiny spare room that became a haven for junk storage into a usable and magical study land for two sisters. The room is located in the basement of the home and so it was important to make the room cozy and warm in order to make the most use out of it. The Scope of work (redacted): Install custom day bed with one off valence and coffered barrel vaulted canopy Install two custom desks Fabricate and install one hanging barn door Panel and refinish walls Install wall covering and heritage trim Install ornamental additions including pulls, handles, cover plates etc. and theme specific lighting The Key Features of the job: The door: Our past blog post covers this door and how it was created. The door was salvaged from 100% recycled 2X6 Douglas Fir. This came from a renovation project of a colleague on the North Shore. Originally, this wood was part of the framing in a 70 year old home. The material was then hand crafted by Matthew Senf and finished by our designer, Lucy Tartaglia. For a video, visit our blog post How to Reclaim Wood Barn Door. The Walls: The base of the walls are trimmed out with an overheight baseboard and a thin profile, beaded wainscoting topped with a heritage cap rail. All the wood panel and trim have been finished with a three-part antiquing process comprised of base coat, distressed top coat and pigmented glaze finish to give the whole room a patina of well lived in warmth. A heavily patterned and theme specific wall paper makes up the balance of the field of wall topped off by a 4″ roman Ogee crown moulding painted and antiqued to match the millwork. The Desks: These desks, and their accompanying chairs, were rescued from being thrown away. The chairs had some appliqué details added and were recovered to match the day bed. The desks, once appliqué, moulding and routered details were added, were antiqued and finished with the same patina and technique as the wall panelling, trim and millwork. We want to thank Lucy for her hard work on this project and congratulate her as well. Thank you also to all of our subtrades who worked with us on this room to create a masterpiece out of a small space. What do the kids think? “The room is very warm and cozy…it’s fun to do our homework there now and to hang out with our friends.” Mission accomplished! Ovation Awards Finalists Before Image: After Photos of the Cinderella Study:  

Sasen’s community extends far and wide, but in this particular renovation, our community was the St. Timothy’s Anglican church just around the corner. Sasen began this renovation partnering with key members of St. Timothy’s leadership and supported by the members of the church  in order to complete this renovation. The goal of the project was to renovate the kitchen in order to better the food ministry, including the use of the church kitchen by the Food Bank. The rigours of meeting the requirements for a commercial kitchen are certainly, well, rigourous. After many hurdles, we have managed to complete the work. The renovation includes numerous safety measures, and commercial grade kitchen equipment. This space will be suitable for multiple purposes, including the basic tea and coffee and serving food for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, North Burnaby Depot, but will also be available for larger events such as larger dinners, or for as a space for commercial level food preparation.   Throughout this renovation, Peter Reinhardt took on much of the responsibility of managing the work and organizing the trades. Sasen’s community includes a variety of different subtrades, and each renovation takes the cooperation of all trades involved. In this case, we couldn’t have done the work without the help of the church community and are grateful for all the efforts and support of everyone who contributed to the success of the renovation. A ceremony was held marking the official opening of the kitchen. Matthew Senf, Sasen’s principal and priest-in-charge the Rev. Ruth Monette joined in presenting the kitchen to the community. Sasen presented a commemoration signed by our team to remind the church that it was our honour to work on this project. And of course, we enjoyed a cake cutting as well! More on Community: To find out more about the renovation, please jump over and read the article, Investing in a Food Ministry. If you would like to learn more about Sasen’s Community, please take a look at some of our other community involvement. If you or anyone you know might have interested in utilizing St. Timothy’s new kitchen, please contact us and we will put you in touch.

There is a lot of buzz around the Vancouver housing market and often we forget to mention Burnaby housing and Burnaby Renovations.  Burnaby housing is also booming and for good reason! This is Sasen’s neighborhood. We have seen the range of what can be done to personalize a Burnaby home, from modern to Tuscan. What’s so great about Burnaby Renovations? Staying put might be the best plan! Burnaby has great access from street parking to transit Manageable permitting Secondary suites Burnaby’s great views perfect for outdoor renovations Permitting and Access in Burnaby: We have renovated from New Westminster to West Vancouver. Each district has different guidelines for building and renovating. In our experience, the pre-job work for a Burnaby job is relatively easy.  As the City of Vancouver works toward its environmental goals, the process for receiving and complying with building permits has become more demanding. The City of Burnaby in comparison is more manageable. In addition, due to better access to street parking, access to the home for debris removal, demolition and equipment access is easier in many residential neighborhoods in Burnaby. More manageable access and an easier permitting process can save time and money on any renovation job. Secondary Suites and Staying Put: Selling a home can also accrue costs. By the time you’re finished paying capital gains on the values that housing is experiencing now, realtor fees, storage and transport of your belongings and moving expenses, you have what amounts to the cost of a custom kitchen. Selling and re-entering the market can be difficult right now. If you already live in Burnaby, perhaps the best way to move is to renovate. Move up or out, or even just move some walls! There is a lot that can be done with Burnaby homes, and we have done it all: modern renovations with a suite, basement renovations for growing families, Tuscan style renovations and entire gut and renovation. In addition, as of 2014, the City of Burnaby now allows for secondary suites. These suites have specific rules and regulations, however, they allow for an additional rental income. As it becomes more difficult to retire, downsize and get back into the market or break into the market as a first time home buyer, the secondary suite might also be an option for aging family members or adult children to help save costs. Outdoor Space: Burnaby is a great place to take advantage of the B.C. longer outdoor seasons and best bang for your Canadian buck when it comes to landscaping. We have even seen hummingbirds into the winter in Burnaby! An investment in your outdoor space with Burnaby renovations that includes a deck or landscaping allows you to enjoy the mild Vancouver weather for longer. From gardening to BBQs to full outdoor kitchens with pizza ovens, many of the Burnaby neighborhoods have yards large enough to make use of the great outdoor space. Outdoor renovation and upgrade options: Outdoor patio Covered outdoor kitchen Pizza Oven Hot tub Veggie Garden