Home Services reviews in Powhatan, Virginia

It was more than a pleasure working with Chris! He has a special gift of bringing your vision to life! We are so excited for the final project!

So, when I built my personal pool I was confident I could design and layout my pool, pool surround and walkways to make the best use of my existing back yard. Boy was I wrong! I had everything opposite of what worked well for entertaining and viewshed from the grilling area and kitchen windows. We would easily lay out a pool placement, but we will struggle on how to connect the dots of each individual area (outdoor kitchen, view shed, pool surround etc).

I ended up hiring Chris Johanasen and he nailed it. We only had a couple of tweaks, but I now appreciate the value of the designers in their respectable environments.

Chris was top notch when it came to my design. I gave him a few ideas and he ran with it. I was extremely pleased, and I highly recommend!!

Chris was amazing during the process. We've had issues in the past with the final landscape work not meeting our vision. Having the design in hand has made the process of talking to contractors easier and removes any ambiguity that inevitably happens during those conversations. It ensures we get exactly what we want. Well worth it and would use him again in a heartbeat!

Chris is extremely professional, detailed oriented and passionate about creating outdoor spaces. Our clients are able to save money and time by using his services up front to create a thoroughly planned out 3D outdoor layout that is cohesive and includes everything in their vision. Even if a client plans to create their outdoor space in phases - Chris’s services are key to avoid an outdoor space looking like it was pieced together. Highly recommend his services.

Chris is AMAZING! We had several ideas and Chris listened attentively to ensure that he captured every single one of them. He is responsive and communicated status and other pertinent details effectively throughout the process so we knew what to expect. During our first conversation Chris discussed his desire to bring our vision to life, and ultimately he did just that when he designed the outdoor living space of our dreams!

Chris was incredible to work with! He took all our ideas and translated them into the dream backyard we were looking for! He presented us with an incredible video of the entire project, I was in awe as we “walked” into our perfect outdoor oasis. He responded quickly to email and phone calls and his end product was exactly what we wanted. We can’t recommend him enough!!

Planning and design are critical elements to any project; especially when you are investing in your home and backyard living spaces. Being able to visualize to scale in 3D creates a level of confidence on exactly your expectations from your contracted builder; and investing in this initial design process can save you thousands of dollars in construction corrections down the road. During the design process, Chris listens to your requirements and ideas; then he puts his exceptional design talent at work that brings everything together in ways that far exceeded our expectations. Chris also ensures you are 100% satisfied with the final product regardless of how many modifications may be necessary. Chris has an extraordinary ability and he is highly recommended if you are investing in any outdoor living design project.

We would enthusiastically recommend CreativeScapes. We worked with Chris to develop a pool/patio design. Chris was professional, timely, friendly, and delivered a fantastic design. Chris listened carefully to our wishlist of "features" and developed a design that not only exceeded our initial vision (even as he skillfully navigated some occasional differing visions that my wife and I expressed), but complemented the topography of our yard in a way that maximized features, but, minimized anticipated costs. Engage Chris - you will not be disappointed!

Working with Chris has been very helpful in the formation of pool, pool hardscape, landscaping and lighting plans. He took his time to measure everything out on site, and then provide us with photo renderings along with a fly-over video for both day and night. He was able to make changes for us in real time so that we could make decisions quickly, with accurate data. He also provided us with potential contractors for the project. An outstanding experience.

We recently used Chris Johannsen to build a design for our new house, including patio, deck, paths and gardens, and could not be happier. Chris listened to our initial thoughts and helped guide us to the final design, and it was clear from the beginning that he really knows this business. Using digital tools, he was able to provide a concept in very short time, and made adjustments almost instantly. Chris also incorporated the specific topography of our lot as well as our house plans so we were able to see how the elevation and house placement impacted the design. The 360 panning and overhead views were invaluable, and all concept pictures were posted in one easily accessed folder. And all of this for a reasonable price. When we started, Chris noted that one avoided mistake could easily pay for his fees, and in our case that proved true. He identified something we could have missed in the deck design, and by making a change with the builder we have a much more efficient layout.
Highly recommended.

Chris was amazing to work with from start to finish!

We had a rough idea on what we wanted in redoing our backyard space, but had a hard time coming up with a solution for the pool, pool deck, backyard and raised patio. Chris listened to everything we said and really took the time to understand our needs. He walked us through various options in our backyard and presented us with ideas we never could have dreamed of. He was creative in his solutions, but also stuck to the modern simplicity of our home. Chris was quick to make updates as our ideas evolved, and he provided us the exact plans (day and night!) and video (amazing!) of what our backyard would become.

We are so grateful he was referred to us, and we will undoubtedly refer him to anyone looking for some hardscaping inspiration! I can’t wait to post before and after pictures of our space. Thank you, Chris, for your expertise, patience and thoughtfulness!!

Chris is very responsive, professional and passionate about his work. He delivered high quality images of our space which eliminated the guesswork on our vision and helped us stay within budget. He was referred to us by our GC, Will Hudgins, and together they make a great team. Chris and Will are well worth the investment if you want to transform your space working alongside subject matter experts who are reliable and hardworking! Thanks, Chris! Good work!

Highly Recommend!!! My husband and I bought our home in Powhatan and knew we wanted an island oasis in our backyard. There is zero creativity between the 2 of us! Chris was referred to us and designed everything we wanted and then some! The process is thorough and the pictures and design are top notch! A+!

Chris Johannsen was able to digitally illustrate our vision for a pool design project in an exceptional manner. We had struggled to visualize how a pool, patio, and other backyard hardscape components would work together. After an on site meeting Chris put together a package that made the space come to life. Next was an initial review consultation, and we quickly made some modifications to the plan and received a final product the same day that exceeded expectations. I highly recommend CreativeEscapes if you have an outdoor project you would like to see in finished form prior to commencement of construction. You will not be disappointed.

Working with Chris was nothing short of a dream. We gave him a very rough idea of what we wanted in our backyard and he created a design that made our jaws hit the floor. Chris was so easy to work with and even referred us to industry professionals who could bring our design to life. About 10-months after Chris had delivered our initial design we went back to him asking for some tweaks. He graciously offered to add the updates at a very reasonable rate and his turn around time was super quick. Chris is incredibly talented and we have referred him to many of our neighbors for similar design work. His passion for designing outdoor living spaces is evident in the quality of the product that he delivers. If we ever have another backyard to design, Chris will be our first call.

We were referred to Chris from a friend who had recently used him on an extensive backyard makeover. Initially, we weren't sure if we needed a complete design service for our pool and patio project. After meeting with other companies who offered a basic design we quickly realized what Chris brought to the table was definitely worth it. We would not have been able to come up with a plan this nice without him. He is responsive, listened to our needs and built a gorgeous design. Amazing talent and worth every penny! Thank you Chris, we are so glad we found you. Keep up the great work!

Chris at Creative Escapes was wonderful to work with. He really listens to all your ideas and puts it all together exactly how you'd dream your backyard oasis to be. He's willing to tweak and change anything you're unsure of and offers up great ideas of his own. He'll keep working with you until it's exactly as you'd like. Once the design is final you'll be able to see exactly what it will look like, day and night and from all angles. Don't hesitate to get Chris to help you design your next project!

CREATIVEscapes did a fantastic job designing a new exterior for our home. Chris quickly understood our vision, accurately incorporated all of our proposed design elements, and executed the plan at a high level. He is knowledgeable, creative, responsive, and perhaps most importantly, a nice guy. If you are considering a design/build company for a new project, you should consider without reservation CREATIVEscapes for the design portion. Not only did Chris save us money on the design aspect of the project, but working with an independent design company allows the focus to be on what YOU want, not what the builder can deliver. Highly recommend.

Chris was a pleasure to work with! He listened carefully and thoughtfully to our ideas and gave us feedback with grace. We loved his initial design and we made only minor tweaks to the over-all concept. He’s professional in a down-to-earth way and his expertise shows in his work. We look forward to making his design a reality. Thank you, Chris!

Chris was amazing from start to finish and he listened to everything I wanted and came up with a beautiful design for our outdoor space. A couple bumps happened when going into structural deck stuff but he came back out immediately and came up with a perfect solution and got us right back on track and didn't have to change much of the first design because I loved it so much. Best experience working with Chris! Highly recommend!