This home sits in Issaquah near the base of Squak Mountain. The bones were solid—good square footage, a flexible multi-level layout, and tree views on every side. But the floor plan worked against the house. The kitchen was walled off from the living areas. A second family room was anchored by a small brick fireplace that had no connection to the rest of the house. The laundry room occupied a back room on the main floor by the small family room. And the lower level—an open space, mostly unfinished—sat underused. The scope that emerged was a whole-home remodel: gut and reconfigure the kitchen, open the main floor by removing the wall between the living room and main family room, convert the secondary family room into a dedicated media room with its own bathroom, relocate laundry to the upstairs floor by enclosing the upper loft, replace the furnace and air conditioning, rewire the electrical system throughout, and replace windows on multiple elevations. The project also included new flooring, two fully rebuilt bathrooms, a staircase rebuild, comprehensive interior design services, and an EV charger in the garage. This was not a cosmetic refresh. It was a structural reorganization and full systems replacement—the kind of project where the most important work happens behind the walls.
The Brief

Good bones. Wrong layout.

The family that bought this home needed it to function differently at every level. The kitchen needed to connect to the living areas. The family room needed a fireplace worthy of its vaulted ceiling. The lower level needed to earn its square footage. And the laundry—then occupying a dedicated main-floor room—needed to move upstairs where it actually belonged. The systems were aging too. The furnace was replaced with a new high-efficiency unit paired with a three-ton air conditioning system. The electrical panel and all circuits were replaced in a complete rewire. Plumbing was rerouted to support the relocated laundry, the new lower-level bathroom, and the reconfigured kitchen layout. New windows were installed on multiple elevations along with new skylights above the family room. An EV charging station was added in the garage. Interior design services were part of the engagement from the start, coordinating every material selection across the home before a single wall came down.
A structural reorganization and full systems replacement—the kind of project where the most important work happens behind the walls.
The Build

Systems first, surfaces second

Before any finishes were selected, the infrastructure was replaced. The aging furnace was swapped for a new high-efficiency unit sized correctly for the home's heating and cooling load, paired with a new three-ton air conditioning system. A properly sized system heats evenly, runs quietly, and doesn't cycle excessively. The electrical system received a complete rewire: new panel, new circuits throughout, dedicated circuits for kitchen appliances and the HVAC system, and arc-fault and ground-fault protection where current code requires it. Plumbing was rerouted to three new locations—the upper-level laundry room, two main-level bathrooms, and the reconfigured kitchen. With the systems work complete, attention turned to the layout changes. The wall separating the family room and living room was removed, requiring structural support work to carry the load previously handled by a post. The staircase run was straightened. The loft above the dining room was walled off to become the laundry room. The smaller family room was converted into the media room, with its sliding glass door filled in, its brick fireplace removed, and its entrance relocated per the new plan. The original laundry room adjacent to the media room became the new bathroom serving that space.
Technical Highlight

Complete Electrical Rewire

The home received a full electrical rewire during the remodel: new panel, new circuits throughout, and dedicated circuits for kitchen appliances and HVAC. The scope included arc-fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) protection on bedroom circuits and ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) protection on bathroom, kitchen, garage, and outdoor circuits as required by current code. A full rewire is most cost-effective during a whole-home remodel when walls are already open. It ensures the home can safely handle modern electrical demands—from a full kitchen appliance suite to an EV charging station in the garage—for decades to come.
The Details

The Kitchen: A New Center of Gravity

The kitchen was gutted and rebuilt from scratch. Custom cherry cabinets with a clear finish run the perimeter, with dark bar-pull hardware throughout. The perimeter countertops are a dark, polished granite. The island is the standout piece: a large natural stone slab with dramatic movement—grey, cream, and amber veining—with a waterfall edge that carries the stone to the floor on one end. It seats three and anchors the space. The cooktop lives on the perimeter run under a stainless wall hood, with a woven geometric tile accent panel set into the stacked-slate backsplash behind it. The stacked-slate tile runs the full perimeter of the kitchen, tying the material palette to the stone fireplace surround in the adjacent family room. Under-cabinet lighting, a black undermount sink with a matte black faucet, and new windows on three sides complete the kitchen—the tree views alone are worth the window budget.

The Main Family Room: A Fireplace That Commands the Room

The original layout of this room was boring. It was just an open space next to the kitchen. After reconfiguring the kitchen to make it more accessible to this space and removing the wall between this room and the living room, a tall fireplace was installed in the center and now commands the room. The stone surround is flanked by four tall windows—two on each side—framed in warm wood trim. Three skylights sit directly above. The proportions work: a fireplace scaled to the room's full height organizes the furniture and gives the open main floor a clear center. The vaulted ceiling received new recessed lighting on dimmers. The sightline from the dining area through the family room and into the kitchen reads as a single connected space—which is exactly what the original floor plan never allowed.

The Powder Bath: Details in a Small Room

The powder bath was rebuilt entirely. A floating wood apron front with a stone countertop—matching the island material from the kitchen—holds a round glass vessel sink with a wall-mounted matte black faucet. A large round mirror with a woven metal frame and a pair of cylinder pendant lights flank it. Dark textured tile covers the back wall. It's a small room that makes a strong impression.

The Media Room: Earning Its Space

The small family room on the main floor was converted into a dedicated media room. The sliding glass door was filled in and sided over. The brick fireplace was removed and framed closed. A new entrance was cut per the plan. The room was wired for a full surround sound system—floor-standing front speakers, wall-mounted surround speakers, center channel, and subwoofers—with all cabling run to a component cabinet location. Soundproofing was blown into the ceiling joists above and into the walls where framing was open. The result is a proper home theater: dark ceiling, blackout curtains, tiered leather recliner seating, and a speaker system that fills the room. The original laundry room adjacent to the media room was converted into the dedicated bathroom for the space, eliminating the need to go upstairs mid-movie.

The Media Room Bath

The new three-quarter bath serving the media room was plumbed from scratch in the former laundry room. A cherry vanity cabinet with a dark stone countertop and undermount sink sits opposite a glass-enclosed shower with tall vertical tile on the walls and penny tile on the floor. Matte black fixtures throughout. Wood-look tile on the bathroom floor. A blue accent wall. The room is compact but finished to the same standard as the rest of the house.

The Laundry Room: Where It Belongs

Relocating laundry from the main floor to the upper level required running new supply lines, drainpipes, and a vent stack through the second-floor framing. The open loft above the dining room was walled off with a new door, the original skylights and clerestory windows were retained, and the result is one of the most naturally lit laundry rooms imaginable. A white shaker cabinet with a stone countertop and utility sink sits alongside front-load washer and dryer units on pedestals. Vinyl plank flooring throughout. The freed main-floor space was repurposed into the home's new media room bathroom.

The Staircase

The staircase run was straightened as part of the main-floor reconfiguration. New treads in hardwood material were installed to match the main floor, with warm wood newel posts and handrails and black metal balusters in a geometric rectangular pattern. The railing system on both sides of the lower run anchors the entry and gives the staircase a finished, intentional quality it didn't have before.

Flooring

Dark hardwood flooring runs throughout the main level—kitchen, dining area, family room, living room, and entry—tying the open plan together visually. The stair treads match. The media room received carpet to help dampen the sound. The laundry room received wood-looking vinyl and the media room bath received wood-look tile.
The sightline from the dining area through the family room and into the kitchen reads as a single connected space—which is exactly what the original floor plan never allowed.
Four Years Later

Called back to prepare for market

In 2024, the owner was preparing to list the home and called Schock back to address deferred maintenance and make targeted improvements before going to market. The second phase covered deck repairs and new decking on three outdoor areas, siding repairs on multiple elevations, exterior painting, interior painting in the basement and upstairs, new carpet in the bedrooms and bonus room, electrical updates including fixture replacements and smoke detector installations, plumbing finish work in the primary bath, and basement insulation and drywall.
Phase Two Note

The Shower Door That Didn't Need Replacing

One planned item—replacement of the primary bath shower door—turned out to be unnecessary. Careful cleaning removed the limescale buildup, saving the client the replacement cost. The home sold in strong condition.
The Result

Every room, a clear purpose

The kitchen opens to the family room. The family room is anchored by a full-height stone fireplace scaled to the vaulted ceiling. Laundry lives upstairs with the bedrooms. The home has a proper media room with its own bathroom and full surround sound. The staircase is rebuilt. The main floor reads as one connected space. Behind every surface: a complete electrical rewire, a new high-efficiency furnace and air conditioning system, and rerouted plumbing. The material palette—custom cherry cabinets, natural stone countertops, stacked-slate backsplash, cultured stone fireplace surround—was coordinated through comprehensive interior design services from the start. This home didn't need an addition. It needed its existing square footage reorganized so that every room served a clear purpose. That's what this project delivered.