Elin worked with us to design and totally renovate our kitchen and dining room in 2022. We were looking for a creative, energizing space that would add some color and drama to our little ranch home while acknowledging its mid-century roots, and Elin absolutely delivered.
Her selections for fixtures and finishes are bold, bright, and interesting while still thoughtfully accounting for our day-to-day needs/lifestyle and dovetailing neatly into the overall look of the home. Elin’s sense of style and taste is ~exactly~ what we needed.
Genevieve W.
Elin is nothing short of genius. She is so “tuned in,” insightful, and, unfailingly right. We asked Elin to “do our whole house” and everything was perfect: color, pattern, light, proportion, flow, furniture, fixtures, function, and feel. We now have a house we love to be in every minute. Elin is a master of design, exceptionally well educated, trained and experienced, and perpetually learning to keep ahead of the design game.
And there’s more: Elin is a wonderful person; she’s kind, considerate and a joy to work with. To top it all off, she’s also got left-brain mastery: she’s efficient, attentive to detail (and budget), and uses a very convenient software to “show us what she has in mind,” to order, bill, and track everything and every dollar. Simply said, Elin is both a consummate artist and engineer.
Johnathan Z.
Elin has such a clean eye and attention for detail! I’ve used Exactly for both my home and business, and Elin takes a project that feels good (on my own) to, ‘wow, I’m proud’! It’s really easy to get a project ‘almost right’- but Elin makes the project complete and perfect. She nails every last detail- from the right shade of paint, to where to hand a painting, to textures, to accents. Elin is the master of details (which is what makes a project good to great). When Elin takes over, it’s never cluttered and it’s never sparse. It’s never loud yet never dull.
Along with being talented and skilled in design, Elin also delivers on customer service. She’s fast, responsive, and she listens. She’s simply a pleasure to work with and she delivers on price, product, and service. She will always be my ‘go to’ design expert for all future renovations and projects. Ann Arbor is lucky to have her!
Heather D.
Elin had us at the Eames quote on her website—but that was just the beginning of an amazing journey with her, redesigning nearly our entire house, inside and out. Elin treated every room as something special, coming up with brilliant and unexpected designs at every turn. And even though each room was unique, it all seems to flow together effortlessly.
Elin was a joy to work with, patient and cheerful, and gave us confidence to do bold things we never would have imagined two years ago. If you have the opportunity to work with her on any project, small or large, do it. She is gifted. Together you will transform one little corner of the world for family and friends to enjoy for a long time to come.
Rick and Amparo L.
Elin is a rare find in this region if you are looking for a decorator that understands the Modern/ Contemporary or Mid-Century Modern look. Elin’s help was invaluable during our home building process. She is flexible and easy to work with and always made herself available, even on very short notice.
Most importantly, she listened to our wishes for our home, often navigating between differing opinions between my husband & myself. The end result was a home that reflects the essence of who we are. We are very pleased and will continue to work with Elin as future projects arise!
Naheed C.
We had never renovated a house before and Elin was an incredible help to us. She quickly learned what was important for us and guided us to make style decisions that both fit our needs and wants and kept the integrity of our mid-century home.
Elin is an excellent communicator and her passion for her work is inspiring. She helped us feel confident about our choices and to stay focused on each phase of the design and renovation. I can’t recommend Elin enough!
Ingrid C.
Elin [Exactly] was extraordinary to work with. We live in a split-level house built in 1951. We were struggling to make the spaces work for us. We knew we wanted to knock down a wall to merge the dining room with the kitchen for a more expansive kitchen. Elin quickly helped us determine an order to our remodeling project, design the adjacent spaces and guide us in the layout and design of the kitchen.
We could have never done this without her help. Her spacial sensibility and eye for details—colors, patterns, texture—made this room the focal point of the home. She worked within our budget and made the project fun (and easy)! We strongly recommend Exactly.!
Jennifer C.
I’ve been working with Elin for almost 5 years now. She is my “go-to” designer for anything and everything. I love that Elin will take the entire job off your hands or give you bits of advice on anything you are trying to accomplish on your own.
Over the years she designed our new kitchen and great room, helped us pick all new interior and exterior doors, exterior storm windows and paint colors, and design our new front porch/walkway and back deck. She’s also given us advice on landscaping, a new built-in for our living room, textiles, lighting, fixtures, furniture, appliances, etc. The list goes on and on!
When I needed to make a decision in a pinch on these jobs she was available for advice in a heartbeat. From the smallest detail to the larger vision she’ll have it covered. We’ve gotten multiple compliments on all of Elin’s work. I’ve still got more to do and will be calling on Elin in the future for sure. She is a dream to work with, has the highest business integrity, and a fabulous aesthetic. Don’t think twice, hire her!
Jennifer S.
We reached out to Elin for help choosing paint colors and furnishing four rooms in our new home. We have strong opinions about likes and dislikes, but were intimidated about putting it all together cohesively. And we knew we wanted something clean and sophisticated, but didn’t really know where to shop for that look. Elin helped us with all of this and so, so much more.
A few areas are especially notable. Elin is incredibly versatile and knowledgeable, from vintage to new/custom, big furniture pieces to small details, lighting to artwork, high-end to budget-friendly. It’s what allows her to make each project unique and special while also carrying elements of her signature aesthetic. And it’s also what allows her to work so well with very different kinds of clients.
The process is also amazing. We were looking for someone to bounce ideas off of and talk through options, and Elin was great at walking us through each suggestion. Her entire system—pinning options and having us comment, putting together mood boards to see it all together, compiling spreadsheets of orders, and providing detailed bills—was incredibly organized and efficient for designer and client alike.
Elin is also great at intangibles. If she sees something that can be made better, she says something and even jumps in to move furniture around. In our case, she completely changed the way we had planned to arrange our living room furniture—and the results are significantly more pleasing to the eye and a much more efficient use of space.
It should go without saying at this point of the review, but we would recommend Elin with no hesitation. We are thrilled with the results, and in fact, are thinking about new projects for Elin to help us with in the future!
Jeremy and Allie L.
We engaged Elin Walters (EXACTLY) to advise us on the design of our kitchen for a home we purchased in Ann Arbor. We came at this project with virtually no knowledge/experience in design, construction, or concept development. The home is a small ranch with a dated floor plan but “potential.” We downsized from a larger family home for our retirement.
Elin listened carefully to our barebones ideas and helped us with major changes in layout, design, furniture, lighting, and color selections. She worked closely with our local contractor and found ways to deal with annoying stuff like installing “floating shelves” and matching stain colors for floors and cabinets. The results are glorious. We’ve received many compliments from friends and family on our new kitchen.
Elin is a true professional with a down-to-earth, practical approach. She researched various options and presented clear choices throughout our project. She is well-organized, communicative, knowledgeable, and diligent. We believe her fees are fair and well worth the investment. She saved us time, money, and headaches during our remodeling effort. We would strongly recommend her for design work!
Jim H.
Elin has impeccable taste and the utmost professionalism. Although her personal style is modern, chic, and clean, she is incredibly versatile and open-minded, able to translate clients’ desires and visions, whatever their style preference, into coherent, fabulous design. I trust her integrity absolutely and I have greatly appreciated her sensibilities, balancing cost and design so it makes practical common sense for whatever budget, small or large, without compromising quality or aesthetic.
A designer like Elin, in whom design sense, personal ethic, and common sense are all outstanding, is a treasure! Additionally, the people she brings in to complete the work—whether it’s the tile specialist, plumber, or handyman—have all been similarly professional, honest, and performed exceptional work.
Suzanne C.
Working with Elin, of Exactly Designs, on some recent projects in our home has been a pleasure. Her design sense, fun personality, and ability to listen and guide make the process enjoyable. Her fees are quite reasonable. We worked on two separate projects. After living in our home for eight years, it was time to see the tile go in our kitchen, something we never liked from day one!
Elin considered the general design aesthetic of the space and helped narrow options and guided us as we decided on the final choice. It was fairly complicated as we were looking to find an option that would work with all other existing materials in the space. Once installed, it was obvious that it was the perfect choice.
Our second project was focused on decor for our newly built screened-in porch. Our direction is that we wanted something “bright and fun” while still fitting in with the aesthetic of the rest of our home which we consider contemporary yet natural. We ended up with the perfect blend of mid-century modern with some more “earthy” pieces such as concrete end tables and a reclaimed wood dining table. We’re so excited!
David M.
I moved into a mid-century modern home with a lot more space than I’d been used to. It was in great condition but just needed a jump start with new color and furniture.
Mid-century modern is one of Elin’s passions and it shows in her work! She helped me get to decisions I felt confident about quickly and I’m loving the results. She’ll be the first person I call when it’s time for the next round of work!
Jody P.
I worked with Elin on the interior of my new home. She assisted with the selection of paint colors, furnishing, placement of furniture, hanging of artwork, and finding other professionals in the area. She was delightful to work with—creative, responsive, punctual, and good-natured.
I appreciated that she was able to help me to clarify my preferences while offering guidance about what would and would not work for my space and budget. I recommend Elin for your interior design projects! I love my new space.
Elizabeth A.
Elin did an excellent job decorating our home. She miraculously turned our craftsman-style home into a contemporary family retreat while honoring its mission roots. She picked a fabulous color palette that allowed us to keep the current paint while still brightening and warming the space.
The function of the spaces was greatly improved, and we now live in our entire home with centralized areas to relax, play and work together. If your house doesn’t feel like home, call Elin immediately!
Valerie B.
Elin has great style and was able to provide really creative solutions for some of the artwork and pieces I already have, as well as recommend color palettes and furniture layouts. Highly recommended!
Jennifer H.
Exactly helped me restore a 60’s vintage rocking chair that was handed down in the family and was in sad, sad shape. The job involved finding the right material from Denmark, generating choices, and walking through a lot of what if’s… it was great to have the help and professional resources, and Elin was always upbeat and didn’t mind changing directions!
Scott H.
Although Elin has a very discerning eye, there was never a moment where I felt judged for my ideas. She was like water, seamlessly connecting my ideas with her own and creating a space that feels both dynamic and inviting. I love my new studio and so do my clients.
Gabe B.
We have been working with Elin for the last year on various projects to decorate our house. She has been fantastic and easy to work with. She really listens and understands our aesthetic and has helped us put together our home piece by piece. We plan to continue working with her over the next year!
Priyanka G.
We are gutting our kitchen and had drawn up new plans, but thought maybe we should get a second opinion before ordering any of the cabinets or appliances. We are SO GLAD we did.
Elin from Exactly Designs came in to consult and suggested a layout change to open up the space and give things a more modern look.
Elin was also amazing in her suggestions for use of space throughout the whole house and design savvy—we are in the Lansing area were so excited to find someone with such a great MCM design sense nearby (willing to travel from Ann Arbor).
Some people debate whether it’s worth it to pay someone to come in just to give an opinion. It is little extra cost, but in the end, it’s priceless. Rather than regretting a certain layout down the road, it can be helpful having someone experienced come in to look at things differently, save us from making a mistake, and also confirm the things we’re already doing that should work well.
We are looking forward to working with Elin again for any of our future home design needs.
Melissa and Kyle K.
It was great working with Elin! She was able to incorporate existing furniture for our project, while adding lots of new design elements that really elevated the space. It was a true collaboration, and even a year later we still remark on how great everything looks.
Deryl S.
