About the Company

Design Philosophy: "We design the home our clients want to build, not the home we want them to build"

Building someone’s own special “castle” is an intensely personal journey, and the company has a profound respect for the process. The firm’s consultants meet with each client and delve deeply into their lifestyle, needs, dreams, and desires. Ideas from these brainstorming sessions evolve into home designs that are livable and functional.

By conservative estimate, three or more families move into a new Garrell Associates home design every day – across the country and beyond. Nearly a decade and a half of designing has yielded a portfolio of over 3000 home plans. To date, this prolific output has garnered the firm more than 200 professional awards, with numerous Street of Dreams® honors in 1999, 2001, 2005, and 2006. One rustic yet elegant design for a show home in Big Canoe, Georgia featured truss work made from 200 year-old virgin pine logs reclaimed from a river bottom, and a kitchen with oiled, natural slate countertops. In 2006, this “Tranquility” show home earned the firm the prestigious “Best in American Living Award” (BALA) from Professional Builder magazine. While the considerable industry recognition has been enormously gratifying for the firm, both Mike and Jim agree that their true reward comes from knowing that thousands of people enjoy an unparalleled quality of life with their families living in the homes they have created.

The firm cares about each client and becomes a faithful steward of their dreams, keeping loyal clients coming back. That caring extends to their community as well. Over the years, the firm has donated design work for structures owned by the Chattahoochee Nature Center, Wildlife Federation, the Paul Anderson Youth Home and HomeAid Atlanta. For the latter’s 2006 annual benefit, Project Playhouse, the firm generously designed two showcase playhouses modeled after the original Fayette County Courthouse and the St. Simons Lighthouse. This public event raised much-needed funds for Atlanta’s homeless. Jim and Mike firmly believe in protecting the environment and the future of our children. The firm is always happy to donate to these worthy causes.

About the Home Designer

Mike and Jim both studied architecture at Southern Technical Institute at the same time and both worked for builders during school. In the 1980s, they honed their skills working in construction-related energy initiatives as well as for local architects and builders. In 1985, their paths finally converged. Mike was a designer for a national homebuilder, while Jim was designing custom homes for an Atlanta architect. Given the parallel paths their lives had taken up until that point, it was hardly surprising when they realized their shared passion for something bigger: redefining the “American home.” When Mike launched the firm in 1993, he invited Jim to join him as partner.

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