I can't say enough wonderful things about Janice Hanks of Next Level Austin. Next Level Austin specializes in interior (and exterior) design in home and office remodeling and in new construction. My husband and I worked with Janice four years ago with a complete remodel of the 1980s home we bought in central Austin, which had "great bones" but was very dated and needed a total overhaul. (Peach colored padded raw silk walls in the formal dining room, anyone?) Janice was involved in every decision -- from paint colors to flooring (new wood floors, tile and carpet throughout the entire house), lighting, plumbing fixtures, new granite countertops, down to helping me select new cabinet hardware for the entire house. The kitchen was a major part of the project -- walls were moved, an island added, new appliances, new granite countertops, and many other changes. We had a tight timeline since we were still living in our previous house, which we had already sold, and the buyers wanted to move in. We worked with a fabulous contractor and between Janice and our contractor, we got the entire project completed in less than three months. We updated the three bathrooms, but we left the old, small shower and bathtub (which we never used) in the master bathroom. Late last year, we decided that we were ready to do a total remodel of the master bathroom, with the main goal to get rid of the old shower and turn the bathtub space into a large, walk-in shower. We contacted Janice again and worked with her to design the new bathroom (the old bathroom was completely gutted). As with the prior remodel, she thought of wonderful little touches that really made the new bathroom gorgeous; things I would not have thought of. She helped us select the paint and tile and made sure everything pulled together seamlessly. Every time I walk into it, I can't believe how beautifully it turned out! Janice is truly gifted, and her ability to choose colors and textures is phenomenal. She is able to look at a dated house or room and visualize what it *can* look like; something I have a hard time doing. She works with her clients to learn their tastes and style, and she then pulls it all together to create a space that is perfect for the client, whether the client's taste is classic, modern or something in between. I would recommend Janice Hanks and Next Level Austin to anyone who needs assistance with design. Check out the website; there are many gorgeous photos of her work (including some of my kitchen and new bathroom!). read more

Janice Hanks shows up at your door as a classy, highly sought after professional designer, but I am convinced that she wears a superhero costume underneath that business attire! Where do I even start? I have worked with Janice on numerous occasions/homes, from paint colors and staging to "whole house" top to bottom projects. She has been a game changer for my business and my own home. I am a Realtor, and when I bring Janice into a listing, I assist my sellers in selling higher and faster than the other homes in the neighborhood. Anything she touches turns to art, and she has left my clients speechless by her results. On a recent listing, I sat down with an amazing client who said "We hate this house- get us out of here". The home needed a new roof, new paint, and updating everywhere and would be considered a "handyman's special" if we listed- and we had a very small remodel budget. We also needed to sell this home high to get the seller what she needed out. I immediately called Next Level Austin. Janice picked out roof singles, exterior paint, interior paint, staging, door handles, and everything in between. With my listing strategy and Janice's magic, we were able to list high and receive 3 full priced offers immediately. The only hiccup was when the seller fell back in love with her home after she was under contract with a buyer- Janice is that good! I promised her we could use Janice on her new home when she invests in one, and we both got excited. Working with Janice is a blast! I did the same thing at my house. Having the wrong "feel" in your home is frustrating. I called Janice in and did whatever she said. I trust her this much. My home feels like a showcase, and my investment was less than half of what I expected it to be. Janice is the best in her field and works with your budget. Working with her pays itself back twenty fold- I tell my clients when we are focused on their bottom line, we cannot afford NOT to call Janice- and I mean it. read more

Next Level Austin is simply fantastic! I have had the unique pleasure of experiencing many of their projects and clients first hand. Truth be told, I am not easy to impress. I have worked along side many decorators in my career and experienced everything from the best to the worst. The ladies at Next Level truly take their trade to a new level. Project management (which is an area that affects my work) is top NOTCH. The reason I brought this up first, is that despite the overall design elements, project management is the how, why and when everything gets done. They NEVER miss a detail. Communication is excellent and consistent. Now...Design wise, I have been very impressed and many times eager to see the final results. We have seen many older and date homes become transformed into something worthy of a magazine spread, and we have seen other projects that are so intelligently designed, that it's hard to tell something was done...meaning, it was not over the top. I absolutely enjoy working with all of the staff at Next Level and you should feel confident in choosing them for your design and remodel needs. You will never be disappointed. read more

We had a very mixed experience with Next Level Design with our bathroom remodel. On the positive side, the designers had many good ideas with a nice consideration of both practical and aesthetic issues. We also liked the vast majority of their ideas once implemented. Additionally, the designers were very responsive to our requests for assistance and feedback on new ideas and questions. They were also very accommodating to our schedules. On the less positive side, they exceeded their original quote for the cost of the design by nearly three fold. Some of the additional cost was due to unforeseen questions, decisions we made, or issues that came up; however, much of the additional cost could have been avoided had the designers been more organized and detailed in their initial design. For example, Ms. Hanks approached our second meeting with little recollection of the design plans from our first meeting, which her assistant had documented, and we had to remind her of agreed-upon design plans several times after our first meeting. Also, the initial design plan was missing a number of details, such as precise measurements and design components (e.g., materials and paint colors) and this lack of detail necessitated additional meetings. At our first meeting, Ms. Hanks also said that she would use an assistant at our meetings who would cost less than half of the cost of a full designer. In fact, she never used the assistant after our first meeting and always employed a second full designer at all of our meetings, which also increased the cost. Additionally, we were disappointed that the designers were less knowledgeable of the range and cost of vendors in the area. For example, we were stalled on deciding on a countertop for months because Ms. Hanks' vendor required that we purchase a full slab when less than half a slab was all that was needed; and the resulting quote significantly exceeded our budget. On our own, we were, however, able to find a local vendor who would sell us countertop by the square foot. Finally, we were dissatisfied with a small number of design elements and Ms. Hanks was sometimes helpful and sometimes less than helpful in working through these issues. Ms. Hanks has many excellent ideas but we would be hesitant to recommend her services to anyone working within a modest budget. read more

We have owned our home for many years and are fortunate to live in a beautiful part of Dallas. We have undergone three updates and one complete redesign of the house, due to a catastrophic flood. We have hired several of the top interior designers in Dallas/ Highland Park over the past fifteen years and have been generally pleased with their individual efforts. They have all had their individual strengths, but none was a total package. Janice Hanks is THE total package. She has access to all the design markets, regardless of the city. She has superb taste- elegant and classically timeless. We trust her design decisions implicitly. Her attention to detail and her follow through are exact. She has picked our carpets, wall colors, furniture, oriental rugs and drapes, with nary a problem. She has selected our gorgeous new pool tile, after we were overwhelmed with the tedious nature of a pool redesign. She handles all jobs with grace and perfect responsiveness, regardless of size or complexity. Janice has also always worked within budget and an eye towards restraint, when necessary, these past several years. We feel now, that due to Janice's expert touch our home is a stunning, yet immensely soothing nest. Additionally as important, we feel strongly she has given a quantum increase to the resale value of our home. We would recommend her without hesitation. read more

I must admit nothing is perfect, and since there isn't a say 4.5 rating I'll go all the way. If you want an excellent eye for painting - Janice Hancks has that incredible eye. Don't be afraid to let her do her magic. Janice's energy and enthusiasm for her work is contagious, she is a delight! This team of professionals have the ability to encourage you to step outside your comfort zone, at the same time as incorporating what you want in the final design. Judy Daffer has the patience of an angel, getting frustrated from time to time with rules condo living impose, Judy would figure out way to accommodate all the schedules in order to stay on track as best we could. She is also very skilled assisting with design options. We hadn't done a major project like this before; so I would recommend that you know your budget, if it is strict, or has limited flexibility that you let them know up front. read more

I had used Next Level Austin a few years ago with bathroom remodeling in my previous home with great results. Fast forward: different house, several baths to remodel/update. My goal was to make the selections for my contractor myself since I was just doing two "simple" secondary baths and had learned so much from our previous remodels. However, with the contractor slated to start my demo momentarily, I was stuck on tile, countertop and flooring selections. I sent out an SOS call to Next Level Austin and explained my predicament. Janice was able to come by the next day. After viewing the bathrooms and getting a vibe on what the goals for the rooms should be design-wise, she was available to go materials shopping that day! We jumped in the car and within a few hours we had made initial selections. Then when the contractors met to discuss tile layout, Sara, the project manager jumped in. She worked with both of them to help execute Janice's vision, including the selection of grout colors. Sara even did research for me and met me at the granite yard to help select quartz remnants for the countertops so I could have a unique look for each bathroom. They were eager to help with as much or as little as I needed. Truly saved my sanity and I am convinced that the bathrooms "pop" and have a "designed" look that I would not have been able to pull off on my own. read more

I cant say enough about Next Level Austin. I looked at many interior designers when we moved to Austin. I instantly fell in love with Janice, Dana, and her team. They were very professional and I felt like she immediately captured the vision of what I wanted. Janice was able to give me many options on how to keep the cost down without sacrificing the quality I was looking for. Another thing that really helped me was that she was able to bring the items to my house and I was able to see what it would look like in my house before I even purchased the item. I originally hired her to design my living room. I loved the finished look so much that we went on to redesign my dinning room, my kitchen, my entryway, my staircase, and we are currently working on the flooring in my master bedroom, stairs, and upstairs landing. I love working with Janice and Dana. I feel like they know how to design with class and sophistication. I plan on using Next Level Austin for years to come. read more