YMK Architecture + Design Studio

12/12/2025

This beautiful family room came together nicely with coordination between the custom cabinetry and our ceiling beams creating symmetry in the room that is balanced, homey, and calming - exactly how you would want your living space to be.

10/27/2025

We regularly work with clients who commission us to design an extensive luxury addition and update to their existing modest home. For these clients the sentimental value of the retaining their home they lived in for decades outweighs the more practical approach of building a completely new home. With hundreds or thousands of design decisions we make throughout the process, we always keep in mind that the addition ultimately needs to merge well with the existing home to create and new whole that is seamless is consistent with one another while at the same time creating something entirely new. This is can be more difficult to accomplish than it sounds. Anyone can slap a basic addition onto a home but it will stick out like a soar thumb! Doing it right, however, is a whole different skill. The results are still in progress but I think we are getting close!

01/28/2025

A tasfully done powder room. Our construction team did not slack even when it came to even the most mundane spaces in this home.

01/26/2025

Removing the walls around this stairwell opened up the entire foyer space. It's simple elegance adds a touch of character to this central circulation point.

06/10/2024

🌟 Exciting News Alert! 🌟

Hey everyone! We've got some fantastic updates to share with you! 🎉 We've just launched our brand new Instagram account, where you can catch all the latest and greatest content from us! 📸✨

If you want to stay in the loop and be part of our awesome community, make sure to give us a follow on Instagram ➡️ YMKarchitecture Don't miss out on the fun! 🚀

https://www.instagram.com/ymkarchitecture/

See you there! 🌟

04/17/2024

Where does the original home end and the addition begin? Not sure? Mission Accomplished!

04/12/2024

Who says you can't match the home addition successfully enough that to the untrained eye the whole home appears unified and one cannot tell where the original home ends and the addition begins?

04/12/2024

It was a pleasure to work with Chicago Masonry Construction for this project.

The Chicago Mitzvah Campaign was developed to provide help and support to patients and seniors from the entire Chicago Jewish community. The center offers services when people need them most, at times of frailty, illness, infirmity and loss. Their programs provide social support, material aid, spiritual counsel, Jewish traditions and observances.

Located on the intersection of a main artery of the West Ridge Chicago neighborhood, the new 13,000 sf. building features a strong corner presence, accented by new E.I.F.S. The modern design reflects the leadership of the organization whose mission is to always seek new ways to serve the community with as much positive impact as possible.

📸 Chicago Mitzvah Campaign Project
📍 Location: 6745 N. California Ave., Chicago
📐 Architect: YMK Architecture + Design Studio

03/23/2023

Client: "I have an old ugly strip mall that I want to convert into a state-of-the-art community center. We want to add a 2nd floor, reface and modernize the entire structure inside and out ... and here's the kicker, you need to design it in a way to allow the construction to be performed above and around an existing storefront tenant's space that will continue to operating their business through the process. We want the building to house a large commercial catering kitchen, a grand airy atrium, elevator, offices, a gym, library, and activity rooms. Can it be done?"

Me: "Hold my beer."

03/20/2023

Another view...

03/08/2023

I like to tell clients, "our practice is well rounded". We design Schools, Community Centers, Office/Corporate Buildings, Synagogues, retail spaces and restaurants yet we are versatile enough to also design the most personal of all, the Single Family Residence. It requires a unique sense of attention to our clients individual needs. It requires us to pay attention to balance, warmth, convenience, accessibility, and a whole slew of important factors.

One frequent request from our clients is to design their homes with an understated elegance that can blend seamlessly into the surrounding neighborhood yet stand proud on the street. This shingle home influenced by a coastal design palate will be sure to do just that. I always like to say, "It's the small details that make all the difference between a basic home and ones that stand above the rest"

01/24/2023

One of our most under-rated strengths is in our ability to reinvent existing structures melding the old with the new in a graceful and seamless fashion. The saying is true, “designing a new building from ground up is far simpler than working around the constraints of an existing building”. Chicago style Georgian architecture is prevalent in many of the city's 77 neighborhoods and can feel uninspired or cookie-cutter. Our task was to transform our client's Georgian residence into something more unique among its neighbors, but grounded in recognizable vernacular.