http://mbjessee.com/news/ en julie@mbjessee.com Copyright 2010 2010-07-27T15:08:03+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/colors-for-a-modern-nursery-in-the-san-francisco-bay-area/ http://mbjessee.com/news/colors-for-a-modern-nursery-in-the-san-francisco-bay-area/#When:15:08:03Z Some friends of mine were recently blessed by the birth of a beautiful baby girl.  They are typical of many parents in the San Francisco Bay Area—hip and modern and they wanted a nursery for the new tot that would reflect that sensibility.  Wanting to avoid the babyish pastels and themes that so often dominate newborn rooms, they hoped to create a space that would grow with the little one while also suiting their tastes.  Here are a few fun ideas for a modern nursery! Blocks of Color Do you have a few pieces of artwork you’d like in the baby’s room?  Perhaps an impossibly tiny pair of hand crocheted booties in a shadowbox or that first ultrasound in a frame?  A professional painter can expertly place a few contrasting squares or rectangles on a wall and place the smaller framed pieces inside.  This will draw attention to the art and make it pop on your wall, adding visual depth and interest to the space.  Also, the use of large shapes in different colors will attract your baby’s eye!  Color Choices Of course, for baby girls, pink is often the go to choice and for boys, naturally, it s blue.  These are great choices!  But to mix it up and put a more contemporary spin on things, try pairing either color with a deep brown shade to accent.  Chestnut brown looks fresh next to both pinks and blues when used as a wall color.  How about a fun and unexpected splash of chocolate-colored polka dots on a pink accent wall?  Or, you might have MB Jessee apply some chocolate stripes on a blue wall.  Another idea is to use deep, rich tones in the cabinetry and furnishings in the room, instead of the more traditional white pieces.  Often existing or built in bookshelves and other cabinetry items can be repurposed for use in a baby’s room.  MB Jessee can provide you with guidance on painting and staining existing cabinetry.  Paint Choices The kind of paint used in a nursery is as important as the colors.  That “yucky paint smell” when someone is painting isn’t just offensive to your nose, it is actually volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, offgassing into the air.  Yuck is right!  We definitely don’t want that in a baby’s room.  Zero VOC paints now come in thousands of colors and are durable and beautiful as well as free of toxins.   Best of all, these “green paints” are now available far and wide and made by trusted manufacturers, like Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams.  A green-certified painter through the San Francisco Bay Area’s own Build It Green, MB Jessee is very well versed in green products and processes.  We’re happy to come out and discuss the benefits of green paints with you! If your family is about to be paid a visit by the stork, congratulations!  These are just a few ideas to get you thinking.  Need more help?  MB Jessee works with several talented interior designers throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and we’re happy to refer one to you.  Give us a ring and let’s get started! Painting Tips 2010-07-27T15:08:03+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/a-hectic-san-francisco-office-a-zen-like-oasis/ http://mbjessee.com/news/a-hectic-san-francisco-office-a-zen-like-oasis/#When:20:59:48Z The scene is a familiar one to nearly anyone in any workplace in the San Francisco Bay Area. Constantly ringing phones, people popping in and out, deliveries, meetings, conference calls, faxes, emails, text messages—the nonstop hum of daily office life can sometimes leave dedicated staff members with a headache! But is that hurry up environment giving us what we want? Effective, efficient and productive workdays? Are we accomplishing our tasks and meeting our deadlines or are we getting so stressed and harried that we are becoming obstacles to ourselves? A few weeks ago at MB Jessee Painting we took a hard look at our own surroundings. We decided it was time for a change! It was time to transform the organizational brainpan of MB Jessee from a buzzing hive into something that while still a dynamic and industrious officespace, was also a calm and serene place to be.  So we got down to it.  Taking a cue from the fog that rolls over the San Francisco Bay on summer mornings, we pulled out our color charts and fan decks and began poring over hues of light grays and cool blues.  The MB Jessee painters, excited to show off their skills right here at home base, weighed in on our color choices.  Being a green-certified painting company, we’re well aware of the health dangers of the toxic VOCs that are still found in many conventional paints. We also knew that our office staff would need to work in the spaces while they were being made over and we wanted to minimize any VOC exposure both during the actual work and in the months and years after.  Naturally, we chose Sherwin Williams Harmony paints. Durable, water based, low odor, zero VOCs and with more than a thousand colors to choose from, Harmony really delivered. For the front MB Jessee office we chose a soothing grayish-blue, Meditative (SW 6227), for the two accent walls.  The rear office received a deeper blue, Loch (SW 6502), for its accent wall. To give a sense of continuity and tie the two rooms together, we went with Repose Gray (SW 7015) for all the other walls throughout.  It is astonishing what a difference new color makes! After the paint dried we added a few accessories to pull it all together—a soothing stone water feature, new welcome mats, and some rosemary and lavender plants. Our transformation is complete. Take a look and let us know your thoughts!   Company News 2010-07-07T20:59:48+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/team-mb-jessee-at-the-san-francisco-aids-walk-2010/ http://mbjessee.com/news/team-mb-jessee-at-the-san-francisco-aids-walk-2010/#When:20:23:11Z How time flies. It is time for us to get out our walking shoes!  For the third consecutive year Team MB Jessee is participating in AIDS Walk San Francisco. On July 18th, 2010 Team MB Jessee will join the the tens of thousands of other walkers in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park for a 10k fundraising walk. The generous donations we gather go to support the critically needed services provided by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and several other organizations that assist the HIV/AIDS community. This year my personal goal is to be a Star Walker, meaning I have pledged to raise a minimum of $1000! I’m hoping you will all help me to meet that goal and to soar way, way beyond it.  Please join Team MB Jessee in making a meaningful difference in the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS by going to www.aidswalk.net/sanfran Just click on “Sponsor a Walker” and enter my name--it is a super quick and easy way to help in the fight against AIDS! Their website is secure and all donations are 100% tax deductible. If you’d prefer to donate by check, please make it out to AIDS Walk San Francisco and send it to MB Jessee Inc 1552 Beach Street Suite G Oakland CA 94608. Thank you for joining us in this important cause! Julie Arcino & Team MB Jessee Community 2010-06-29T20:23:11+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/change-is-in-the-air-for-mb-jessee-painting/ http://mbjessee.com/news/change-is-in-the-air-for-mb-jessee-painting/#When:16:46:40Z Boy, when MB Jessee has good news to share—we just can’t wait! We are super excited to announce that Ricardo de Jesus, long a familiar face around here, has been promoted from foreman to estimator. He joined us in 2006 as an apprentice and from the beginning, we knew he was special. Eager to learn and ambitious from the start, a mere two years later he’d worked his way up to a lead painter position. Then, in early ’09, he became a foreman. We feel his sharp eye for detail and his hands-on painting knowledge will serve him well in his new role. Ricardo is a great guy—funny and smart—and he is well liked by our many clients, contractors and designers. And yeah, the rest of us at MB Jessee like him pretty well too! Ricardo will be along in a little bit to introduce himself. But for now, join us as we welcome Ricardo to his new role. Cheers Ricardo!Cha Company News 2010-06-18T16:46:40+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/mb-jessee-paintingsan-franciscos-residential-high-rise-painters/ http://mbjessee.com/news/mb-jessee-paintingsan-franciscos-residential-high-rise-painters/#When:22:26:06Z At MB Jessee, we know that no two painting projects are alike. Each one unfolds before us differently, with its own unique set of challenges and opportunities. Sometimes it is a particularly rigid time frame for the work to be completed. Or there might be severely restricted hours in which we can perform the work—say, midnight to four am. Other projects involve clients with very specific environmental needs and requests and we must find ways to meet them. Sometimes it is as simple as a client having a favorite foreman or crew—and no one else will do. In truth, that “problem” is more flattering than anything else! And then there are the projects in the residential high rises. Those elegant pillars of steel and glass that seem to rise out of the San Francisco Bay as if by magic. Over the last couple of years, MB Jessee has earned quite a reputation as “the San Francisco high rise painters” due to the many projects we’ve complete in some of the city’s toniest buildings. From the majestic Ritz-Carlton Hotel & Residences to the sleek St. Regis to the luxurious Millennium Towers, we’ve worked in them all! Working in San Francisco’s most exclusive high rises can be a bit tricky. The property management firms/HOAs have very exacting standards for entry and decorum in their buildings and tightly control times of access. The homeowners of these coveted addresses demand the very finest in quality and craftsmanship in all things. The interior designers and general contractors brought in to elegantly transform the units are some of the most talented and creative in the San Francisco Bay Area—indeed, in the country—and have ideas, timelines, and expectations of their own. It takes expert coordination and communication across many levels—from the estimator to the client to the designer to the resource manager to the foreman on site—to keep everyone informed and on the same page through to the completion of the project. This detailed level of customer service is something that MB Jessee is well versed in and expertly delivers. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel & Residences The St. Regis The Clocktower Lofts The Infinity Towers The Four Seasons The Millennium Towers 255 Berry The Garfield To see a list of unique references in these and other San Francisco high rises, give us a call! 415-289-1380 or 510-655-7000 Company News 2010-06-14T22:26:06+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/recent-testimonial-from-designer-showcase/ http://mbjessee.com/news/recent-testimonial-from-designer-showcase/#When:17:47:31Z We recently received a note from one of the designers we worked with for this year's San Francisco Designer Showcase and wanted to share it with you. To learn more about the design firm we partnered with, visit their website: Siol.    Hi Matt, I hope this finds you doing well! I just wanted to thank you again for your assistance with the showcase house. Things are wrapping up and we were happy to receive many write ups; please see some of them below.  http://www.chdresource.com/blog/2010-decorators-showcase-were http://remodelista.com/posts/designer-visit-siol-studios-in-san-francisco http://www.raenovate.com/2010/05/siol-studios-indooroutdoor-play-space.html Attached is also a copy of the program book for your reference. We did lots of talking and hopefully work ends up in your lap. I look forward to working together again as your professionalism and quality have impressed me greatly. Thank you again. Sincerely, Jessica Weigley SIOL A n I n t e g r a l D e s i g n P r a c t i c e __________________________________ 2311 Fillmore Street San Francisco, CA 94115 e: Jessica@siolstudios.com Company News 2010-06-03T17:47:31+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/2010-san-francisco-decorator-showcase-house-mb-jessee-painting/ http://mbjessee.com/news/2010-san-francisco-decorator-showcase-house-mb-jessee-painting/#When:14:55:56Z After a long cold winter, spring has arrived in the San Francisco Bay Area—amidst the still continuing raindrops that is. That must mean it is time for that most glamorous of West Coast interior design events, the San Francisco Decorator Showcase! The annual event is a benefit for San Francisco University High School and pulls in an impressive list of the top interior and landscape designers from the Bay Area and beyond to transform a residence in the city into a spectacular showhouse—oh, and they do it all in about one months’ time. The showhouse is then open throughout the month of May for visitors to experience, as many thousands do! Year after year, the SF Decorator Showcase delivers a feast for the senses that is not to be missed. So when MB Jessee got a call from Siol Studio asking if we’d like to participate in the 2010 SF Decorator Showcase this year with them, we were thrilled! Siol was chosen to do a young child’s playroom. It was a challenge the Siol design team, Jessica Weigley and Kevin Hackett, eagerly embraced. Christening the space “Sacred Play – Childhood Reconsidered” Siol centered this unique interior and exterior space around such weighty themes as sustainability, community, connection to self & nature, and exploration. How on earth did these heady ideas translate into a kid’s room? The exterior space featured a biodynamic garden & a working wind turbine and the interior had a disguised bookcase that revealed a secret room behind it, and that’s just for starters! Naturally, Siol wanted to use environmentally friendly painting products for this space. MB Jessee, green-certified through Build It Green, is extremely well versed in the use of a variety of low and zero VOC paint products and eco-conscious painting & cleanup procedures. MB Jessee was excited to be able to bring their years of green painting and product experience to bear on this exciting project. The final result? A whimsical and inviting space for a child to grow and thrive. There is still time to see the 2010 San Francisco Decorator Showcase house, it is open through Memorial Day.   2010 San Francisco Decorator Showcase House 3450 Washington Street San Francisco, CA  www.decoratorshowcase.org Community 2010-05-27T14:55:56+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/the-finishing-touches-to-project-color-2010-by-mb-jessee-painting/ http://mbjessee.com/news/the-finishing-touches-to-project-color-2010-by-mb-jessee-painting/#When:12:34:56Z The early morning chill was still in the air when the white vans pulled up and lined the block outside the Tenderloin Childcare Center on Leavenworth Street in San Francisco this past Saturday. Nearly twenty people clad in painter’s whites spilled out onto the sidewalk and quickly began unrolling tarps, carrying five gallon buckets of paint, and climbing up scaffolding. MB Jessee Inc, an East Bay painting company, chose the Center as the 2010 recipient of their annual charity event, Project Color.  For Project Color every employee at MB Jessee donates their time and skills for one day to a worthy Bay Area nonprofit in an effort to give back to the community. Benjamin Moore, Mark’s Paint Mart Oakland, and interior designer Toni Berry are also on aboard this ambitious yearly charity endeavor.  In this grim neighborhood, the Center offers a safe haven to learn and grow for the many young children who call the Tenderloin home. MB Jessee chose the Center to receive the $10000 exterior makeover this year because, as foreman Ricardo de Jesus said, “It’s all about the kids!”  The industrious activities of the MB Jessee volunteers did not go unnoticed in the neighborhood. Person after person stopped to peer up at the building and comment on the transformation underway. In an area of the city that is well known for its crime and drugs, everyone still seemed to know and respect that the Center is a place for kids.  When told that the makeover was a gift to the Center and its kids and families, one passerby was so delighted he wanted to shake the hand of every MB Jessee volunteer.  As the bright new purple, gold and green colors went up excited children could be heard shouting “Ooooh look! That’s my school! “as they walked by and waved up at the painters.  By two thirty in the afternoon it was all over.  The painters eyed the walls, columns and windows, searching for any last bit of touch up that might be required. Then the tarps were re-rolled, the paint cans topped and labeled, and the trucks packed up. The volunteers were tired and dirty but clearly proud of their efforts as the smiled for photos and high-fived one another. Standing back to admire the transformation with Tenderloin Childcare Center staff, Matt Jessee, the company president, could be overhead thanking the volunteers for their efforts.  A hard day of work for the MB Jessee volunteers but as Center staffer Amy Coleman put it “what a joy for each of the families when they arrive each day”! Community 2010-05-07T12:34:56+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/mb-jessee-proud-to-be-with-elite-trade-alliance/ http://mbjessee.com/news/mb-jessee-proud-to-be-with-elite-trade-alliance/#When:20:34:22Z As a painter for most of his life and a business owner for 15 years, Matt Jessee of MB Jessee Painting thought there needed to be a convenient resource for homeowners to find reliable tradesmen.  After using his own customer base to conduct focus groups, he developed Elite Trade Alliance - Elite Trade Alliance is an exclusive organization of the best trade contractors in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area.  Membership is granted based on ability to meet and maintain Elite Trade Alliance standards. We asked Dan Pitcock, Owner of Roberts Electric why he wanted to join the alliance: "Many consumer ratings services highlight multiple companies. While that has it’s place, at Roberts Electric we are also interested in aligning ourselves with select companies who have similar values- providing superior customer service, a commitment to long term organizational development, and pride in our craft. We find ourselves being asked who is a good painter, plumber or other tradesperson quite often. It was a natural fit to band together with other top service providers, experts in their field. The Elite Trade Alliance is an exciting opportunity to leverage our many collective years serving the public and  provide a trustworthy one stop service." Elite Trade Alliance is indeed a "one-stop shop" connecting homeowners, designers, architects and builders to the top trades people in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Elite Trade Alliance members are proven professionals who have demonstrated excellence, longevity and ethical business practices.  Each member is active in the community, California licensed and bonded and rated A+ or higher with the Better Business Bureau.  Learn more about member certifications, green practices and the ETA 10% Off promotion here: www.EliteTradeAlliance.com "My ultimate goal is to have the alliance grow huge; a member in every category imaginable.  However, my focus is for the group to remain elite and hold up to customer's confidence.  If that means slow growth, so be it."  - Matt Jessee, President MB Jessee Painting Company News 2010-04-07T20:34:22+00:00 http://mbjessee.com/news/tenderloin-childrens-center-project-color-2010-winner/ http://mbjessee.com/news/tenderloin-childrens-center-project-color-2010-winner/#When:18:14:21Z Drumroll please!!  MB Jessee Painting is proud & excited to announce the winner of Project Color 2010.  After accepting applications from all over the San Francisco Bay Area for months, every MB Jessee employee voted for their pick at our yearly holiday party.  The process was particularly animated this year, with people fervently making their cases for their selections.  But vote we did.  So now, without further delay, the lucky recipient of $10,000 of charity painting work is… the Tenderloin Children’s Center in San Francisco!  This is MB Jessee’s fifth year doing Project Color, our annual painting for charity giveaway, and we couldn’t be more pleased.  A little bit about the 2010 Project Color recipient: TLC is devoted to addressing the emotional and academic needs in a preschool setting for homeless and disadvantaged children in San Francisco.  So we are thrilled that the work MB Jessee will do to paint and beautify the exterior of the TLC building will help it to match the vibrant and caring work being done inside. Project Color 2010 is being planned for mid-April.  Every MB Jessee employee will donate their time and efforts to the work at hand at the Tenderloin Children’s Center.  As it draws closer you can feel the excitement growing around here!  Wanna get involved in this amazing event?  Give us a call in the office, 510-655-7000 or 415-289-1380.  We’d love to have you join us. Community 2010-03-12T18:14:21+00:00