Claudia Miller Skylar

Design Principal

Claudia Skylar has been creating residential projects that combine architecture, interior architecture and landscape design for 25 years. She is intensively involved in the programming and space planning phase. Her academic background helps her act as a catalyst for creative approaches by exploring many different paths and options with the client. Her experience in interior detailing assures integration throughout the project, as she shifts her focus from the overall concept to the smallest detail. In addition, Claudia's love of gardening has resulted in the incorporation of the outside into the architecture, while her expertise in cooking has created memorable kitchens.

Education

Master of Architecture
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

B. A. Art History
Wellesley College

James Alan Mastro

Design Principal

James Mastro is an architect and designer who understands construction. He has been designing and building residences for over 35 years. His forte is the integration of sophisticated design concepts with construction means and methods. He is involved in each project from initial concept to interior detailing, insuring that the building has integrity and an inherent logic.

Education

Bachelor of Architecture
Professional Degree
University of Illinois

AWARDS AND EXHIBITS

Silver Medal: Illinois Indiana Masonry Council 1982 for 1959
North Cleveland, Chicago
Innovative Design Award: North Side Real Estate Board 1990
for 1133 West Schubert, Chicago
Grand Prize Kitchen: NKBA and Decorating Remodeling
Magazine 1991 for 1226 West Montana, Chicago
Grand Prize Kitchen: NKBA and Homestyle Magazine 1994 for
1105 West Webster, Chicago
Gardener of the Year: Mayor’s Landscape Awards Program
1998 for 1226 West Montana, Chicago
Grand Prize: Chicago Tribune Garden Contest 1998 for 1226
West Montana, Chicago
Territory Winner: Subzero Kitchen Design Contest 1996-7 for
Segal Kitchen, Glencoe, IL
Territory Winner: Subzero Kitchen Design Contest 1998-9 for
Smithburg Kitchen, Chicago, IL

New Voices New Visions 1983 Archicenter, Chicago
New Chicago Architecture 1983 The Art Institute of Chicago
Trends and Directions 1985 Archicenter, Chicago
Chicago Architecture 1923-1993 1993 The Art Institute of
Chicago
Turn of the Century Home 1994 The Renaissance Society of the
University of Chicago
The Salon Show Richard Himmel Gallery 1994

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

American Homestyle and Gardening
Let’s Go Shopping - September 1999
Before and After - September 1999
Out of the Blue: Brilliant Splashes of Tropical
Color Set a Warm and Playful Tone - Apr 1999
Why I Love My Stove - November 1998
American Homestyle and Gardening
Color, Form+Function: This Renovation Yields a New
Kitchen and Master Bath That Are As Playful As They
Are Sophisticated - Nov 1998
Twice As Nice Best Bath Remodeling - October 1996
Seven Super Powder Rooms - April/May 1996
Back Entry Updated: An Unconventional, Angled Bay
Provides a Personalized Passageway for a Chicago
Rowhouse - Nov/Dec 1995
Color-Coded Kids’ Bath - February/March 1995
Best Remodeled Kitchen - October 1994
Grand Prize Winner - October 1991
American Homestyle Kitchen and Bath Planner
Design Lessons Simplicity Times Two - Spring 2001
Kitchen Help - Winter 2000
Before and After - Spring 2000
Once in a Blue Room - Fall 1999 (Cover)
Knowing Just How Much To Spice It Up - Summer 1999
(Cover)
Into the Blue: Color Cues and a Clever Configuration
- Summer 1999
A Meeting of the Minds - Summer 1997
The Essence of Refinement - Spring 1997
Arts and Crafts Customized - Winter 1995
Designed for a Moveable Feast - Spring 1994
Better Homes and Gardens Kitchen and Bath Ideas
Curtain Call - July/August 2002
Better Homes and Gardens Remodeling Ideas
Do It Yourself Ideas for the Home
Moving Up In Style - Fall 1990
Better Homes and Gardens Building Ideas for Your
New Home
On the Wild Side - Fall 1996
Decorating Remodeling Grand Prize Winner - October 1991
A Matter of Priorities - March 1991
It’s My Room - December 1990
Esquire
Real Estate: Changing Neighborhoods - May 1986
Home Magazine
Long and Narrow April 1996
Renovations to Celebrate December 1991 (Cover)
A World Away. . . Up on the Roof January 1991
Face Value August 1988
From Century Old to Better Than New June 1985 (Cover)
Six Baths Tiled and True August 1983
Inland Architect
Architect as Developer May/June 1991
Residential Design in the Midwest March/April 1985
Little Journeys to the Offices of Architects May/ June 1983
Last Supper for a Style May/June 1982
Metropolitan Home
Baby Boom Architects July 1983
Chicago Tribune
On a Kitchen Mission February 7, 1999
The Victorious Garden September 13, 1998
Divine Ideas September 24, 1995
Water World August 20, 1995
Timeless Prairie September 25, 1994
Seven Chicago Women September 11, 1994
Cabin in the Sky June 10, 1990
25 Little Feet: Architects Wrestle with Narrow City Lots Jan 6, 1990
While They Were At It, A New House Was Born February 5, 1984
This Family Has Joined Forces to Create a Unique Living Cluster July 30, 1982
Books
Interior Architecture Van Nostrand/ Reinhold, New York 1993
Turn of the Century Home The Renaissance Society, Chicago 1995
Great American Kitchens Vol 1 Miller Freeman, New York 1999
Great American Kitchens Vol 2 Miller Freeman, New York 2001
Great American Kitchens Collection Meredith Publishing, Des Moines 2004
Chicago Architecture and Design 1923-1993 The Art Institute of Chicago Munich 1993
Television
HGTV Kitchen Design: Episodes 105, 108, 109 Bath Design: Episodes 103, 104, 107 Filmed Summer 1995, Aired Fall and Winter 1995-6, now reruns
Extreme Homes: Chris and Sara’s Church. Filmed 1997