Chad Boomgaarden, AIA, is the principal of Boomgaarden Architects and has been designing on the North Shore for 23 years.

Why do you love what you do? My passion as an architect comes from a life-long obsession with creating things. From a young age I loved manipulating objects and materials to create something better. Helping my clients reshape their homes to make functional and beautiful spaces is a continuation of that joy I found as a child.

What sets you apart from your competition? Our design aesthetic involves a distinct sense of play, aiming to put the fun in functional. Our designs constantly balance the cost benefit between client lifestyle goals, design, and actual construction.

Trends on the horizon? My current design areas of interest match the current lifestyle trends; natural wood accents, flexible rooms for office or play areas, family rooms blending into outdoor porches, kitchens, or fire pits/patios, along with larger windows and folding doors to these spaces.

Best advice ever given to you? Two things—Use design as a problem-solving tool, as a way of recognizing and forming relationships between ideas and reality, and as a method for improving the connections between people and the spaces they use. Hug my sons daily.

Most looking forward to in 2021? Personally, playing sports with my wife and watching my boys enjoy football and baseball again. Professionally, continuing to assist my friends, neighbors, and clients with their home improvements for their families and generations to come.

Boomgaarden Architects LLC is located at 1315 Central Avenue in Wilmette. For more information, call 847-226-3230, visit boomarch.com, or follow @BoomgaardenArchitects on Instagram.