Hiya!
I am not a formally trained designer. I’m not even an amateurly trained designer. I have watched some home flipping/design shows on HGTV, hyper-analyzed episodes of Fixer Upper, read some articles, and convinced myself I can do design. I. am. a. wannabe.
And honestly, I’m okay with it. I wannabe a designer. I wannabe a woman who has an intention and a vision for the environment that is her home. I wannabe a woman who makes that vision and intention a reality for herself, her family, and her guests. I wannabe a woman who accomplishes that with her limited budget.
I’m sure that a formally trained designer would have nightmares about my methods and probably even some of my design choices. But that’s fine, because nobody has to actually like my ideas except for my husband and I. And, everyone starts out as a wannabe. EVERYONE wants to be something before they are that thing! I know that as I move towards the things I wannabe, I will become something, and maybe, I’ll never become a “proper designer”, but I very likely will become a DIYer. And that’s plenty proper enough for me. 🙂
If I really think about it, I already have some traits that make me a good candidate for DIY. I’m super crafty, and I’m usually able to take raw materials and create the thing I’m envisioning. Over the years of being crafty and creative, I have learned that most of being successfully creative/crafty lies in being able to learn and knowing how to get access to the learning you need. On top of that, I’m stubborn and just arrogant enough to bravely take on projects that are challenging (but do-able with dedication.) I am sufficiently over-confident in the beginning, and too stubborn to quit in the middle, so I usually make it to the end. And, worse comes to worse, I know some people who I can ask for help if/when I get really stuck.
My husband and I recently purchased our first home. (We’ve now been here two years I think… Relatively, still recent.) It’s a precious little blue brick number, with laminate plank flooring, an open concept living/dining room, three bedrooms, tiny closets, and a bunch of “renovations” completed by pros who managed rental properties in Florida. We bought it during the pandemic, between ups and downs in the market, for about $170,000.
During our house shopping season, I was looking for land and good bones. We knew that our modest budget would put us in the bottom tier of caliber of homes. I.e.–we could not afford my bougie standards. Our future home was going to have to need some TLC for us to be able to buy it, but we knew we were/are young and able, so we were good with it.
I welcomed the challenge; I relished it. I am formally trained as an environmental scientist, but I am also ultra-creative. I really could have studied art instead, but I thought the barrier to entry for science was harder to overcome without the college degree. Art was easier to learn on the side.
Since I am passionately creative enough that I really would’ve been happy doing art full time, I was DESPERATE for a good creative outlet to balance the empirical, masculine-energy-ishness of my STEM passions. What better massive creative outlet is there than a whole house? After all, I am a part of the OG Pinterest generation, and I have been working on my “Home” board since before 2015! (see also “unrealistic expectations”, “unattainable dreams”, “deceptively easy-looking DIY”)
SOoooo I immediately had ideas for the little blue house. It had a little kitchen, very rental-house style. The trim, ceiling finish, light fixtures, plumbing fixtures, door fixtures, and cabinet hardware were all basic, good-enough quality. It was the perfect rental house or first home. Which made it the perfect blank canvas.
Walking through the space, I could see a highly functional kitchen island and floor-to-ceiling cabinets with beautiful stone countertops, chandeliers and ceiling fans, stainless steel appliances, textured curtains hung almost to the ceiling, a stone fireplace, moody paint, paneling and warm lighting, and invitation.
I could see guests sitting at my counter gushing about how well they slept over cups of coffee, friends pouring their hearts out in the living room, kids giggling running through the heart of this house, and women gathered for the afternoon to share a little lovely. I could see layers of changes that would make the space a warm, deeply peaceful, lovely space that beckoned inhabitants to take a deep breath, linger, connect, and create.
With a little time and a lot of Pinterest-searching, I developed a home-wide design and room-by-room designs. Since we moved in, we have been nudging the space towards the designs, one project at a time. I’m going to start sharing those projects and designs here, so that my peeps out there who could consume DIY/design content all day every day can follow along as we transform this house.
I’m going to share designs, products I find, how-tos, and pretty much anything that I think someone else might find enjoyable or valuable. As much as I want to become who I want to be and create the home I dream of, I want to help others do the same thing too. If I don’t cover something and you want me to, just say the word and I will cover it.
If this sounds like your vibe, consider joining the mailing list, so you never miss a new post or a new resource. I can’t wait to walk through this journey with you!