A Neutral Townhouse Condo Shared by a Small Family
Name: Jackie Blair Location: Lake Orion, Michigan Size: 882 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, rented Jackie is a photographer and social media creative who loves to travel. She lives in a townhouse condo with her son and her new puppy. By keeping her condo neutral and simple, she has turned it into a peaceful hangout spot where they can all play and relax. Though living in the rented space comes with its challenges, Jackie strives to add the family’s personality wherever possible.
Apr 30, 2019
Mid-Century Meets Vintage in the Michigan Home of Two Graphic Designers
Name: Meg and Joe plus Lady and Benny (Dachshunds) Location: Royal Oak, Michigan Size: 1,350 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned Embracing the quirks — uneven floors, for instance — of an almost 100-year-old house is a challenge for people in the profession of precision. Like Meg and Joe, who are both graphic designers in the Metro Detroit area.
Apr 30, 2019
A Photographer’s Boho Vintage Mix in Michigan
Name: Tracey Tilley Location: Metro Detroit, Michigan Size: 1,050 square feet Years lived in: 12 years, owned When Tracey is not working as a marketing project manager, she is obsessing over her house’s interior. She prefers furnishings that are old and built to last. She believes in supporting local artists. She really enjoys a good flea-market find. And she has been known to DIY a few things. Not surprisingly, her home in Michigan is a sophisticated mix.
Apr 30, 2019
A Detroit Designer’s “Collected Modern Comfort” Home
Name: Patrick Thompson, his wife Courtney and their son Monty Location: Bloomfield Hills, Michigan Size: 2,400 square feet Years lived in: 2 years Patrick Thompson is an award winning interior designer residing in the suburbs of Detroit with his lovely wife, their energetic three-year-old son and their sweet dog. His design firm, Patrick Thompson Design, specializes in hospitality, commercial and retail spaces. Patrick grew up in a family that celebrated art.
Apr 30, 2019
A New Yorker Transforms an 1890s Michigan House into a Hip, Cozy Home
Name: Diana Marsh Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: 2 months! After living in New York for many years, Diana decided to go back home to Michigan. But that wasn’t the only big life change she made, she also purchased a house, fully renovated it AND opened a store in downtown Ann Arbor. Called Thistle and Bess, Diana’s store offers one-of-a-kind treasures and goods to those seeking a luxurious lifestyle.
Apr 30, 2019
A “Maximalist Thrift” Industrial Michigan Loft
Name: Darren DeWitt and Adrian Ohmer Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan Size: 1,400 square feet Years lived in: 2 1/2 years Darren hasn’t stayed in one home or job for very long in the past 20 years. “I’ve been an instrumentalist, a dancer, a Shakespearean actor, a photographer, a waiter, a concierge, and the Easter Bunny, (a position I one day hope to leverage into a gig as Press Secretary.
Apr 30, 2019
A Quirky, Industrial Modern Apartment in Michigan
Name: Rachael Barlock Location: Metro Detroit — Ferndale, Michigan Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting There’s a duality to Rachael’s life: She’s a water engineer by day, but by night she runs a hand-lettering and paper goods business, Hazel + Dolly. She loves balancing the structured, math and science half of her life with the fun, creative half. And her home is a balanced mix, as well.
Apr 30, 2019
A Midwest Fashion Blogger Buys Her First Home
Name: Andrea Kerbuski and her dog James Location: Lansing, Michigan Size: 2,014 square feet Years lived in: 8 months, owned Andrea avoided home ownership for years, preferring the more flexible, mobile lifestyle of renting apartments. And, she always thought she’d wait until finding a life partner to buy a house. But after a brief stint in Chicago for work, she realized she loved her home state of Michigan and her community, and that she could absolutely buy a house on her own.
Apr 30, 2019
An Eclectic Chic Michigan Bungalow
Name: Danielle, Michael, Enzo, and Ziggy Gutelli Location: Plymouth — Michigan Size: 1,700 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, owned Danielle and Michael were both born and raised in the Midwest (Metro Detroit and St. Louis, respectively) and met in Chicago, where they resided together for 10 years. After their first born, Enzo, came into the world, they decided to make the move to Michigan to be closer to family.
Apr 30, 2019
Two New Yorkers Upsize Into an Industrial Modern Loft in Detroit
Name: Gretchen and Kevin Location: Detroit, Michigan Size: 2,200 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, owned After spending four years in 800 square feet in New York City, Kevin and Gretchen were able to design their dream loft back in their home state of Michigan. They found a space in an old, industrial building in a mixed-use neighborhood that’s lively and vibrant.
Apr 30, 2019
A First-Time Home Buyer’s Colorful Retro Reno
Name: Brandon Bourdganis Location: Ferndale, Michigan Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, owned “My home is a snapshot of my life…I try to incorporate memories from my family, travels, city, state and friends while making it look very personal and uniquely me.
Apr 30, 2019
A Charming, Eclectic Farmhouse in Michigan
Name: Kim and Patrick + daughter Fiona + dog CeCe Location: Brighton, Michigan Size: 2,000 square feet Years lived in: 5 years, owned Built in 1940 — with a mint green exterior and eggplant shutters — Kim and Patrick’s Cape Cod style house is steeped in history. “There has only been one owner prior to us and the land for the home was originally parceled from the lot belonging to the house next door.
Apr 30, 2019
A Serial Entrepreneur’s Recently Renovated Modern Farmhouse
Name: Lisa Palmer, husband Rob and son Quinn Location: Fenton, Michigan (a suburb of Detroit) Size: 5,300 square feet (including basement) Years lived in: 16 years, owned Lisa Palmer is a seeker of all things vintage, lover of nostalgia, and fan of making her home a place where anyone can walk in and feel loved by it. On the professional side, Lisa is a serial entrepreneur (16 years in) who has a knack for developing products and building lifestyle brands such as her most recent Lillybee.
Apr 30, 2019
A Couple Bought This Detroit House…Without Ever Walking Inside!
Name: Courtney, Paul, and (daughter) Redding Location: Corktown — Detroit, Michigan Size: 2,000 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, owned After living in Brooklyn for 10 years, Courtney and Paul relocated to Detroit in 2016 and took a chance on buying a house…without ever walking inside. The couple discovered the property through family: Paul’s cousin moved back to the Motor City a few years before them and found this duplex. Now they all currently live in it!
Apr 30, 2019
An Event Planner’s Modern, Quiet Quonset Hut in Detroit
Name: Haley Lertola Location: True North — Detroit, Michigan Size: 1,100 square feet Years lived in: 1/2 year, renting Haley Lertola owns an event planning and design company, Detroit Cultivated, where she’s “committed to disrupting the Detroit event industry by creating inspired experiences that incorporate sustainable practices. One of the goals of each event is to transport guests to a truly original setting.
Apr 30, 2019
A Couple and Their Cute Pup Share 550 Square Feet in Detroit
Name: Leo + Jordan Miller + Alexander Lynch Location: West Village — Detroit, Michigan Size: 550 square feet Years lived in: 8 months, renting Jordan is an Ohio native who moved to Detroit on a whim in the summer of 2016 because of her love for the state of Michigan, particularly its lakes. Al grew up in a small town in the Upper Peninsula called Norway.
Apr 14, 2019
Black Built-Ins Add Drama in This Renovated 1940s Michigan House
Name: Wes Trammel, Ben Cooper, (Dog) Duffy Location: Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan Size: 1,870 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned An Alabama native and graphic designer, Wes relocated to Detroit three years ago with his fiancé, Ben. Having worked for 16 years as a graphic designer for a national home and lifestyle magazine, Wes has recently turned his attention to home renovation and interiors.
Mar 21, 2019
A Cozy, “Minimalist with Nerdy Flair” Studio Apartment
Name: Vicari Vollmar and Jordan Conley Location: Lansing, Michigan Size: 600 square feet Years lived in: 4 months, renting Vicari is a senior designer for a public policy firm with an affinity for fitness, bold color, and a good gin fizz. She firmly believes in carbohydrates, horoscopes, and the power of love. Jordan is a state contract monitor, CrossFit coach, and bookworm. He enjoys binge-watching a series on Netflix, comic books, and snuggling his calico, Harley.
Feb 19, 2019
A Floral Designer’s Once-Sterile Spec House Is Now Cheery
The nice part about a spec home is you start with a great blank canvas with such potential for personalization.
Sep 19, 2018
Real Life Rental Challenge: A Genius Update For A Bad ’80s Bathroom Light
There’s nothing worse than those builder grade vanity strips in bathrooms, the ones that absolutely scream “HI, I’M CHROME AND WAS SENT FROM THE ’80s TO DATE YOU!!” As a renter your options are limited, but I came up with a smart way to deal with these common eyesores. Instead of swapping it out with a new light fixture, I decided to instead embrace the challenge and work with what I had. I couldn’t paint it, because that was permanent.
Nov 9, 2017
Before and After: A Dark Maroon Living Room’s Bright Awakening
Despite the fact that every room in this house was dark and the living room was a deep, almost-brown maroon color, Andrea (a fashion blogger over at Blonde Bedhead) could see this home’s potential. A bold move, considering this is her first house! “I was your typical millennial, avoiding home ownership for years, choosing the mobile life of apartment rentals.
Sep 12, 2017
Before & After: A Kitchen Goes from Ugh to Unrecognizable
Andrea is a stylish fashion blogger who founded the blog Blonde Bedhead. And though her expertise is in personal style, it’s clear she’s also a master at interior design, too. In fact, she’s recently been able to flex her interior design muscles thanks to her newly purchased first home. Though the house didn’t quite fit her own style when she first saw it in person, she could see the potential. Andrea says upgrading the kitchen was the most expensive project in the house.
Aug 7, 2017
Before & After: A Drab & Dark Kitchen Turned Mint Green Dream
Diana Marsh spent 11 years living in Brooklyn before returning to her home state of Michigan. After purchasing this Ann Arbor house, she set to renovating it. It had “good bones” but was a bit on the small side and a lot on the dark side. As the owner of a brick and mortar store called Thistle and Bess, Diana’s has a keen eye for crafting creative spaces. Her year-long remodel of this house was no different!
Jun 6, 2017