Houzz interview: Centsational girl (225 comments)

While taking time off from a law career and with two infants in arms, Kate and her husband decided to expand and remodel their home.
The talented couple acted as general contractors through the entire two year process. They managed all aspects of the construction, from designing the floor plan to picking each and every fixture.
"People called us crazy to take on such a project with babies who didn’t sleep through the night", says Kate, "they were right...".
But they did it and the end result is magnificent. I'm very happy to introduce you to Kate, a talented centsational girl,
who refuses to believe quality must always be expensive. She is out there to make her world fabulous, for less, one do-it-yourself project at a time.

Please tell us about your "first meeting" with your house to be

Our first meeting with our home was a meeting with a big pile of dirt. Literally. Eleven years ago, we fell in love with a 1/3 acre plot of dirt in our hometown and decided to build our dream home. Once we closed escrow, we drew up the floorplan on a cocktail napkin. We built the original three bedroom home in 1999 the same year we were married, with plans to add on to the home when we had children. Six years later, when we expanded the family, we also expanded and remodeled the home to a whopping five bedrooms and a granny unit. But in hindsight, I feel it’s a little too big. Dreaming of a big house is one thing. Keeping it clean it is another.

The first step of your remodeling process

The first step is always the planning and budget phase. We submitted our floor plan to an architect friend for formal drawings, then submitted the finished plans to the city. We decided to act as general contractor and had our framing subcontractors all set up to begin, only to find out that our expansion would confict with an easement we were unaware of. We had to scramble to get all of our neighbors to agree to reduce their access easement by two feet. Thankfully, our neighbors were agreeable and we were able to start on time.

The biggest renovation challenge you faced

The biggest challenge we faced was staying on time and within our budget. Our remodel took three times as long to complete, and cost twice as much as we originally planned. There were a ton of hidden costs around every turn. And our subcontractors always had some reason to delay their performance. It was maddening ! Especially since we were renovating through a rainy winter and had a newborn baby at the time.

Your favorite style and colors

I can't narrow style down to one particular favorite, since I appreciate good design in all forms. I love a great beach cottage or a rustic mountain cabin as much as a contemporary cosmopolitan space. You’ll often find me swooning over House Beautiful, Veranda, or Architectural Digest. But quite frankly, I'm more of a Better Homes & Gardens gal. My own home is in Sonoma County in Northern California's Wine Country, where the landscape is surrounded by hills and grapevines. Here, it makes sense to mix our laid back California style with European influences from Provence and Tuscany.

I would describe my personal decorating style as traditional and elegant with French influences, yet I also strive to keep my spaces casual and inviting. I love to use classic forms as a backdrop, but inject a a medley of modern fabrics, trimmings and accessories. This is why I am so attracted to retailers like Ballard Designs. Give me a Louis XIV chair reupholstered with a bold modern fabric and I'm in heaven.

My favorite color? Unable to answer that since I have no favorite. I adore color in all shades, hues, and saturations. I once took an art course all about color and I learned so much. It was immensly educational.

Presently, I use color to convey mood. On the walls, I use softer subdued colors, but choose bold colors and patterns in accessories. Many of our downstairs spaces have warm tones, while the upstairs bedrooms and bathrooms tend to feature cooler colors. I confess I tend to start out with soothing neutrals, but I'm pushing myself to just go bold.
I'll always adore the contrast that comes with creams or whites up against dark moody colors like chocolate brown or smoky gray. Whenever I mix my own colors for walls or furniture revamps, I always add my black tint to the paint. Mixing in a small amount of gray can transform a bad pastel into a sophisticated tasteful tone.

And I always have something reflective, shimmery, or metallic in just about every space. There's nothing like the use of mirrors and metallics to add glamour and bounce light all over a room.

A spot in your house that makes you very happy/proud

My favorite community spot in my home is the courtyard. In the morning, I water the plants and drink my coffee before my busy day begins.

My favorite private area in my home is my personal vanity in my master bath. With its arching tall cabinetry and silver patterned mirror, I am transported to another era, like the one my grandmother lived in. It’s where I sit and do my daily beauty routine. The vanity bench is just big enough for my daughter to sit next to me while I dust powder on her nose.

Your precious accessory/furniture/art

My husband has purchased a few pieces for me that I adore. They all have sentimental value. He bought me an original painting by Ernesto Treccani in Bellagio, Italy six years ago. When the children were born, he purchased a stunning Lladro sculpture of mother and child for me. You'll find both of those in my master bedroom. My absolute favorite accessory is a set of mid century colored champagne glasses that my husband bought me in Manhattan's West Village at store called 'The End of History'. They are yellow cloudy antique glass in the classic bowl shape. We drink champagne out of them on every anniversary.

Your next house project

Oh, I have so many. I still need to finish the other half of my home office by installing and styling built in cabinetry. After the holidays, I want to transform my son room by changing his standard closet into a built in daybed and giving his room a lot of vintage touches. And in the spring, we plan to tile our 400 square foot courtyard with these massive rectangular travertine pieces we found at a local shop.

5 things that houzz readers need to know about you and your blog

My blog is all about my daily adventures in home improvement and do-it-youself projects. I do a lot of revamps with old furniture. You'll find that one day I am refinishing a highboy that I found a thrift store, and the next day I'm talking about styling bookcases. There are so many great DIY blogs out there, I'm just writing my story without taking myself too seriously. I like to share my step by step transformations with lots and lots of pictures. As I say on my blog, I am on a quest for diamond style on a dime, and I'm out to make my world fabulous, for less, one DIY project at a time.

I also happen to live in the Wine Country so I'm often sharing our trips to the local vineyards and shops with readers.

Best tip for the remodeling beginner

Start small. Start experimenting with paint, stain, and installing simple moulding before moving on to a huge project. Don’t take on a huge bathroom or kitchen renovation without first experiencing home improvement on a smaller scale. Once you're ready to tackle a major renovation, it is essential to do hours of research to educate yourself on all of the choices out there, and then have all of those choices fit together in a cohesive way. Keeping an inspiration file is essential. Chosing fixtures, tile, appliances, hardware, trim, and paint colors is daunting on top of hiring a contractor and staying within your budget.

Last but not least: as a houzz friend, you get to choose a giveaway gift to one of the lucky readers that will share their thoughts about your house and interview..

For the giveaway, I’d like to offer the readers a pair of the small London hurricanes from Crate & Barrel. These are so classic and versatile, and will look fabulous on any tabletop through the holidays, and beyond.

Thank you for sharing your gorgeous home Kate!


For your chance to win the a pair of the small London hurricanes , selected by Kate, comment on this interview by Sunday, October 25, at 5pm EST.

email rss twitter facebook