Name: Kimberly Blair and Penelope the cat Location: Ferndale, Michigan, a suburb just outside of Detroit a few blocks north of 8 Mile (cue the Eminem song) Type of home: House Size: 830 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned
Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: I’m used to apartment living where you don’t even make eye contact with your neighbors. Since moving here, everyone is in it together and the community is strong (pre and current pandemic). I’m originally from Chicago and moved to Michigan five years ago for a job. I’m asked daily “why did you move to Michigan from Chicago?” since most people (especially in their 20s and 30s) are making the move to a big city, not from it. Turns out Detroit is (was—currently on pandemic pause) doing some amazing things and seeing the people that are turning this city into the heartbeat of real true culture it once was is truly amazing. Although I don’t live in the city proper, I feel the beat of this city growing and its people care about you if you care about them.
This small bungalow-style house was in the perfect small city that I have been wanting to live in since I moved here years ago. It’s full of weird hipsters, young families, true hippies, and people that like good food and drink (so many yummy restaurants/breweries are walking distance from my front door). Well, as you can guess I fell in love with this newly flipped nugget house that had a large front porch and no emergency updates needed. Paying a bit over market value (by like $1k) was worth not needing to do any true reno or DIY. Let’s get real, I like to make things pretty without breaking a sweat. The cute curved archway with brick facade made the space feel unique and just right. I went against my mother’s wise words of buying a house with two bathrooms and a garage for this two bedroom, one bath, no garage house. Welcome home.
What is your favorite room and why? My dining room is my favorite decorated space; I spend most my time sitting on my couch lovingly staring through my cute arch at this favorite space. I knew I needed a dining space in my home and this was a non-negotiable when house hunting (unlike the bathroom and garage mumbo-jumbo). It has the brick side of my arch and the lower half of the walls has a great “wood” paneling vibe (don’t worry, it was painted a muted gray by the flippers so no one would be scared off by this detail). It has a large window overlooking the front porch and all the people walking by. The upper half of the walls is now a deep rich ocean abyss (by Behr) and is dripping with art. The best gallery wall in the house hangs on these dining room walls.
Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Eclectic, bold, funky, exciting always.
What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? A new chair for my living space (OK, I have an obsession with chairs—I have maybe eight dining room chairs for a household of one). It’s the Horseradish color and goes with my turmeric/teal color palette throughout the house. Looks like it’s currently on sale!
Any advice for creating a home you love? I’ve had many friends ask me to help them decorate their space. I’ve used my unsung talent to help people move a couch and art to get a better flow or shop for funky accent pieces they would never normally pick out to make a generic space more authentic. My biggest advice to those who want to step into the cozy feel that my house tends to give off is to be yourself. So many times people search Pinterest/insta/wherever and see something they want to replicate. It’s really not about that. It’s about finding something you just have to see everyday and then building around that piece (could be art, a table, chairs, a rug, a lamp, etc). Also I’m not trying to make someone replicate my weirdness, no no you can’t be me, but be you and don’t worry if nothing matches because that’s the point!
This submission’s responses were edited for length and clarity.
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