Life Is In the Details

The women in my family tend to live well into their 90’s. In fact, my mother intended to live forever. Imagine my surprise when my brother called in the wee hours of January 3rd to report that mama was in the hospital and wasn’t going to make it. I was heartbroken.

A pulmonary embolism took her from us that night. What it didn’t take, however, was the love she gave to me. I could spend hours writing about how her love helped shape the person I am today, but what I want to recognize here is her love for houses.

Some of my earliest memories involve watching mama tackle home improvement projects. She and my dad flipped houses together in Ohio for many years. I spent many hours watching her transform crappy homes into places that felt good to new buyers, and playing a tiny part in that process impacted the design philosophy I have today.

I remember one project in particular that fascinated me when I was about 6 years old. Mama was wallpapering a large walk-in closet in the living room of a flipped home. The paper was an off-white background with a variety of antique cars in a random pattern, and she spent tons of time carefully matching the seam patterns. I recall being challenged by the amount of patience she displayed while hanging the paper. “Mama, why are you putting wallpaper in the closet when the people won’t even see it?”, I asked her. “Detail“, she replied. “Life is in the details. People won’t expect to see a nicely decorated closet, but they’ll sure remember it after they leave, won’t they?”.

Most 6 year-olds wouldn’t process that information well, but I remembered mama’s explanation vividly. The quest for detail inspired me as a design student when I was doing theoretical work. It inspired me when I was designing my own living space. Most importantly, it inspires me daily when I’m working with clients. Mama’s inspiration impacts every part of my designs, and my clients live better in their homes because of it. Thanks, mama.