Follow our grand design journey.

In the spring of 2022, my husband and I purchased a rundown estate in an idyllic corner of the Puget Sound near Seattle. After years of looking and being priced out of many more desirable homes, we finally took a chance on a house with lots of potential in an area we had never been to before.

We now have a home for our four young children and our two home offices. After squeezing into a tiny downtown condo, it is hard to believe we now own this big house on a big lot with a guest house, pool, pool house and tennis court. Unfortunately, we also inherited a big list of problems. The former owners did not take good care of the place and the cost of repairs is astronomical. What have we gotten ourselves into?

Luckily, I am an architect. I have two decades of experience detailing and refining plans for high-end custom homes. I can envision a light-filled and beautiful remodel for our own home with thoughtful details both inside and out. If only it were that simple! The house would-be perfect, if it weren’t for XYZ.

So here we are, aspiring to an ambition, with a lot of frustration. This journey does not have a tidy before and after photo. Instead it is the before and what’s next?

Did I mention the garden? Having never owned a yard before, I did not realize how wonderful that could be. I have fallen in love with trying to tame our blackberry and stinging nettle infested yard. In our first year, I planted 153 plants. I am learning as I go about landscape design and plants.

Wish us luck!