From First Meeting to Final Proposal: How I Design a Home That Grows With You
When I first meet a new design client, my goal is simple: understand how you live now—and how you’re becoming. Great interior design isn’t just about pretty spaces. It’s about creating a home that feels grounded, functional, timeless, and able to evolve with your life.
For every project, I start with two anchors:
The space itself and the people who live in it.
I lean toward soft, natural earth-tone colors and nature-inspired design because those are the spaces you don’t get tired of. They feel calm. They age beautifully. And most importantly, they grow with you.
Starting With the Space + Your Lifestyle
Every design proposal begins with understanding:
How you live day to day
How your family is growing
What feels stressful in your current space
What feels joyful
For this project, my clients were moving from a small city apartment into a 3,000+ square foot home as they grow and expand their family. That’s a huge lifestyle shift. More rooms means more opportunity—but also more decisions, more furniture, and more chances to feel overwhelmed.
So we focused on:
Flow from room to room
Family-friendly functionality
Storage that works hard
Materials that feel warm, natural, and timeless
Step One: Mood Boards to Find Your Comfort Zone
Before we ever talk about furniture or finishes, I create mood boards. This is where we explore:
Color palettes
Textures
Woods and metals
Soft vs. bold contrasts
This helps me understand what colors you’re comfortable living with long-term. From there, I begin layering:
Wall paneling for depth
Rugs layered over carpet for texture
Sanding and re-staining original hardwood to a soft, natural oak tone
The goal is always the same: create a home that feels grounded, not trendy—and one that evolves with you instead of needing constant updates.
Kitchen Design: Upgrading Without Expanding
The clients didn’t want to expand the kitchen—but they wanted it completely upgraded.
So we focused on smart design choices:
Alder wood cabinets on the lower cabinets
Cream upper cabinets to keep the kitchen feeling light and large
A curved marble backsplash so the space didn’t feel boxy
A farmhouse sink for function and visual softness
A larger pantry cabinet that hides the microwave
Storage designed around how they actually cook and live
This kind of kitchen design is about balance: beauty, function, and flow.
Refreshing the Wet Bar for Entertaining
Since this family loves hosting, we refreshed the wet bar with:
Updated finishes
Better storage
A layout that supports entertaining
It’s those smaller spaces that make a house feel intentional and complete.
Talking Budget: One of the Most Important Steps
I always ask for a budget range. And sometimes clients aren’t ready to give one.
When that happens, I build proposals with:
Low-range options
Mid-range options
High-end investment pieces
For both furnishings and finishes.
This lets clients see:
Where their money is going
What makes the biggest impact
Where they want to invest vs. save
Design should feel empowering, not stressful.
The Design Proposal: From Vision to Choices
In this project proposal, the clients received:
Mood boards
Finish options
Furniture selections
Lighting ideas
Material samples
They could see every piece they were choosing from. Then we slowly narrowed it down—based on what felt right, what fit their lifestyle, and what fit their budget.
This is where the magic happens:
When vision becomes real.
My Design Philosophy
I design homes that are:
Soft and natural
Inspired by nature
Built for real life
Timeless, not trendy
Able to grow with your family
Your home should make you feel grounded. It should support your daily life. And it should feel like you—just elevated.
