The Great Reset
The absolute best part of the last 15 years has been the relationships that I’ve developed during my career. It’s made things so much more enjoyable. I’ve become extremely close to several of my clients. Heck, I even went on a family trip to Disneyworld with a client (turned friend, turned family) and even have pictures with matching T-shirts to prove it, but we’ll talk about that another time. That was a very Incredibles experience…. Get it?
Throw it back to 2011. I was working for Douglas Cridland Interior Design and met a lovely client. We hit it off instantly. The first meeting ended with a hug and a smile. We did a very extensive renovation of a fabulous home in Calgary. It was one of those experiences where the client placed complete trust in her Designers and let US come up with a concept and execute the plans. After almost a year and a half, the home was complete. I met my new family…erm, I mean the client’s siblings and mother… on move-in day. I remember sitting on the floor in the Living Room opening boxes and unpacking a bunch of new décor. I remember the squeals of excitement when they saw how the space had been dramatically transformed. You could tell they were astonished, and with good reason. If you saw the before, you’d not believe it was the same house.
Anyway, after working together for so long, the client and I became very close and I often found myself sitting at the Kitchen table having dinners or sitting in “my” chair in the Family Room. As an aside, as I write this, I find it hard to even use the word “client” since she became so much more than that. She’s become a very dear friend, and like the sister I always wanted (compared the one I ended up with in real life).
Fast forward 10 years, and here I am sitting at the Kitchen Island, in the same chair where she surprised me with a Sticky Toffee Pudding from Brava (RIP Brava, you will forever be in my heart). After we went for dinner, she made up some flagrantly false story about how she had to run to Shoppers to get tampons while her son and I went for ice cream. Obviously, this is something neither of us would have been interested in participating in, and we never questioned it. After we got back to the house, her son and I were sitting at the island watching YouTube videos and she came around the corner with this toffee gold and a sparkler singing Happy Birthday. I was dumbfounded…such a thoughtful surprise, and a testament to her character. It truly was one of the best evenings!
But, let’s get this back on track.
Fast Forward 10 years, and her son is grown up and off to university, she is working on some new ventures with her husband (he’s equally amazing) outside Calgary and splitting their time between the 2 locations. Suddenly, it’s a lot of home for 2 people. I receive the dreaded message “I think it’s time to sell”. Obviously, I’m excited for her new endeavour but at the same time, I’m devastated. This home truly is my favourite project I’ve worked, even after 10 years (sorry to all my other clients reading this if I told you your home was my favourite, I lied).
This is where it got complicated. She was “stuck” down in Mexico due to the pandemic, so how do you get a house ready for sale when you can’t be there physically to pack, sort and purge. I quickly offered to help, since I knew the home so intimately. She insisted that I stay here while doing the work since the house was empty. It’s not often that you get to come into a space you’ve worked on a decade ago to do a refresh. We got right to work and started organizing, editing, and styling while documenting the shenanigans on Instagram last year. A new tray here, relocate some things from over there, box up some things from here, a few new things over there, a little repair here, a little patch there and voila. We’re ready for market. But then, the unthinkable happens, her son says he’s coming home for the summer, and I get that sheepish request “Can you stay at the house to make sure he doesn’t have any parties?” So, I put on my Uncle Kevin pants (black Lululemon sweats of course), and back I go. Mission accomplished. The home remains intact.
As July approaches and the borders open, my sister from another mister FINALLY makes it back to Calgary with her husband. The house is flawless, super organized (even down to the Pantry shelves), and ready for her to sit back and enjoy… as soon as he figures out where I’ve put everything. We spend a couple of weeks hanging out, since it’s been almost 2 years since we were able to see each other, and I’m pretty much the only one that knows where everything is. Realizing that it’s been almost a month and not wanting to be that houseguest that never leaves, I move back home. A few weeks later, my presence is requested to look after the new family member (the most adorable puppy in the world, named Tortilla). Did I mention when she got back here, she had the most adorable little puppy in the world in tow??? I jump at the chance, of course. I figure walking this adorable little puppy every day is one way to meet my future ex-husband (it didn’t work btw).
I end up back and forth a few times with my new Uncle Kevin duties, picking up doodies, whilst trolling the paths for dudies. Get it?? The time comes where my ride-or-die needs to tend to business south of the border, but the pandemic combined with airline policies have made it impossible to fly little miss Tortilla back to her motherland. What to do! Naturally, I make the offer to take care of the little nugget, until she’s able to fly back. My duties include chasing her around the house, being chased around the house, being licked constantly, making sure she doesn’t jump onto the furniture, and taking her for walkies, and cleaning up doodies. After a month and a half, she’s able to board the plane with me in tow and off we go to Mexico!
While in Mexico, I’m able to take my dear friend out for dinner for her birthday where I say, “Did you ever think 10 years after we met, we’d be sitting here on the beach in Mexico celebrating your birthday??” Funny how things like this happen!
I participate in the Baja 1000, which is a huge race down the Baja Peninsula. Basically, I rode shotgun in a vehicle for a day watching for wildlife (mostly cows). I look over at one of the most fabulous people in the world and say, “Did you ever think 10 years after we met, we’d be sitting on the side of a highway in Mexico eating Tortas at 2am waiting for a broken down vehicle to be fixed?” Funny how things like this happen!
It wasn’t all fun and games down there. I got to experience Tortilla’s first encounter with a cactus, I got to view several of the projects my family was working on, and I got to realize that life down there wouldn’t be so bad!
Ooops, let’s get back on track again!
So, it’s 2022. It’s been exactly one year since I began to reset the house and I’m sitting here in the Kitchen typing away and reflecting. It’s just as much about the relationships that you build as it is the design you create. When you truly get to know someone, you’re able to create that magical experience for them. This house truly is a home. I’ve gotten to experience that first-hand. It’s like walking into a hug, filled with beautiful things that have been enjoyed by beautiful people. This home is truly magical, and I’ve been blessed to experience it firsthand.