Harold's Renovation Blog: #106: What’s It Really Like To Downsize?

Sure it’s fun to imagine what it would be like to downsize and live in a significantly smaller space, but this week we’re talking to a family of 4 (with a giant dog!) who took the leap and moved from a large builder-grade home to a 1,200 cottage bungalow with just one full bathroom and two bedrooms. Designer Shavonda Gardner shares extremely frank details about the pros & cons – including who in her family resisted it most, what space issues they still struggle with, and what they’ve done to make it work a heckova lot harder. We also talk to her about designing smaller spaces (is lighter paint really the only answer? she says NO!) as well as diversifying your online inspiration sources. Plus we’ve got some exciting news about the upcoming launch of our furniture line, and we find out why most Millennials regret becoming homeowners.

You can download this episode from Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, TuneIn Radio, and Spotify – or listen to it below! Then use this page to check out any links, notes, or photos we referenced. Note: If you’re reading in a feed reader, you may have to click through to the post to see the player.

What’s New

Here are a few sneak peeks of our new furniture line that we’ve been allowed to share so far (you can see a bit more in our Instagram Stories highlights too). Above are a few of the color samples we chose for some of the wood furniture pieces in our collection (each one took us about five tries to land on the perfect color). And below are some of the raw, unfinished pieces as they looked before stain/paint was applied in the warehouse.
Like we said, stay tuned to Instagram this week for more behind the scenes stuff as we travel to photograph the entire collection in North Carolina!

Also, if you want to read about that Millennial homeownership study yourself, here’s a good summary of it on CNBC: Almost 70% of Millennials regret buying their homes. Here’s why.
Or you can check out the original study by Bank of the West

Shavonda Gardner

Be sure to check out Shavonda’s blog, SG Style, and follow her on Instagram @sgardnerstyle.
You can also read the first installment of her new Design*Sponge column called “Celebrating Roots”
Here’s that Domino article she mentioned: You Need To Diversity Your Instagram Feed – Here’s Why, and Shavonda’s own post about the feature.
Below are some photos of her house, including her living room, kitchen, and porch- where she painted the floor pattern herself over a basic concrete slab!

And of course, here’s that laundry room she wallpapered recently and shared on Instagram.

We’re Digging

Those are some screenshots I took of using the new Amazon Part Finder search tool in the Amazon app. Again, it’s not a flawless system, but if you’re totally clueless about what type or size of screw or nail you’re looking at – it’s kind of a fun way to figure it out!
Also, I did confirm (because I know you were wondering) that you CAN use the AR View to see what a waffle iron / waffle maker would look like in your house. Ain’t technology grand?

If you’re looking for something we’ve dug in a past episode, but don’t remember which show notes to click into, here’s a master list of everything we’ve been digging from all of our past episodes.

And lastly, a big thank you to Universal Furniture for sponsoring this episode. You can enter to win $5,000 in new living room furniture at UniversalFurniture.com/YHL now through August 13th. Remember, YHLHAP podcast listeners have won the last two Universal giveaways, so it could be you this time!!!