House of Hipsters

House of Hipsters Interior design blogger sharing daily doses of home decor, corners of my home, style tips, and inspiring you to do it yourself.

Is it possible for a corner to have too much shazam? Might have to ditch the melted disco ball to tone it down. It’s fee...
08/24/2026

Is it possible for a corner to have too much shazam? Might have to ditch the melted disco ball to tone it down. It’s feeling a bit aggressive but had to share it immediately. I saw this lamp last May at Dial M For Modern and haven’t been able to get it outta my mind. I DMd Tim last week in a total Hail Mary thinking there’s no way he’d still have it…but guess what?!?! He did! So do you like it on the fireplace? In lampapolooza by the records? Or another place?

Instagram had already decided white kitchens were “out” when I designed mine in 2019. I did it anyway.The old kitchen ha...
08/17/2026

Instagram had already decided white kitchens were “out” when I designed mine in 2019. I did it anyway.

The old kitchen had been given the classic pre-sale flip treatment: bad tile, pitted granite and a dated island. Lipstick. Pig.

I didn’t gut the room. We kept the cabinetry. We didn’t move the plumbing. Instead, I put the money where I thought it would make the biggest impact: the stone.

Eight slabs later, the island became my shazam showstopper.

And that’s really why I still love this kitchen almost seven years later. I never asked every part of it to be interesting. The white cabinets are allowed to disappear. The island gets to be the drama.

A white kitchen wasn’t suddenly ugly because it stopped trending. It just stopped being new.

Those are two very different things.

Trends are information. They are not instructions.

And yes, I really did drive six hours for the antique pantry door. Obviously.

08/14/2026

A little progress report on my childhood home aka Devi-Bara. The goal is to transform it into a yacht rock fever dream. On the to-do list: strip the remaining paint off the brick (just thinking about it crushes my soul), paint the walls (white of course), hang the art, install wood paneling, and dream up something kitschy for “The Bunker” 🖤

You asked where I buy my lamps and lighting, well, strap in for Episode 3 of “WHERE THE HELL DID YOU FIND THAT?” Apparen...
08/13/2026

You asked where I buy my lamps and lighting, well, strap in for Episode 3 of “WHERE THE HELL DID YOU FIND THAT?” Apparently I’ve spent the last decade quietly building an electrical freak show. Like art, this will be a multi-parter.

I’m not gatekeeping the sources, but fair warning: a lot of these are vintage, rare, one-of-a-kind, or things I stumbled across after years of looking. This is not a “comment LAMP and I’ll DM you 17 affiliate links” situation. 😂

Slide 1: The cream lamp is Kelly Wearstler for Visual Comfort & Co.. I won it in a raffle at Design Influencers Conference and the gasp I gusped when they called my name.

Slide 2: My 1975 George Kovacs umbrella lamp came from Carefully Picked. The original cloth shades on these bad boys rarely survived, so it lives on a smart switch because I’m afraid to breathe on it wrong…also why the shade is wonky. The globe chandelier was purchased from West Elm but sadly they discontinued.

Slide 3: The giant wall sconce is from and was my One Room Challenge showstopper. The glowing polyurethane light sculpture on the floor came from Jon D Marquis and created by Kyle Joseph. Subtle? Never heard of her.

Slide 4: My Rudi Stern for George Kovacs “Let There Be Neon” lamp was a FB Marketplace find that sat in my vintage shop. Nobody bought it and this diva donated it back to herself. The George Kovacs lollipop lamp was also found on FB Marketplace.

Slide 5: Welcome to the Lampapalooza corner. The Flare floor lamp is from Hudson Valley Lighting, the globe lamp was a vintage-shop-window brake-slamming situation, and yes, there are even more lamps lurking in the background because the limit does not exist.

Slide 6: The hanging lamp is from and I got absolutely seduced by the pleats that rope cord. The Artemide orb on the floor was an estate sale find, and I spend every evening telling my son and dog not to destroy it while they conduct a WWE match six inches away.

Slide 7: And this is the view of the Rudi Stern pink neon light from outside when someone forgets to turn it off. Nothing says tasteful suburban home quite like Amityville Horror murder-window chic.

CONTINUE IN COMMENTS…

There is freedom in realizing that “not for everyone” is not an insult.Every time I post Be Confident in Your Own Bad Ta...
08/09/2026

There is freedom in realizing that “not for everyone” is not an insult.

Every time I post Be Confident in Your Own Bad Taste, someone kindly tells me:

“But your taste isn’t bad!”

And I appreciate the compliment, but that is not really the point. Someone, somewhere thinks my taste is bad. Someone thinks the rooms are too bold.

💬 Too retro.
💬 Too colorful.
💬 Too cluttered.
💬 Too weird.
💬 Too glam.
💬 Too much.

Some of my vintage decor gives weird kid from camp energy.
I am 💯 comfortable with that.

Taste is personal. A traditional-design lover may never understand the giant face on the wall (it startled my neighbor when he first saw it), the “Barbie boob” chair, the naked-lady corner, or why there appears to be an animal lurking in every room.

A follower recently told me her oldest sister always makes negative comments about her art.

Her response? “That tells me my choices are exactly right.”

I loved that comment!

Not because we should decorate our homes purely to irritate our relatives, although sometimes when the opportunity presents itself…well… 😂

Seriously though, someone else’s discomfort is not a veto. Their reaction is information. It is not instruction to change.

Your home does not have to appeal to every visitor, editor, neighbor, sibling, or stranger on the internet. It should reveal something about the person who lives there.

Your history.
Your humor.
Your obsessions.
Your memories.
Your strange little version of beautiful.

Universal approval is not the goal.

Your home does not need to be loved by all. It needs to be unmistakably yours.

So, be confident in your own “bad” taste 🖤 I mean that in the kindest, most loving way.

So, what is the piece in your home that receives the most side-eye? Inquiring minds want to know.

Most people don’t miss out on special pieces because they don’t love them. They miss out because they can’t immediately ...
08/03/2026

Most people don’t miss out on special pieces because they don’t love them. They miss out because they can’t immediately justify them. Buying furniture and decor is different than a new sweater or pair of jeans.

I first saw this giant linen phonograph sculpture at High Point Market and fell hard.

And I wasn’t the only one. Designers loved it. People stopped to stare at it. Everyone agreed it was incredible, but no one bought it.

The day I finally broke down and claimed it, the vultures started circling. Suddenly, the piece no one could justify had an audience. (Isn’t that how it always goes?)

That day I went full feral raccoon: Back off. I found the treasure first. The SOLD sticker couldn’t be slapped on that bad boy fast enough.

Here’s the thing. I try my best to have a specific place in mind when I purchase something new for the house, but every once in a while, a rare gem comes along, and it’s a must-have.

I think we’ve been trained to believe every purchase needs an immediate plan. It has to match. It has to fit perfectly. It has to make sense.

But some of the best pieces in a home begin with nothing more logical than, “I cannot stop thinking about it.”

Those are often the pieces that give a room its personality. The thing people remember.

So when someone asks me, “Where are you going to put that?” and I don’t have the answer, my response will always be, “Don’t worry. I’ll figure it out.”

Sometimes the right piece shows up before the right place does. Don’t miss out on that something special. Buy the treasure. Trust that the room will catch up.

What is the most impractical thing you bought simply because you loved it?

07/29/2026

I like to weird people “in” as much as I like to weird people “out.” For some, my decor energy can give that weird kid from camp energy. So if you visit my house and this is the conversation, I know we will immediately become best friends and play the equivalent of an “I Spy” book for hours.

A major magazine once passed on featuring my home because it was “too edgy.”I translated that into:Tone it down.Make it ...
07/28/2026

A major magazine once passed on featuring my home because it was “too edgy.”

I translated that into:

Tone it down.
Make it prettier. Make it safer.
Make it look more like the homes they already publish.

I spent years trying to fit into rooms, jobs, clothes, friend groups, and versions of myself that were easier for others to approve of.

I wasn’t happy, so I stopped doing that.

Bring on the crazy wallpaper, weird art, naked lady portraits, strange chairs, and the flea-market animals.

All the things people called “too much.”

Too much was not a mistake. It was the point.

I was not passed over because I lacked a point of view. I was passed over because I had one.

There is freedom in realizing that “not for everyone” is not the same as “wrong.”

I am no longer decorating for a hypothetical editor, resale value, future buyers, or the woman in the comments who desperately needs every room to calm down.

Not everyone will get it.

Be confident in your own bad taste.

What did someone try to talk you out of that you still love? Tell me in the comments. Did you do it anyways? If not, do you regret it?

PART 2 - Part 1 of “Where I Buy My Art” apparently opened a tiny door into my erratic art ho brain, so I’m making it off...
07/28/2026

PART 2 - Part 1 of “Where I Buy My Art” apparently opened a tiny door into my erratic art ho brain, so I’m making it official with “WHERE THE HELL DID YOU FIND THAT?”

This new House of Hipsters series is devoted to the art, furniture, lighting, and assorted strange objects in my home that make people stop, scrunch up their noses, and ask me a lot of questions.

We’re officially kicking it off with Art in My Home, Part 2. Swipe for the sources, the stories, and several purchases made with absolutely no idea where they would eventually live. Measuring first has never been a meaningful part of my creative process. I’m sure it’s helpful, but I was never big on math.

New Instagram trick: the caption changes with every slide, so keep an eye down here as you swipe.

I tagged the artists, vintage dealers, and professional enablers wherever I could. Most of these pieces are one of a kind, but that does not mean you cannot hunt down something with the same strange little soul.

Which piece would have made you stop in your tracks?

Next episode: Lamps & Lighting

I find most of my art at flea markets and estate sales. This is a random portrait (probably from someone’s funeral) and I instantly fell in love with it. Found at Randolph Street Market

Sculpture is still art, so I’m including this Edna Cataldo ram bench that I purchased from Rivich Auction House. You can find them at Rivich Auction- Chicago’s Premier Auction House on LiveAuctioneers

This tiny Peter Keil abstract portrait with purchased on EVERYTHING BUT THE HOUSE and the tiny floral plaster relief piece above it is by Ron Nicole (RONNITA NICOLE). Swipe for a closer look. Also peep the nail head…it’s all about the details.

Close up of Peter Keil abstract portrait purchased at EVERYTHING BUT THE HOUSE and floral relief plaster art by Ron Nicole.

Okay, starting from right to left: portrait of woman on a beach was gifted to me from my good friend Kelly. He’s Zovietfrance02. The watercolor of the woman wearing the visor was found at Randolph Street Market as was the abstract portrait behind it…a vendor I only know as Walter (IYKYK). The dapper man sitting with his dog (peep the bone in his mouth - dog, not man) was purchased at Elkhorn Antique Flea Market

The extra large fancy lady

Everyone has judged something in my home.At one point or another, someone has told me:💬 That’s too colorful.💬 That’s too...
07/27/2026

Everyone has judged something in my home.

At one point or another, someone has told me:

💬 That’s too colorful.
💬 That’s too weird.
💬 That’s too much.
💬 That’s impractical.
💬 You’ll regret it.
💬 Nobody else would do that.

For a long time, I thought having great taste meant everyone would agree.

That everyone would like me.

When I was younger, I was the alternative punk rock kid with the shaved head and black leather jacket.

Then I got older and tried my damnedest to be “normal.”

I joined a sorority.
I joined the cheered squad.
I spent years trying to fit into rooms that were never built for me.

The funny thing is…

The more I tried to be universally liked, the less recognizable I became to myself.

Now?

I’ve found freedom.

I’ve realized great taste has nothing to do with consensus.

Great taste is creating a home filled with things that make you feel something.

Pieces that make you smile.

Pieces that tell your story.

Pieces that remind you who you are.

If it doesn’t do one of those things…

…it doesn’t belong.

I’m done decorating for imaginary critics.

I’m done trying to make everyone comfortable.

I’m going back to the girl with the shaved head who didn’t ask for permission to be herself.

Be confident in your own “bad” taste.

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