My Story

In the beginning there was…

Well, it all started when I was a kid. My parents were DIY-home-renovators, and they in fact were OBSESSED with starting renovations. I call it an obsession because it was definitely unhealthy. I am not exaggerating when I say my family home was always under renovation. When I say always, I mean ALWAYS. My family and friends can testify to this. Whenever my friends came over they’d ask me questions like “Where did the kitchen go?”, “Why is the ceiling falling off?”, “Why is the staircase missing?!”. It was absolute chaos and totally embarrassing. My parents were really good at starting renovations, but not so good at finishing renovations. I guess starting renovations gave them a dopamine hit like no other. I mean, hey, everyone has their vice, right?

All this to say, my family and I got adjusted to living in a constant state of renovation. Through this experience, I got into Interior Design and also, became mentally distressed from living in a constant state of renovation (but that’s a topic for my therapist). Growing up, instead of watching The Family Channel, I would watch shows on the W Network, including; Divine Design and Colour Confidential. I was so intrigued by anything Interior Design related and realized I naturally had the Interior Design eye. That is when I started to get involved in my family home renovations. You see, my parents loved renovations, but they also had awful taste and bizarre ideas. My mom loved stencilled walls and my father loved chunky wood furniture…together it was an interesting combination.

I started to school them on how to style the home. I started to select the paint colours, flooring, materials, etc. Once they started to listen to me, our house started to shape up nicely. It was through this I started to imagine myself doing this professionally.

Let’s jump ahead a few years…

In my early twenties, I became a bit of a hippy. I began to travel the world (I have been to over 30 countries and counting) and also started to paint as well. I did this while working my first job in the Interior Design field, I worked at a kitchen and bath showroom selling plumbing fixtures and designing custom kitchens and millwork. It was a way for me to get my foot in the door of the Interior Design world, but certainly, it wasn’t fulfilling all my hopes and dreams of becoming a designer. Eventually, I left the 9 to 5 world and started to work as an Interior Design assistant for a few local designers (who since have gone Hollywood). During the same time is when I decided to open my very own design firm, Spaces by Dee in April 2017.

More about me and my other passions…

I’m a multi-passionate person, as I mentioned above, I’m very well-travelled, I absolutely love to experience new atmospheres and cultures. My top 5 destinations would be; Iceland (for the aesthetic), Italy (for the food), Japan (for everything), Jamaica (for the beach) and Costa Rica (for the adventure).

I am also a bit of a health freak, as some would say. I have been into fitness my whole life and I eat a diet that is gluten-free, dairy-free, corn-free… (the list goes on).

Not only that, but I also love to cook and bake, in fact, I share some recipes I’ve created on my blog. Even though my cooking and baking recipes are on the healthier side, they still hit the spot.

Another love of mine is music. No, I cannot sing (well) or play an instrument (even though I took lessons) but I do enjoy many different types of music genres, my favourite being Jazz.

I am a bit obsessed with the 80s and 90s. I love the music, the fashion, the movies. I love it all.

I am also into vintage clothing and furniture. A sprinkle of vintage in any interior is *chef’s kiss* to me.

…and that just about sums up my story and who I am! Thanks for reading.