catherine weiland
designer + principal, balance design studio
My first career was in tech. I completed my graduate program and was poised to continue my Boston commute and 60+ hour work week.
Then the tech bubble burst right as we started a family. Around this same time, my mother died from cancer. During my last visit with her, she said,
“Remember, a home is meant to be lived in.”
She was referring to my interior decorating obsession that was sure to collide with the chaos of raising kids.
All this felt like a wake up call. Maybe a simpler life would be a better way forward.
We sold our home in the Boston burbs and headed to Maine to renovate worn down properties.
To learn about renovation and design I got a job designing kitchens at a box store.
I ran into a former colleague while at work; I still remember the look on his face as he scanned me in my employee apron.
It was a mixture of bewilderment and pity. That was my introduction to hard work.
I didn’t mind the box store tasks. Cleaning up a spill on aisle seven wasn’t hard work.
Doing anything on aisle seven without dignity was hard work.
I found that I loved designing kitchens, so the renovation plan pivoted into a design career where the lessons in hard work continued.
Being an entrepreneur is like being a homesteader. You. Do. Everything. Not just the cute, fun bits involving baby goats. All of it. Or you don’t make it.
All of this has changed the way I think about home.
My mother was right. A home is meant to be lived in. Beauty matters. But so do comfort and functionality.
I’ve come to see these qualities as part of something larger: the relationship between our home and our wellbeing. A beautiful home can enhance how we feel. A home’s flow can make everyday life a little easier. But a home can also support connection and contentment.
These ideas have culminated into my design philosophy.
