GREENFIELD — Long-time renters Allison and Michael Spear were thrilled to be first-time homeowners. They closed on their new home — an older house within walking distance of shopping and the Pennsy Trail — on March 23, while much of the state and country around them were closing down for COVID-19.
The couple agreed that they’d waited far too long to reach their goal of owning a home, and they refused to be deterred. They realized they couldn’t really go out and shop for the furniture they needed because so many businesses were shut down, and people were being discouraged from going out.
“We were kind of thrown into DIYing (do-it-yourself-ing) pretty much everything we could,” Spear said, “and it quickly turned into my new favorite hobby.”
Between DIY websites and YouTube videos, the Spears tackled the issues of home ownership. They taught themselves plumbing and landscaping tricks. They painted, and they built the furniture they needed.
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The Spears wanted a bar in their dining room. They built what they wanted and attached some overhead lighting. Then, naturally, they wanted barstools. They watched some YouTube videos and built barstools that perfectly matched the bar.
“We had never built anything before,” Spear said. “It worked out better because I don’t think we would have found a perfect matching set.”
The Spears built a long narrow table for their entry way, and with the scrap wood, they constructed a countertop to install in the laundry room as a folding station.
“It was definitely a different experience than what I thought our first house would be,” Spear said, “but we basically came in with nothing, and now our home is so cozy.”
According to Google’s fall statistics, home improvement projects were up 50 percent from the same time period the previous year. With COVID turning society into homebodies, people have begun looking around at their living quarters. It’s as if they’ve realized they’re going to be spending quite a bit more time at home, so why not improve their surroundings?
Abigail and Brian Hatfield, both employed by Anthem, found themselves working at home. They’d been talking about doing some redecorating for a while and decided there was no time like the present to transform their front room into a library.
“It had a wall of mirrors from the early ‘80s,” Hatfield said. “We wanted to get rid of that.”
The couple designed the room around a custom-made book case/entertainment center/storage unit from Pottery Barn and a big picture window at the end of the room.
“We’re on a cul-de-sac, and it’s really nice to sit down in there,” Brian Hatfield said. “No TV. My wife wants it that way. No sound, no noise.”
Brian’s wife Abigail was in charge of selecting the ‘comfort color’ for repainting the room. The color she opted for was a fitting “repose gray.”
Kami Goodwin’s home improvement project consisted of purging. She and her husband Adam live in a house that was owned by his grandparents. Following the example of Marie Kondo (author of “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up”), she began sorting through drawers and closets and getting rid of things.
“I like to make my bed every day,” Goodwin said. “It makes me feel organized and better about my space.”
Marie Kondo guides her followers to ask: Does it bring you joy? When was the last time you really used it?
Goodwin got rid of old car seats and toys, and her husband is at work straightening out the garage.
“Your mental health is affected,” Goodwin admitted. “You feel better when that pile is gone. A cleansing of clutter.”
Many of us will have a story to tell the grandkids about how we spent our time during the pandemic.
The Spears know they have a story for the rest of their lives.
“This is our first house,” Allison Spear said. “That will be our story. Find the good in everything. This was our good.”
