Good Morning my Friends, today I’m sharing something a little different. A group of my blogging friends are getting together today for a Punch Bowl Social about the Blogger. A sort of blog revival if you will. We’ll be sharing a bit about ourselves, in case you never got around to stopping by our ABOUT pages, and why we blog. I hope you’ll enjoy learning a little bit more about me and the lovely ladies below. Be sure to stop by and learn a little more about who they are and what they do.
Viva La Vintage // Maggie Overby Studios // 4th House On the Right // Clarke and Co.
Hello Home Girl // The Home I Create // My Eclectic Nest // Pure Happy Home
If this is your first visit to my blog, I’m Maggie Overby the person behind Maggie Overby Studios. I am originally from New Orleans but have landed in South Carolina. My husband was in the U.S. Army for 27 years and South Carolina was our last stop before he retired in 2018 so here we have stayed.
About Me
I am the second of four girls. In my family, we are in love with décor and home improvement. We all have different styles (although vintage and antiques play a starring role in each of our homes) but we can always bond over a good home tour. New Orleans was a perfect place to grow up, full of art, music, culture, design, lots of great home tours, and lots of great Estate sales.
Growing Up
I grew up in a creative place with a creative family. My dad was very artistic, taking over any school project requiring drawing or sculpting, and was quite the handyman. This worked out great for my Mom who was a redecorating, DIY, and home improvement junkie. She also had her own business selling antiques (collecting started early in our house.) My grandfather was also the creative mind making furniture and woodwork designed to my Mom’s specifications. You can see the creative gene was in my blood.
At seven I started art classes at the insistence of my 2nd-grade teacher who said I drew too much in class. Although this didn’t cut back on my drawing in class it did help me get accepted to the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts at the age of 14. This was a public school kind of like Fame, where I studied Visual Arts 1/2 the day and attended a regular high school the other half. By this time my three sisters and I were using power tools to rebuild our clubhouse more to our liking and doing our own redecorating projects. Through my youth, I was lucky to be surrounded by creative people and given some great opportunities to express myself. By college, I was helping my mom with her antique business and studying Architecture.
Moving On
Just before finishing college, I met the love of my life, Chuck. He happened to be planning a career in the military. While he finished school I graduated from Louisiana State University and started my career in Architecture. We bought our first house and I was hooked on DIY. In 2000 my daughter was born, Chuck returned to active duty, and we made our first military move. Since going back to Architecture full time would be hard with a new baby and in a new location, I decided to go in a different direction. I needed a change that would work with our vagabond lifestyle so I had to get creative. I started sewing for the new house(s) and then for other people, before I knew it I was making pillows, drapes, bedding, slipcovers, etc. for anyone who asked.
As the years passed my business grew and expanded into furniture refinishing, second-hand finds, small upholstery jobs. There were many more home improvement projects at many more houses. From 2009-to 2013 while stationed in Alabama (one of our longest stays in one place) and was able to open a retail shop. I also branched out into doing interior design for others. I loved my little shop and my amazing customers but then came our biggest move to date. In April of 2013, we moved to Germany and a whole new ball game. I had to close my shop but I brought my sewing room and all my creativity with me. So now what?
About the Blog
In August of 2013, I started my blog Maggie Overby Studios from our home in Germany. It was a way to keep in touch with the clientele I had built and also share our big adventure.
Being married to the military has meant eleven moves lots of houses to put my stamp on. I’m now an expert at setting up a house quickly without a high-end budget. I look thru magazines and see the beautiful things that cost loads of money, but who is that realistic for? I also felt I had a distinct point of view to share that people can relate to.
What you’ll find here…
I love a bargain, there are beautiful things out there for a steal if you know where to look. I share where to find things that look (or were) expensive on the cheap. I particularly love the joys of vintage. I hosted #Thriftscorethrusday for years and have found some amazing things that are already beautiful or can be transformed.
Speaking of transformations. I share a lot of those here too. I want to show you how to “do it yourself” without it looking like you did it yourself. I’m pretty good at boiling things down to the simplest process which helps make the project seem a little more realistic for someone new to DIY.
You’ll see pretty quickly that I a huge fan of color, no all-white houses for me thanks. I love layering colors and patterns in interesting ways. I’ll give tips on that too.
But it’s not all budget and DIY here. I also want you to splurge once in a while but when it counts, on something you love.
The Future
Of course, we’ve moved a couple of times since I started the blog and are now residing in our second home in South Carolina. After our move back to the States I went back to work full-time in 2016 designing and project managing kitchen and bath remodel for a construction company, Home Solutions. I did take some time off from blogging as I began to build this new career. I soon realized that kitchens and bathrooms tend to be a lot of greys and I’m a color girl. I’m still all about making my house my home, only this time in the house we plan to stay in for a while. which has given me more freedom to go all out with no concern for a future move.
Just like i thought… you’re amazing. I found your blog when you were featured in Flea Market Decor magazine and adored your style and became an instant fan. Thank you so much for sharing your story and participating in the social hop!
Jamala, You have to be one of my most dedicated followers and always the first to respond to any post. I appreciate all your likes, comments and encouragement.
Love your blog. So many ideas!
Maggie, I love the process of kitchen design and renovation so your job sounds incredible to me. I share your love of finding ways of making home beautiful on a budget.
Thanks Maria, I do enjoy kitchens and bathrooms but colorful design is always my favorite!
Great read Maggie! You have quite the amazing creative life. I can only imagine growing up in NO with the most creative parents & grandparents!
New Orleans is definitely a one of a kind place. I am glad to have had the creative influences that allowed me to be different.
Maggie, you could write a book! What an amazingly creative life you’ve lived. I’ve found your account years ago and always loved your bold style. As someone that also moved a lot, I know how hard it can be to have to temper your design instincts and wants. So I’m super happy for you that you now have opportunity to decorate without having to worry about the next move.
I’m glad you’ve stayed around. I am enjoying being a little more adventurous these days.
Wow what an adventurous life you’ve had Maggie. So many changes over the years but you’ve still held on to your passions and privileged your creative capabilities. How cool must it be to have all your sisters passionate about interiors too .. that must be so much fun
It is fun to get together for a group shop for sure. I wish I still lived close because we often do furniture trades as well when someone gets tired of something.
As a bargain hunter and fan of a flea market or here in Switzerland, the Brocki, I just loved your thrift store Thursday’s! Plus I found you when you were in Germany and could relate to a lot of what you posted as I live close to the German border. You make stylish affordable! ?
I’m jealous! I miss my German thrifting days but I am glad you enjoyed the posts. My daughter is hoping to attend graduate school in Germany so hopefully I’ll get a chance to come back soon for some more shopping.
Visiting from Jamala’s blog and enjoyed peeping into your house in S.C. I lived in S.C. thirteen years before my move to Florida. I also love the colors of your space.
Thank you Neti, I’m glad you stopped by for a visit. I hope you’ll be here often.