The secret’s out…we bought a piece of land in Gig Harbor!

It still feels surreal to write this, but it’s true — we bought land in Gig Harbor and are officially building our dream home!

As an interior designer, I’ve always dreamed of designing and building a home from the ground up, but finding the right property wasn’t easy. After years of calling West Seattle home, our family is returning to Gig Harbor — the charming coastal town where Wes and I both grew up. This move is inspired by our love for the community, the beauty of the Puget Sound, and our desire to raise our daughters close to family and friends.

Our 1.5-acre lot in the coveted Cromwell neighborhood, is everything we hoped for: peaceful, private, and surrounded by nature. Over the next year, I’ll be designing a home that blends my signature California coastal-inspired style with the timeless, functional design that Styled Out West is known for and I can not wait to share the process with you!

How it happened…

If you didn’t know, Wes and I both grew up in Gig Harbor — he was born and raised, and I moved there in 6th grade. Most of our family still lives there, but we don’t get to see them nearly as often as we’d like. Back in December, after leaving a family cookie-decorating party with all the girls cousins, I felt an undeniable pull to move back. Driving away from Wes’s aunt’s beautiful home (just minutes from our new property), I turned to Wes and said, “I think it’s time we move back to Gig Harbor.”

From there, the hunt began. The local housing and land inventory was incredibly low, but one rainy Saturday we decided to take a drive and stumbled into a neighborhood with sprawling horse pastures and custom homes. We thought, “What is this place?” After some research, we realized the land had been purchased years earlier and the homes were now valued around $2M+. Umm… excuse me!? At first, it felt like we’d missed our chance — but we weren’t ready to give up.

That’s when Wes — who is basically a detective when it comes to this stuff — started digging deeper. He combed through properties one by one until he found our future lot (on Google Maps, no less): a piece of land with a barn, no house, and an owner who was planning to sell, though it wasn’t on the market yet. Talk about divine timing. We shared our backstory with the owner — how much we wanted to raise our girls in Gig Harbor so they could experience the same kind of childhood we did — and he graciously kept us in the loop. After months of waiting, the property finally hit the market. We made an offer, and it was accepted almost immediately. I truly believe he wanted it to be ours all along.

But wait, there’s more…

Buying land moves fast. We had just 20 days of feasibility — time to run tests, confirm it was build-ready, and make sure it fit our vision. Thankfully, our wonderful agent, Marisa Merritt, connected us with a land feasibility and permitting specialist, which made all the difference.

To our relief, the lot needed minimal prep before building. And with our trusted builder, Matt at Remodel Pros NW, on board and ready to take it on, everything started falling into place. Wes was understandably cautious about the financial commitment and quick turn around, but all signs pointed to “yes!” and last week, we officially closed!

So what’s next?

Construction is a long road — best case, we’ll break ground in Spring 2025 — but the design process is already underway. I’ve sketched our ideal floor plan, started sourcing inspiration, and yes, there’s a Pinterest board I’ve been curating for years (you can view it here). In the meantime, we’ll stay in West Seattle until closer to move-in, when our current home will go on the market (reach out if you or someone you know might be interested!).

We’ve already visited the property a dozen times, met our three wonderful neighbors, and spotted deer on every trip. The peace, privacy, and beauty feel like a dream come true. I can’t wait to watch our girls grow up here — playing outside, exploring the fruit trees, and making the kind of memories that inspired this move in the first place.

This project will be such a labor of love — a home that reflects the elevated-yet-livable style I bring to every client project. And as we settle into Gig Harbor, I’m especially excited to begin helping local families design homes that are not only beautiful, but truly work for real life. You can learn more about our services here.

More to come…stay tuned! And make sure to follow me on Instagram for more real-time updates!