About Me

Hello there and welcome to Emma Marie Designs! My name is Kimberly, I'm a Georgia girl living in Oklahoma with my handsome husband and 2 sweet girls. I started Emma Marie Designs in January 2013 as a creative outlet for me to share, inspire, and encourage others with the idea that one doesn't have to have a lot of money to have a beautiful home nor does it have to be perfect. You just need creativity, willing hands, and love to build a house into a home.

I first realized my love for my home back in 2008 when I was a brand-new bride living in a 500 sq. foot rental house. Most of what we had was given to us and like most newly-weds, the budget was tight, so I had to learn to use what I had to make it into something beautiful. In 2009, my husband and I moved cross-country to start a ministry in Oklahoma. We bought a fixer-upper house and began making into a place we called "home". It took 5 years for us to remodel our house since we paid for everything along the way in hard-earned, saved up cash.

In Summer of 2013, we bought another house while keeping our 1st house and renting it out. Right now I'm continuing to learn how to be patient for the things I want in my house. It's hard, but so worth it! Since I have budget limitations, it has forced me to think creatively about decorating my home. I have a love for shopping thrift stores, craigslist, and the clearance aisle at Target to find what I'm looking for. I love finding a good deal on something, but only when it's in the budget!

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My home has always been a place where people gather and I want people to feel comfortable in it, to be free to be themselves. I would like my house to be pretty and perfect all the time, but that's not real life. I've got plenty of bare walls, empty spaces, and 80's oak cabinets. But I'm ok with that and I still invite people in on a regular basis! Just like I invite people over for a get-together, I also want to welcome you in. Hopefully, I can inspire and encourage you that you don't have to have a magazine looking home for it to be beautiful, useful, and lovely.

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Here's what you'll find at Emma Marie Designs - A stay at home mom with a preschooler and a baby and a tight budget. A place where simple ideas, projects, crafts, and inspiration abound. A woman who strives to be organized, creative, and to make beauty right where I am.

A few things about me:
1. I have a fine arts degree in Piano Performance, one of the greatest accomplishments I've achieved!
2. I love music, reading, cooking, organizing, and thrift store shopping.
3. I am a list-maker and feel quite lost without a notebook to jot down all my thoughts.
4. I enjoy making my house beautiful through painting, decorating, diy projects, sewing, crafting, cleaning, and organizing.
5. I'm an organizing junkie. I thrive on things in my house being in their proper place.
6. My husband and I both enjoy doing projects around our house and making our house into a home.
7. It's more important to me to be debt-free than to have a house full of pretty things that I owe money on.
8. I strive to maintain a healthy lifestyle through healthy eating, habits, and working out.
9. My favorite place to be is the beach. I love to soak in the sun rays!

Decorating a house is a journey, one where I've learned a lot and made lots of mistakes! No one is perfect and no one house is either. Join me as I share my journey with you. If you like what you've seen so far, don't forget to subscribe so that you won't miss anything.