Liz Kamarul has developed quite a following for her effortlessly cool combination of thrift store finds, local and artisan home goods and clever DIY. Starting out as a home stager and stylist, she’s built her reputation by way of her first home, a sweet little bungalow in North Portland and then she took it on the road traveling the country with her husband for in a 1982 Winnebago. They recently landed in New Orleans, which they now call home.
We sat down with Liz for View From Here, to talk about her new found home in NOLA, how she’s embracing her new city, her rule of thumb with decorating, and of course, her favorite view in the house.
Tell us about yourself. When did your love for interiors and beautiful vintage pieces first begin? And why do you think you have such knack for it?
I’ve been obsessed with interiors as long as I can remember and really started to get into thrifting when I was in college and had my first very own space to decorate. I love finding and having unique pieces that no one else has in their home, but in their own quiet way tell stories of the homes they were in prior to mine. As far as I’m concerned, the golden rule when it comes to design is to nevermind what’s trendy, because it’s your take that will ultimately make a totally unique and desirable space.
Tell us the story about your New Orleans home…or because it’s a new home, the story you’d like it to tell someday
Our home in New Orleans is everything we wanted it to be. Old, tall ceilings, charm and character, a balcony and fireplaces (although they don’t work...baby steps). We hope that the story it tells will be for friends and family who, like us, feel like they are immersed in the history of New Orleans - and can imagine all the remarkable people that have passed through and all that as a place it’s been through. For us, that will have been a story well told.
Laura Ingalls Wilder once said, “Home is the nicest word there is”. We tend to agree. Describe your home in three words.
Unique, Warm, Comfortable
How did you come to find your place? What’s the story behind it?
We moved from Portland, by way of a 5-month road trip driving a 1982 Winnebago across the country looking for the right place to settle. Plus, it gave us more quality time together and experience a more interesting life in the day-to-day. Win-win. Immediately upon arriving here we fell head over heels in love with everything this city has to offer and with zero hesitation found a place quickly to call home.
Has moving from Portland to NOLA changed your style/approach to how you’ve designed your space?
It’s hasn’t, it’s still all about using paint to transform, paint is one of the biggest and best thing you can do for the least amount of money. Also, I made my BW curtains a focal point to draw the eye up to the tall ceilings and thrift finds to set the home apart.
Do you find you are overwhelmed with space given the time in the Winnie?
Not at all! This home is just the right size and my husband, Tim, is so happy to finally have an office!
How would you describe the style of your home? Do you go overboard with all the gems that you find thrifting? (I do!).
It’s eclectic. I’ve tried to limit what I bring into the home to only items we really love so each piece is special. But yes, of course, it’s easy to get carried away. I put what doesn’t make it in my home in storage.
What room or space do you spend the most time in and why?
I spend the most time in our living room because of the comfy couch and incredible light in the daytime. It's my favorite place to imagine what creative thing I can do next to make our home unique.
What’s your favorite room in your house and why?
I love the bedroom because it has the best light and enormous windows that go out to our balcony. It encompasses my dream of what an old New Orleans bedroom should be, charming and cozy.
We like to think there’s that one view for a person (in their home) is a truly sacred place, be it out your front door or through the kitchen window. Tell us about your favorite view from here in your home.
I love sitting on our couch looking at the front door admiring the tall ceilings and light - it just fills me with so much joy that we found this magical city and this place that we now call our home.
Tell us about your second favorite view.
The second favorite view is the Winnebago! Hands down. We worked so hard on that RV and it makes me feel very proud of the journey it took us on and where we ultimately landed.
