We have officially moved to Charlotte!
How did we get here?
A few years ago, I was exploring a role based out of Charlotte. It wasn’t a fit, but it did definitely peak my interest in the city. I liked that it seemed to have a good amount of photo studios within driving distance and I had only heard great things about the people that call Charlotte home! It seemed that every time Matt and I talked about the future, I was always picturing it happening in Charlotte. I know that might sound so strange – especially since I hadn’t spent a lot of time there – but it’s the truth!
As a freelance photo stylist for brands, I don’t have a TON of options for home bases. There has to be a certain amount of photo studios within a close proximity and it needs to be close to a major airport. That narrows it down to Charlotte, Philly, Greater NYC Area, Seattle, L.A., or San Francisco. Luckily, Matt is able to work from home, which has been SO wonderful for us! We decided to do a “trial month” in March in Charlotte and agreed if it wasn’t a fit, we would try out different suburbs outside of NYC.
We rented the cutest AirBnB in Charlotte for the month of March in Elizabeth (linking it here because it’s seriously the cutest and we loved the hosts!). I met with 3 potential agencies in NC, did as much outreach as I could, had some great zoom calls with potential clients, and I took the time to send out “pitch packages” with my portfolio in them to studios based in NC and SC. I ended up picking an agent to represent my work in the south, and so far I’ve loved working with her!
In the span of one morning in May, my phone and e-mail filled up non stop with bookings (it was wild!). Somehow my May and June were booked with new clients down south! It felt so awesome to finally see good things coming from the seeds planted in March. I really hope that any freelancers reading this are also encouraged and inspired – I know it’s been a difficult year for everyone in our industry (freelance friends, don’t ever give up!)! Matt was the first one to really say “I think it makes sense for us to start looking for a house to rent for the year,” knowing that I would now need to be there a majority of the summer. We are so grateful for the year+ that my parents kindly let us stay in their guest house, but we were definitely ready for our own place!
Finding Our New House
First, thank you all SO much for all of your help in figuring out the best neighborhoods in Charlotte for us to consider! Our initial list was made from all of the kind responses I got on the blog story from all of the sweet blog friends in Charlotte!
Matt and I hopped between a lot of AirBnBs in May and June as I worked down south and we spent our evenings looking at rental houses. We knew we definitely wanted to rent for our first year to get the best sense of where we 100% wanted to buy. On our first weekend visiting potential rentals, we got extremely lucky in finding our home!
Driving into the gated community, we were immediately reminded of Hilton Head with the big tall tree canopies and the 2 ponds! It felt so incredibly peaceful and very “right”! The kitchen had recently been re-done and was full of big windows and natural light – and I honestly think I was sold the moment we saw it. We were one of 25 couples that applied for the home and we really felt like it was a “God thing” that it worked out. It was clear that His hand was over the entire process the whole time.
The house is perfect for us! After too long in the guest house, one thing we realized we 100% needed was space…and lots of it! The house has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, which is enough for Matt to have his own office and me to have my own “styling room” so that wardrobe & props ordered for shoots with my clients doesn’t spill into the main areas. We have a big master bathroom and “his and hers” walk-in closets (which has been kind of a life saver so far!). We also have a big walk-in closet upstairs, which has been dubbed “the gown room”(lol) and is filled with special dresses. The garage and 2 attic spaces have already been so helpful in storing winter decor, luggage, etc.
The COMMUNITY has been SO welcoming! The weekend we moved in, we were invited to a community cookout at the pool and we’ve been making friends with our neighbors of all ages ever since. I love how friendly and warm everyone is! One of our first weeks here, 2 neighbors stopped while I was spray painting an old piece in the driveway to encourage me and tell me it was looking great (so sweet).
Besides a great pool, we also have beautiful tennis and pickle ball courts. We just ordered a pickle ball set and I can’t wait to try it! Below are some photos from my phone of our new home and neighborhood!
Making our New House a Home
Truthfully, this process has been slower than Matt would like for sure! It’s been a little bit challenging with weekly work travel – I’ve spent more weeks away from the new house than I have in it. But…I’ve been having SUCH a blast with decorating and it’s filling a daily creative void that was absolutely missing before our move. We’ve peel & stick wallpapered our bedroom (I love how it turned out!), and I finished making the Roman shade valances for the living room. We still have so much to do but I know that all good things take time and I don’t want to rush anything. We may stay here longer than a year (fingers crossed) and if we do, I’ll probably dive into more projects I’ve had in mind! I’ve been sharing the whole journey on instagram and have a highlight dedicated to our Charlotte house! Below are a few favorite snaps of the decorating in progress!
~ Thank you all so much for following along! I’ll be sharing more home decor soon, but until then, below are some of my favorite new house purchases so far!
Gratefully with love,
Rhiana
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