Behind the Scenes with DIY Guru Carli Alves
Meet the Rhode Island creative who’s building a reputation for smart, budget-friendly living solutions that pack a big design punch.
By Yankee Editors|Jan 18 2021|
As Carli Alves writes on her blog: “One of my favorite sayings is ‘Necessity is the mother of all invention,’ and is definitely the starting point for most of my projects.”
Credit: Courtesy of Carli Alves
As Carli Alves writes on her blog: “One of my favorite sayings is ‘Necessity is the mother of all invention,’ and is definitely the starting point for most of my projects.”
Credit: Courtesy of Carli AlvesCredit: Courtesy of Carli Alves
Q&A with Carli Alves
You rehab houses, you decorate, you craft, you blog, you cook… that’s a lot of irons in the fire! When people ask what you do, what’s your answer? I typically describe myself as a DIY content creator. I used to say I was a blogger, but then I’d often see a confused look on people’s faces, and when I’d try to explain they’d only get more confused. Really, I prefer to say I’m a creative. I feel extremely fortunate to be able to use my blog as a creative outlet and a source of income, but the days when I’m able to let my spirit lead me — whether it’s into building, crafting, or grilling (LOL) — are the days I enjoy most. Have you always had an eye for seeing how colors and textures and shapes can work together, and for seeing ways to give old things new life? I like to think it’s something I’ve had all along, because I see the same skills in my children. However, I don’t think I realized until recently — within the past 10 years — that I had “talent.” My friends would call me talented and it felt weird to me, to call it a talent. I never really spent time trying to develop it the way you would playing an instrument or succeeding at a sport; however, more recently I’ve been trying to fine-tune my skills by studying designers I admire, like Amber Lewis of Amber Interiors and Heidi Caillier. But when it comes to building and crafting, I learn best through experience and trial and error.
Entryway
Credit: Carli AlvesCredit: Carli Alves Congrats on your blog’s 10-year anniversary in 2020! If you could go back in time and give some key advice to yourself, what would it be? In 2010, I had no idea that this blog would eventually become my job. If I had known that it was even a possibility, I would tell myself to go harder, be more consistent, stay authentic, and not to be discouraged. There will always be people with more money, more talent, bigger houses, and maybe even better or more outgoing personalities, but there’s only one you — and you are enough. Your first house major renovation was a Victorian, and now you’re working on a 1945 Colonial. What new challenges are you encountering? One of the biggest is that we moved in right away, as opposed to spending some time working on the house first, as we did with the Victorian. Having the opportunity to do that gave us a lot more motivation to get things done so that we could move in. Living in this new space (with a large family at that!) while trying to work on projects is really difficult, but we are making the best of it. Another unforeseen challenge is that because of Covid, products and supplies are not readily available right now; plus, we have to be very careful about having professionals in. This renovation has been a whole lot slower.
Before and after
Credit: Carli AlvesCredit: Carli Alves Speaking of Covid, the pandemic has made a lot of people focus more on their homes. Has it changed the way you think about creating living spaces? I definitely feel I am looking at design very differently than I would have before. For instance, we purchased a cream-colored sofa last December — had I known how much use this sofa would get over the year, I probably would have reconsidered! I feel as though I prioritized form a little more than function when it came to furnishings before the pandemic; now, I think I have a much better appreciation for furnishings that provide more of a balance between the two.
Amos House
Credit: Carli Alves
