Home: Made

Home: Made, is a DIY series for the internet generation. It’s a DIY show with no gimmicks, no time limitations. In it, you will be taken through the process of building a house from the ground up, going into all the details step by step. Everything you need to know about houses, how they are built, what you can do to make improvements, and what you actually need a professional for. 

In this internet age we live in, it is surprising to find that not all home improvement questions have answers readily available. No one space can explain the ins-and-outs of home improvement and development. So how can you improve your and your family’s home lives? Where do you turn your burning desire for better into an achievable goal?

Right here.

In this series, I will walk you through my journey, as a novice with no home design or building experience, to build a home. From buying land to figuring out permits; from breaking ground to interior design, I will be hands-on every step of the way, to help other novices learn from my successes and failures, what the average person can do with their own two hands.

So who am I?

My name is Christina Perez, I’m 27 years old, and I want to know how to build a house!

I’m just a regular girl, no real construction experience, but with a desire to work with her hands and build something for her family. You will be following me as I try and figure out how to make the ideas in my head a reality.

My Dad

To me, he is ‘The Quintessential Grumpy Old Man’. My father is a navy vet with mobility issues, who used to dream of being an architect as a young man. He will be heading the design portion of the project, keeping ease of accessibility in mind.

My Mom

She is a great mom, kind, loving, and always ready to fight someone who messes with her kids. She will provide feedback and ultimately approve or deny pretty much everything. She wants a big kitchen, and room to entertain. She also wants a nautical theme in honor of her husband’s service. 

Rachel

My 15-year-old sister is a bit of a techy, nerdy, video game gremlin. She will be helping with the camera work, and video editing. She will be working with me when she’s not in school, learning alongside me, and getting her hands dirty when it’s safe. 

 So what do I actually plan on doing? 

•  Project wise, We will start with looking for land, and end with interior design, covering all the in-between.
•  Design-wise, I see a lot of wood finishing and open space. Keeping in mind, accessibility, for my mobility challenged father, eco-friendly features like solar panels, and large open space for family gatherings with children.
•  Production-wise, I see 3-4 stages. 

The first stage is a Vlog style Video, following me around as I tackle whatever project I’m working on, with running commentary. 

In the second stage, I will cut down the Video into a strict step by step how-to guide video for those looking for information without a lot of talk. 

And the 3rd stage will be a written version, some people learn better from text, and not everyone had the capacity to stream videos, but the goal is to get as much of this very useful information out to as many types of people as possible. 

In an infrequent fourth stage, at least 4x in a year, I will be live streaming. When I do I will answer some questions from the audience so we can squeeze and much information out of this project as possible

Any money left at the end of the project will go towards building a second house with a more modern design. Something less ‘family home’ and more ‘home/maker space’. I’ll use what I had learned from the first project and highlight all the different challenges that come with building a different style of house.

Assuming this Kickstarter is successful, what is the first step in the project?

If/Once the project has full funding we can start the setup process.

• Making a Website + social media accounts (Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter)

This will be the very first thing to be done, the website will include space to blog, vlog, possibly sell some merchandise down the road, a way to purchase memberships, and space to continue to donate to the project throughout the whole process.

• Seek answers to the following questions:

What are the most important features to look for when purchasing land?

What kind of taxes do I have to pay for a project like this.

How much land does the average person need?

What else do I need to know before I start building my own house, and who do I reach out to to get those answers?

Look at some plots of land.

We will start shopping around for some land to build on, going out, and inspecting plots for sale. I’ll discuss some of the wants vs needs of our household, and talk about some rough designs we might be able to come up with.

I hope that, by completing this project, I will have a well thorough, informative, and entertaining web series that will help people achieve their own DIY hopes and dreams