Designed Happy The Podcast

No rain drops on roses in this episode. Katie and TJ get personal and each share their 3 favorite things about their homes. Somehow, and maybe unsurprisingly, they end up discussing 1950's toys.

In the follow up to their smash hit, The Toilet Episode, Katie and TJ do a deep dive on showers. What to consider when you're planning a curbless shower, the difference between thermostatic and pressure balance valves, digital shower setups, steam showers, and more...

In our second Happy Home Stories episode, Katie and TJ are joined by Meera. She discusses her basement remodel, why she did it, how her experience went, the value of RealTIME Design, and what she learned.

Remodeling or rebuilding isn't an infomercial. Katie and TJ talk (briefly) about the wonderful rotisserie oven of the 90's. Then get to the topic at hand about why and how to get involved in your project, and how your brain values the project based on your level of involvement.

Today, Katie and TJ are talking toilets! You're probably thinking, how can they talk about toilets for a whole episode?? Katie thought the same thing. And then this episode ran long. There's a lot to cover, and when you're done, be sure to take our brand new TOILET QUIZ! Special surprise when you pass it.www.DesignedHappy.com/toilet

If you polled 100 people and asked them: "what is the most important word in architecture?", how many of them do you think would say: Buildable? Probably not that many. In this week's episode Katie and TJ discuss why it actually is. Katie also offers us one of her patented, Duh's.

For years and years and years we've all talked about our home as our biggest asset. And sure, it is. But we're approaching a tipping point where people are starting to realize that the Return on Enjoyment might be just as, if not more important than, Return on Investment. Katie and TJ take a deeper dive on ROI vs ROE. They also talk about a board game from the 70s, and do their best to define the word Fungibility.

Do you hold your luckiest lucky charm as you sign on the dotted line with a contractor? Should it all be up to luck? Of course not. Katie and TJ discuss a step-by-step strategy to remove luck from the process and help you to choose a contractor that is the right fir for your project. But can they get through the whole episode without doing Irish accents?When you're at the Fit Score step, you can find it here:https://www.designedhappy.com/fitscore.html

Does a hair cut have anything to do with home remodeling? Actually, yes, a whole lot! Katie and TJ discuss Katie's new style, her process for getting there, what it felt like before the first snip, and how all of that is exactly what this podcast has been about from the beginning.

Can Katie and TJ making discussing different contract types fun? Will this episode be more like eating your vegetable, or the cool teacher putting on a movie in class? Either way, we're talking about different types of remodeling contracts and when they make sense.

This week, Katie and TJ take you behind the scenes of how we create our monthly comic strip, Nailed It. They review of few of their faves, share the stories that led to their creation, and discuss how they collaborate with local artists.You can find all of our comic strips here:https://www.designedhappy.com/blog/category/nailed-itAnd if you want to see the comic before everyone else, subscribe to the Designed Happy newsletter here:https://www.designedhappy.com/subscribe.html

Happy Valentine's Day! We hope you had a wonderful day celebrating. This week Katie and TJ talk about trust - how to earn it, when it's at its most fragile, and if you can regain it. They also discuss how they each celebrate Valentine's day, and TJ shares a balsamic glaze story gone wrong.

Katie and TJ think back to when Kat had TJ design a kitchen around a sink. Katie wants to know what kinds of other things clients have designed around, and well, things got a bit weird by the end. And to give credit to the comic TJ couldn't remember, here is the clip: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/xqcSILeOwhA

In this week's episode, Katie and TJ discuss how words change over time, and how a word like Custom, used to mean something different than it does today. They talk about why that's important, a word to use instead, and pecan pies for people with silk scarves.

In this episode Katie and TJ review the 2026 trend predictions made by HOUZZ. Do we love them all? No. But do we love most of them? Also no. We'll give them this - we have our finger's crossed for a couple of them. Also, Katie's about to have a great year, and TJ explains door doors (not a typo). Check out the HOUZZ predictions here:https://pro.houzz.com/pro-learn/blog/sneak-peek-houzz-reveals-11-of-the-top-home-design-predictions-for-2026

After months of teasing it and building anticipation, it's finally time to review The Fit Score. Katie and TJ breakdown what this tool is, how to use it, and why it exists. They also talk about re-re-recording, and something about a horse and Perrier where you get to hear the punchline but not the setup.

This week, Katie and TJ have a special guest! Industry pro, lifelong remodeler, and TJ's friend, Steve Scholl, joins the podcast. We talk about why having a good relationship with your contractor is so important, what a good relationship looks like, and what "running to trouble" means.

We're so excited to introduce a new series on our show. It's called 'Happy Home Stories.' In it, we talk with one of our clients about what it's really like to remodel - not the HGTV made-for-TV version remodeling - the real life, what happens when things don't go the way you planned, and how do you work through it. This week, Katie and TJ talk to Nick about his whole-home remodel in Fairfax. They discuss the tool Nick used to mentally process design options (it's not what you think it is), some of the surprises he encountered during construction, what he learned about the process and himself, and what he would do differently next time. Thank you so much to Nick for being a great client, and being willing to talk about his process openly.

Feathers will be ruffled and boats will be rocked! Gears might even be ground!! Katie and TJ discuss why Price Per Square Foot is such a common way to talk about remodeling and new construction pricing, and why it is completely misleading. Then they discuss a better alternative, before sneaking a Harry Connick Jr reference in just when you thought the episode was over.

Katie and TJ welcome Jake Jackson-Wolf to the show. Jake is the owner of b'well Counseling Services and is a licensed therapist. Katie, TJ, and Jake debate whether podcast guests should have entry music, reminisce about the 2011 DC earthquake, and discuss why remodeling is hard on relationships. Jake offers wisdom and advice to help you keep your relationship strong. To learn more about Jake and b'well visit: https://www.bwellcounselingservices.com/

In this episode, Katie and TJ have a special guest...Marc Cashin! Marc is a realtor, the owner Forward Real Estate, TJ's friend, and most importantly, Katie's husband. We have a fun time discussing our long time knowing each other - our time in college, TJ and Marc having a band, gifting a dining table, and Marc's dislike of formal dining rooms. We also discuss the DC real estate market, selling your house in the winter vs in the spring, remodeling with an eye toward resale, and why having the right team of professionals can make your life a whole lot easier.

Katie and TJ review one of Designed Happy's favorite tools: The Future Test. This test and the accompanying worksheet help homeowners get their remodeling project unstuck by helping them imagine different versions of their future. They also discuss one-person seesaws, their current thermostat situation, and how TJ's hair blends in with his wallpaper. Visit https://www.designedhappy.com/the-future-test.html to download The Future Test worksheet.

This week, Katie and TJ invite their first guest to the podcast, and it gets personal for TJ, because it's his wife, Kat. We discuss what it's like to live through a remodeling or construction project, some of the fun projects TJ and Kat have done (and one they didn't do), and how to get your kids involved and engaged in the process.

Katie and TJ talk about what they do for Thanksgiving. TJ talks about his famous mashed potatoes that have an ego. Then they dive into one of the most popular posts on the Designed Happy blog: You're Late For Thanksgiving. They discuss how to talk about completion dates with your contractors, the idea of a reverse timeline and how it can be useful, and review how lead times can affect your project schedule and what you can do about it.

Katie loves British cuisine. TJ wants to be in the Rat Pack. In a follow up to recent episodes on ways to pay, and what expensive really means, Katie and TJ discuss what kind of return you can expect on your investment, whether that investment is money, energy, time (or all 3). Then they review the 2025 Cost vs Value Report, explain what it is, and how it can be useful.

Katie and TJ discuss purchases they've made that felt expensive. Then they tackle our big topic - what does "expensive" really mean in remodeling? They discuss a chart from Designed Happy: The Book, why focusing on value is important, and call back to our episode on ways to pay (other than money).

Katie and TJ tackle the topic of paying. Sure, everyone knows what it means to pay for a project with money. But did you know that you could also choose to pay with your time, energy, and emotion? All of the options are interwoven, and have pros and cons. Katie and TJ tackle the nuances and guide you through decided which path might be best for you.

TJ and Katie take a break from the weekly wisdom, to talk about their favorite Halloween memories, being scared, haunted houses, and a brainstorm for a new brilliant business idea.

TJ and Katie discuss their favorite things to shop for and then dive in to the main topic: What are you actually buying when you buy remodeling? Katie's not sure if that's real grammar. Most people would say cabinets, or tile, or windows. Yes, while your money is technically being used to purchase materials for your project, learning what you're actually buying could help you have a much more enjoyable experience.

In this episode Katie and TJ discuss the remodeling and design process, and when and how clients can control it. As a homeowner, you'll want to tune in to this one to understand when in the process you have the most control vs when you have the least, and how to set your project up for success when you're in the driver's seat. Katie sneaks in some (seemingly) complicated laundry advice to keep your black shirts looking black, and TJ doesn't want to decide on your dishwasher placement for you.

Katie and TJ talk about feedback: why it's important and how to make yours better. TJ is terrified on a roller coaster, and Katie does an A+ impression.

Katie and TJ introduce Heat Maps, a simple tool to help you see which rooms matter to you and which rooms don't. Katie makes a stellar air horn sound and TJ's ears get too hot.

Katie and TJ tackle the 3 types of stress: what they are, how to know which one you're currently feeling, and how to move between them.Here is the link to the book Katie mentioned (this is not an affiliate link - just trying to help you out):https://www.amazon.com/Upside-Stress-Why-Good-You/dp/1101982934/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0

Katie and TJ discuss how to talk about the B word - Budget. Katie twirls her fingers in excitement, and we give you some tips for making an uncomfortable conversation a little bit easier.

Katie and TJ tackle the age old question...Should you stay, or should you go. Highlights include: Katie hates TJ's inflection, a review of the Stay or Go Quiz, and should houses have love letters written to them.You can take the Stay or Go quiz here:www.StayOrGoQuiz.com

Katie and TJ talk about Why, and why Why is more important than What. They discuss a helpful exercise to help you get to the core of the emotion leading to your desire to remodel or rebuild. TJ sings 2 seconds of Thrift Shop and Katie is a fancy lady.

Katie and TJ introduce Designed Happy: The Podcast, what it is, why it exists, who they are, and what you can expect from this show. And they absolutely crush the opening.You can check out our comic Nailed It, here:https://www.designedhappy.com/blog