Welcome to My World of Old Houses. Old People. Old Dogs.™
THE BOOK
Yes, I actually wrote A New York Times and USA Today Bestseller!
“The book satisfies the curiosity about Nicole's life that fans have been craving. . . . Written in Nicole's signature down-to-earth but hold-no-punches style, the prevalent message is to always look at the glass as half full—or, more appropriately, look at the falling-down house as half standing.”
—POPSUGAR
“Inspiring. . . . .Curtis’ energy, grit and love for the hustle are infectious.”
—BOOKPAGE
The Projects-Before and After
yes, I actually still work on houses.
MINNEAPOLIS PROJECTS
See the before & afters of Nicole's Minneapolis renovations---the results of decades of advocating for old homes.
Featured on the Blog
Nicole's Tried-and-True Remodeling Tips
me and that road less traveled 😂😀
So ready …
And posted before I finished 😬 it’s not a bad article, link in my bio ❤️❤️❤️
Have you bought any of this ???
everything in my line is on sale right now. The rugs, the pillows, the throws, the poufs (wth is that -think bean bag without beans) at all major retailers online and priced to get into your house:)
With the exception of a few higher end rugs, EVERYTHING can go in your washer. My pillows are all slipcovered and due to a “sorry, mom” zipper-to-my-eyeball-pillow fight incident,the zippers are hidden.
Oh, and we tested every single thing in my home before they hit stores. If it didn’t hold up to our house, it didn’t make the cut.
Oh, makes a great gift, too
#target #wayfair #amazon #homedepot #machinewashablerugs #nicolecurtis #hgtv
Whenever I speak of my WWII vet hero -Chester-I like to speak about this fact…his Navy uniform is too small for me. He enlisted at 17, they sent him home, they came to Lake Orion and picked him up in his 18th birthday. He was 5’3” and about 90 pounds. He didn’t finish high school, went to war, came home and went to work. He built our family business from nothing & that farm I own was literally the result of my grandparents saving coins in old socks. He wore his Veteran hat proudly til his last day.
Thank you to all you veterans. You are recognized, appreciated and saluted. Our flags fly proud on all our houses. God Bless America ❤️
I roofed it green. I said “it’s different”. My oldest said, “this is why different isn’t done”😬
Have boys, it keeps you humble❤️ Lots of great conversations today on our way home from school. I silenced the backseat by adding that at one time in history, I wouldn’t have been able to do what I do, to even wear pants vs skirts (this was the most shocking fact), couldn’t own a house, couldn’t have my own credit cards. So anyhow, I roofed a roof green, but more importantly, I roofed a roof free —on a house I own solely, for a business that is mine.
I remember growing up, my gram would say loudly and proudly that she made up her own mind when it came to politics(now, she still put my gramp’s clothes out every morning & pulled the bed down for him) but he was not allowed to push politics on her. I miss her tenacity, her nurturing nature with touch of don’t f with me 😂
So -today -I focus on strides I’m making that she would’ve made if given a switch in generations.
No-political comments —-I want you to tell me something you are able to accomplish that our grandmothers couldn’t. (Mine are stated and obvious) And talk with children, not at them, with them-they are rational, open-minded and natural solution-seekers unlike majority of the adults 😍
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
9 years ago-I opened the doors to Ransom Gillis. It’s the house that everyone attaches my name to in Detroit. I delivered a baby &!I walked that site to draw plans 3 weeks later & was filming that week. It was 2015 and Detroit was still …Detroit❤️
I wrote about this experience in my book. It made for some very heated conversations as i didn’t sugarcoat it.
I am in the trades. I am not a tv personality “in the trades”. I’ve had to hear that get misrepresented my entire career. The reason it bothers me is that it gives the idea that people like me (short, tiny women or just women in general) couldn’t possibly be REALLY on a jobsite working. I’ve heard so many times, “but where would she be without her guys” -well, where the H would they be without me? There’s no man in my position that builds without his team -but he still gets called the builder? I love having these kinds of discussions with people and mostly, children.
In 2015, I did this house for a few reasons 1. To save it from being like what the rest of Brush Park had turned into -big blobs of architectural nothingness 2. To save this house ❤️ it was not a financial gain for me, it was not enjoyable, it was Hell, but I was there to do right by that house.
Also, there’s only 6 hours of TV on this and I was there everyday, every night from August of 2015 until finish today in 2015. That’s over 2000+ hours of my life dedicated to Ransom Gillis. I wasn’t a paid contractor, in TV land you are paid episodic rate (6 hours I was paid for) and in docureality there’s no residuals. So, forgive me when I take great offense to those that doubt my vision, my dedication, my passion-but I fight for for houses and in turn and up fighting for me, which, in turn, I hope clears the path for more mini-mes.
Thank you to all the friends of mine that were here with me, the other trades who I worked alongside, and the loving people who came out over 5000 strong to wait in line for hours to see this beauty when she was done ❤️
I have a new series of shows in the edit room. This means I have to do a new series of promo photos. My hair was done to shoot photos, but I decided a porch railing needed painting instead ❤️Long story short, no new promo pics but the railing is now…can you guess what color ? ☠️😂
Onward and upward
Two years, two months ago —- I started work on this house. Imagine sitting in Paris staring at the Eiffel Tower and a crappy, flipped home in a remote part of the West seems dreamy😂👍 that’s how this happened…no one supported this idea of mine, but I needed it. What a challenge for me, at a time where I felt quite out of sorts.
There are moments where we count our failures and forget successes, then a success catches us off-guard and directs us back on course.
Wyoming❤️
***ps-Im never gonna brag about my kitchens-but my attic suites ——untouchable 🥳 each one keeps getting better, in my not-so-humble opinion
This is to the moms:
You’re not gonna win somedays. I missed a flight today because i wanted those few extra moments at school with my youngest. The guilt is so fn overwhelming working and having a fd up situation like the one I know so many of you know. I didn’t choose this path of single mommying. F no , I lived that before and it was Hell. You can’t win. So, today, I missed a flight, but I got those extra minutes. I helped a stranded couple who only spoke Spanish (thank you, Mrs Frias LOHS curca 1991) and I took my standby middle seat in the back knowing …I got those extra minutes. Just when I thought, I got this —-in came a call that a tooth was lost. I pulled over on this highway, jumped off the call I was on and got out to get some air , cry some tears and then I sucked it up. I don’t want more money, fame, whatever this is, I want more time.
Please, don’t worry about me-I’m a mom, but I’m a strongass mom and it’ll be ok. I live to be mom —I work to stay distracted. And to all of you who know this path, you’re not alone❤️❤️❤️
Oh, and the mountains —-they cure these moments ❤️
Minnehaha -our First project together …14 years ago!!!
I like reposting this pic because we’re both babies in it😳😂 if you ever see me in a store late at night, caught up in a full conversation, rocking my headphones -it’s Leif on the other end. Please -join me in wishing him a very Happy Birthday. I promise you, I would have quit doing the show Season 3 without him (true story).
Happy Birthday, Leif! Thank you for being the one who backs my crazy “should we save it” moments from taxidermy to whole houses 😍😂😂
I had a few wins this week and a few losses. There’s those in the business world that mistakenly take me as a little podunk from Detroit in ripped up jeans & a worn-out flannel. It would have been wise to do some research and find that I posted Harvard Law posters all of the bedroom of that terrible 1982 trilevel in the burbs I grew up in. Some days, I trade that flannel for a power suit and make good use of that childhood trauma of living in a new build. ☠️😂 Man, I love the cringe look on the faces of those that underestimate me or that oversized crossbag 💰😀
IF, I had to give one bit of advice on how to go from where I started to where I’m at—
LADIES, spend that money on appreciating assets not depreciating assets. Make a plan, set a goal. I wanted to not be dependent on anyone and be a real estate tycoon. It was years of sacrifice, but well worth it. I’ve owned these shorts for 11 years ☠️ and I’ve, sadly, paid witness to too many women that did not plan wisely, but, definitely, looked better-dressed than me-Always 😬
Pick your wisely ❤️❤️
Now, of course, there’s been the occasional splurge, but for the most part —I’ve been consistent with my rule. Yes, I could have a closet of designer labels, but I’d rather have many closets in many houses😀
If you asked “what’s your biggest frustration?”, those that don’t get it. I don’t wake up in the morning to report problems, head problems, I seek solutions. That’s it. Got no time for people of the whine and fail mindset.
And this is why I love working with kids because they get it and no, is not an answer 😂❤️
Oh, and that flannel is coming on sale to you very soon