Samantha Chance

At 21, she was obtaining her real estate license when she met Brian, her future husband. He was also working in real estate at the time. For her, selling houses was what it was all about, but Brian had other plans. Growing up on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, she wasn’t familiar with the housing market that exists across Baltimore. Brian wanted to get in on this. Early on in their relationship, Brian purchased an unfinished house on Baltimore Street. They were living in a tiny apartment at the time. She likes to say that she was dragged to the city kicking and screaming. Growing up as a country girl, she wanted nothing to do with the city (crazy how things change!) Especially when Brian told her they’d have to move out of their apartment into the unfinished house because they couldn’t afford the bills on both.

The truth is, she didn’t have much of a choice but to get involved in the project on Baltimore Street. I mean, she had to live there after all, so she wanted to make sure it was somewhere she actually wanted to live. With this very first house, she was able to explore her own design sensibilities and really develop a style. Detail by detail, their very first project began to come together, and each day, her appreciation for city living blossomed. A love for the sites and the sounds and the action. Something new to her but exciting. On top of that, the allure of getting to create her own space to live in from the ground up was hard to resist.

When she first began her interior design journey, things were very different in the interior design space. Over the years, a huge online community has grown for designers to share their work, inspire others, and interact with clients. Pinterest and Instagram were not nearly as popular as they are today, so it was harder to build an online presence geared towards inspiring others. A realization she’s had throughout her design journey is that many homeowners aren’t exactly sure what their specific style is. You recognize a beautiful, finished project, but trying to explain exactly what you like and why can be more challenging. That’s one of the most rewarding parts of being an interior designer: getting to help people articulate what their own style is. Now, three houses later, she’s realized that even as a designer, her style can change from project to project. She hates being pigeonholed, so it’s important for her to be able to flex her creative muscles and try something new with each project she undertakes.