STORY BY ANGELA REEVES | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN HUDSON
To no surprise, the party throwing, holiday loving, craft making, halfway homemade cooking, modern day hostess we know and love as the Certified Celebrator, Brittany Young, designed herself a home where she can conveniently celebrate life with her family and friends!
Brittany Young loves taking visits to the beach and created her home to be a bright, airy, and cheery modern-day coastal farmhouse. She chose to build in the Ivan Downs neighborhood so she can walk her seven-year-old son Brady to school and visit with some of her best friends who live in the area. “I just love the community, and being able to live “in town,” and having a borrowed farm out of my back porch is just priceless,” said Brittany of the WKU farm which backs up to her backyard. She moved into the home in November of 2018, after close to 9 months of construction. When she bought the lot, she drew her dream home out on a post-it note, and took it to builder Darryl Sweets, who made her inspiration a reality. During a beach vacation, she gathered ideas and her inspiration board for the outside of the home and landed on the white hardy board and shaker style exterior.
When you walk in the front door, the crispness of the home is immediate with the light-colored walls and floors. It’s a breath of fresh air! “The light wood floors were a really scary decision,” said Brittany, “but they turned out great and it really sets the house apart.” The living room mantle and ceiling beams were whitewashed by hand by Brittany until they became just the right shade she was after!
The entire home is furnished by Fords Furniture, one of Brittany’s favorites! “The whole team is just so nice and accommodating. It’s been fun working with them on my own home,” said Brittany. Of all her favorite pieces in the home, she adores the blue plaid chairs in the living room because they remind her of her Grandmothers. “They’re nostalgic. I know if she had them, I’ll love them forever.”
Her Grandmother, Mamaw Joyce, played a huge role in Brittany’s life and the Certified Celebrator she has become. Brittany calls her the true founder of Certified Celebrator without even knowing it. “She was always dropping off gifts to someone, buying food such as cupcakes but adding a little lemon slice to make it look homemade and stand out, and she loved to entertain. She was a true intentional celebrator.” Brittany recalls her cozy, crisp, bright home making people feel so comfortable and never wanting to leave. Her Mamaw’s home had an array of blues and yellows, so she combined what she loved from it with her love for the beach and created her perfect coastal farmhouse.
On that original post-it note, Brittany had grand visions of the house being a workspace more than anything – a place to create..and imagine..and dream.. and celebrate! Off her kitchen, you will find Brittany’s Pantry and the Certified Celebrator Studio. The pantry is her favorite room in the house.
It is lined with bright, colorful wallpaper with shelves which house many of her photo and video props such as baskets, stands, platters, jars, and her Mamaw’s cookie jar. Her unofficial hobby, she says, is arranging and rearranging the pantry! The room is designed for entertainment in mind with an ice maker and coffee bar inside, to keep the mess and clutter out of the kitchen. Brittany has guests over several times a week between friends, work, and church and loves to disciple other people, while make them comfortable in her home. “Whatever day of the week, I’m always ready to throw a party and celebrate life. I’m the queen of taco Tuesday. I can whip up a chips and salsa board in no time!”
Across from the pantry is the studio and work area for the Certified Celebrator team of seven. As you would expect, vision boards line the walls and decorations and props fill the closet. Darryl created a moveable workspace from extra cabinetry which houses one end of ribbon spools and another of gift-wrapping paper, with all the craft supplies you can imagine on the inside. The unique workspace has become a great place for photography as well as a nice large worktable to layout projects and ideas.
To finish off the workspace in the downstairs, Brittany created Brittany’s Boutique – her styling room for her fashion trends of the season. Her Mamaw also loved fashion and she grew up changing out her outfits for the season ahead and celebrating and embracing each new change of weather. Currently, her boutique is starting to fill up with super cute fall trends such as gameday attire, leopard print, and mustard, denim, and navy clothes and accessories. When Brittany comes across items she loves, she shares with her social media followers and typically offers a discount code so they can shop along with her!
Brittany’s heart is set on encouraging women to intentionally celebrate the people in their lives and build joyfully celebrated homes – and she’s done just that for herself, her team, and her son Brady. She wanted Brady to have a super special place for himself, like some of her special rooms she has, so she created him a secret passageway (not so secret now!) upstairs, from the hallway to his bedroom. “I just knew he would love it, but I also envision grandkids playing in here. His friends who come over love it! It makes me so happy,” said Brittany. Brady has his own playroom with a small basketball court upstairs so he can celebrate his hobbies with his friends like mom does.
We can all take away lessons from the Certified Celebrator. Whatever your passions, celebrate them, celebrate you, celebrate those closest to you and celebrate life. And what better place to do it than your own home!