The Design District
A MySpace for Your Home: bonAbode.com
Chris Cardy, owner of Delia, a handmade steel furniture company in N Portland sent me an email today about his new venture, bonAbode.com.
He calls it a “MySpace for homes.” My interest was piqued—social networking for the home front. It was only a matter of time, huh?
Basically, bonAbode is a website to which Portlanders can post images and information about their home remodeling, decorating, and/or projects. It sprung from an idea Chris had after buying and working on his own home for seven years. He spent so much time emailing friends with pictures of his progress—why not make a website for everyone to do that, and make it searchable to boot?
Here’s just a few things you can do:
post your own remodel work to show it off
share a great furniture find, a reliable material/contractor discovery, or any other decorating/remodeling hints
browse through other people’s ideas for inspiration, search for material sources, or find professional decorating/remodeling help
look through portfolios of interior designers and contractors (like Angie’s List, but with photos)
The site’s self-admittedly still growing: So far, bonAbode is pretty specific to Portland, but Chris hopes it will become national, maybe even international, someday. He’s also working on allowing zip code searches, so if you want to look at kitchen remodels within a five-mile radius of your house, you can. Plus, he wants to ultimately include a section for lawns and gardens.
So check it out, let me know what you think. Could be a great resource for a modest and supportive design community like Portland.
