I knew finishes and furniture; he understood structural realities.

We spent entire afternoons debating how to make cramped rooms feel dignified without spending more than a client could afford.

That partnership eventually became Carter & Bell, a design and renovation consulting studio.

At the beginning it was two folding desks and a printer that jammed whenever a deadline approached.

We worked for community clinics, neighborhood businesses, and families adapting homes for older relatives.

I was thirty weeks pregnant when the landlord called to say the apartment upstairs had flooded.