More Than the Objects Inside

Need a new podcast? “Ideas of Order” will make you ponder the meaning of home

What makes a house a home? What does my space say about me? How do I make a room reflect my personality? Who knew four walls could hold such splendid possibilities? 

They may not be the deepest questions you’ve ever pondered, but, admit it, you’ve wondered about these things, too. And now, thanks to California Closets’ new “Ideas of Order” podcast, which launched in April, you might just get your answers. 

Hosted by designer and television personality Jeremiah Brent, “Ideas of Order” is a conversation and investigation into the meaning of home. Brent chats with guests ranging from actresses to authors, fashionistas to entrepreneurs, and, of course, designers. So far, he’s spoken with Tan France from Netflix’s “Queer Eye,” “Schitt’s Creek” actress Emily Hampshire and the design editor of New York Magazine, Wendy Goodman, to name a few.   

It’s deeper than you think

“Oddly enough, I don’t listen to them in order, but I’ve listened to them all,” says Katie Zanzarov, a designer with California Closets. “I love listening about everyone’s life experiences and travel throughout the world and how what they’ve done in their careers inspires them in their own homes.”

Regardless of the listening order you choose, it’s easy to find the moral of the podcast: home has no fixed definition or expectation – it’s something that’s crafted from a swirling, potent mix of personalities, memories and experiences, its manifestations as dynamic as its meaning. 

Zanzarov says that she’s transformed her view of what a house is. Instead of thinking about it as a collection of material “things” – walls, floors, ceilings, tables, chairs, appliances – this podcast has actually made her realize it’s more accurately encapsulated by the emotions created and living within it.  

“Home isn’t really about the things, it’s more about the people that are inside,” she says. “It’s about the family and hearing the laugh of your child or the paw prints of your dog.”

“Home” (and everything about it) has changed

Just like the definition of home has gone through quite a few iterations in the past few years –from a place to relax after work or school to the workplace itself – the “concept of home has also changed,” she says. 

Home, more so during the years of the pandemic than ever before, became a haven, providing safety from the dangers of outside. And thus, care for the home has grown. 

“[Clients] are putting more passion into and spending a little bit more time making this space more special than they may have before,” explains Zanzarov. 

Zanzarov says listening to Ideas of Order has helped her “dig deeper” with her clients to find the meaningful details that make a space special. Now, she considers their inspirations, deepest and most meaningful memories, other spaces they’ve called home, the items they value and the experiences they cherish.  Why go to such lengths to design an organizational system? Because, Zanzarov says, she’s learned these questions can shape the design, the crafting and the organization of a home.

Don’t sacrifice your personal taste to achieve “a look”

Another key piece of advice Zanzarov pulled from the podcast was to make sure you’re not sacrificing personal taste for an aesthetic. While we may be lured by styles and aesthetics, the home – as we’ve learned – is a personalized space, and can only be crafted by what you find fits, well, you. 

“In a couple of the podcasts they talk about that, of course, you want a space to look and feel a certain way, but to make sure that it expresses who you are to a true extent,” she says. 

Zanzarov says names interior designer Brigette Romanek (episode four) said it best: 

“The home, for me, is just this place where everything else – from the front door to the back door – everything could be expressed, and it’s this real, you know, just like a love letter to you.” 

Designing a home is an art of emotions. It’s curating a person, a family, a lifestyle. It’s wrapping up years, decades even, of personal style and experience into a neat, shiny bow, ornamented on the gift of a life. What that gift happens to be, though, is different for everybody. If you’re curious about what home really means, check out this new-ish podcast on streaming platforms, such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts. 

P.S. We’re such fans of this topic that we dedicated our January/February 2023 issue to it. So when you run out of episodes and are anxiously awaiting the next, reread some of your favorite stories from that issue here.