Every relationship requires compromises.
Some compromises are easier to live with than others.
This is the premise of the newHGTVshow “Mash Up Our Home.”
Christina Valencia:Kele and I have been doing our design business for four years.
Before that, we were in different disciplines, actually, of storytelling.
Kele was in advertising and I was in communications.
We’ve always really been interested in creating a strong concept from the beginning and having it be differentiated.
As we steered into residential work, we only knew how to work that same way.
Valencia:That’s the design side of it.
How did HGTV find you or how did you find them?
Valencia:They actually found us.
What was the toughest mashup challenge that you have had to deal with?
Dobrinski:What would you say?
In going through that, we try and learn, “What are the styles?
What is the taste?
What are their color palettes or color palettes that they don’t love?
How do we get as much information as we can?”
A lot of times, it doesn’t yield a completely clear direction.
Dobrinski:A feeling, yeah.
Valencia:For me, we did one for a multi-generational family moving from Southern California to Northern California.
It’s our California cottage.
And the home was really unique because it had two A-frame living rooms.
I love that we pulled from the geography of Southern California to Northern California.
Kele and I are both born-and-raised Californians, so it felt very fun and real to who we were.
What are your personal favorite styles?
Valencia:Oh man, it changes every day.
If you’re asking my fashion style, it’s denim on denim.
Dobrinski:Man, it really does.
I think there’s some threads that come through and everything.
We do like to bring in a lot of color and liveliness in the spaces.
And one of the homes on the show also has a mission California feel to it.
Do you guys have the same styles?
And if not, how do you combine them in your own lives?
ValenciaWell, we’ve been together for 15 years, so they’ve started to meld.
Dobrinski:At some point, the lines get a little blurred, but …
I do typically lean probably a little bit more modern, a little bit more clean.
I like a clean, tidy house where there’s a place for everything.
So there’s some design decisions … we did it with our own house.
That’s why we realized we could probably do it for other people.
It is figuring out …
I can’t figure out how to justify where that commonality is."
They’re living together for a reason.
They have a shared relationship for a reason.
What advice would you give couples wanting to redecorate their spaces?
Dobrinski:Part of it is understanding how someone lives and being able to take a step back.
I think it’s finding a balance.
How do you change your behaviors in your own life and build/design a house around that?
Finding those balances is really important.
Don’t let the 12 genres that are out there define what you think you want to be.
Create your own style if that’s what you like.
Finally, what are some of your favorite home improvement shows right now?
I was such a big fan of the Fords when they were on.
We get inspiration from everywhere.
Mash-Up Our Home premieres Saturday, March 12, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV.
