Jeremy: Thank you for having me. Jenn: I thought you could start by just telling everybody a little bit about Jericho Home and how you got started. Jeremy: A few years ago I started a company called Jericho Home Services. Jericho Home is the home decor side of it. As I got into furniture building, primarily, I built decks and did some remodeling. If a realtor or an inspector for a home, or if you were buying or selling a home and had a punch-out list, I would make that punch-out list come true, that was what my business was for. Then I slowly developed and got into furniture building. Jericho Home was more of just an easier way to say decor, do that kind of thing, that’s how I got started. Jenn: How did you make the transition into furniture building? Was there a specific piece that you needed that you just realized you could do yourself? Jeremy: Yeah. My wife wanted a new dining room table, she really likes this table from Restoration Hardware, I wasn’t super keen on the price so I was like, “I could make that.” That’s how I kind of started. What is your favorite project? Jeremy: I really enjoy building tables because it’s a place where people come to gather and that’s meaningful to me, but there was also a project I made for my wife, a couple of Christmases ago, was an apothecary sideboard and had a lot of drawers in it. It was challenging to make but it has some meaning for me because it was difficult, it turned out, I think, looking pretty and it was well-received. Where do you find inspiration? Jeremy: There’s a lot of makers who really inspire me, especially the Instagram community is so cool, you can get to see people’s process and how they’re working a lot. This is going to sound lame but I got this a long time ago, I went to school in Nashville, to college in Nashville and randomly we went to this flea market, I picked up this old steamer trunk, I’ve always loved it. Everything down from the metal hardware on it, to the color of the how old the wood is, has really informed a lot of my design process ever since—that one little trunk. Jenn: Really? Jeremy: Yes. I don’t make everything look like it but whenever I draw a blank, I’ll just go up there, sit in that room, put my feet on the trunk and just start thinking about it, “Well, how do I want this to look?” Usually, it comes together. What is your best advice for DIY’ers? Jeremy: I was lucky, my grandfather was an architect and a builder. I got to work with him when I was younger but when I got started finally building and doing what I was doing, starting my own business, I called my grandfather to ask, “where should I get some tools? What should I do?” And he was like, “Use what you got, you know how to do it, use what you got.” I really think that advice— Even if you don’t really know what you’re doing, you’re never going to learn if you don’t get out there and try to build something. I really think that if you’ve got your grandfather’s hand-me-down Black & Decker corded, start there. Outgrow your tools and outgrow your projects, don’t start with built-in bookcases, start with a little box to keep your K Cups in or something. Do well at that and move past that project, it really is true, if you can learn to build a box, you can pretty much learn to build anything. Jenn: Definitely words to live by. If you guys want to check out more of Jeremy stuff, you can check him out at Jericho Home on his website, on Instagram, and we just thank you so much for being here. Jeremy: Thank you for having me.
