On your home team
Home advice, table inspiration, and everyday help from a friend who wants you to pull it off.
A little inspiration. A lot of you can do this.
Start with what is already in your home. Move it, mix it, or give it a new job before buying more.
Choose what earns its place in your life. A worthwhile investment can sit happily beside an inexpensive find.
A home can be thoughtful without taking itself too seriously. Try it, laugh if it flops, and make it better.
Beautiful enough to inspire you.
Practical enough to actually do.
What you’ll find here
One useful thing. Every day.
A little inspiration can change a room, a table, or at least stop you from buying another basket.
AT THE TABLE
Serve from the kitchen counter so the table has room for plates, glasses, and the friend who tells every story with their hands.
Try this today
Put serving dishes and utensils on the counter before guests arrive. Keep the table for the people.
Breathing room is where the good things finally get noticed.
Try it: Clear one surface. Return only what you use or love.
Sometimes one better pool of light changes the whole conversation.
Try it: Move one light source to the corner you actually use.
Try the ones that work for you.
Pull one piece three inches from the wall and look again. Three inches can change the conversation without changing the budget.
Clear a few hooks or make space on hangers before guests arrive. Show everyone where their things can go. Your friends came to sit on the sofa. Their jackets can mingle somewhere else.
Decide what it will hold and where it will live before buying it. Try a basket you already have first. Storage works best when it knows why it was hired.
THIS WEEK’S FAUSTKEEPING STORY
AT THE TABLEYou do not need a matching set, twelve perfect napkins, or a centerpiece that requires its own seat.
Use the plates you have. Put something green in a bowl. Open the wine before the doorbell rings. You are hosting people, not the Olympics.
Explore more inspirationThe whole home and the life lived in it
Start wherever you are curious. We are not precious about doors.
Rooms, paint, furniture, gardens, and what to move before you buy anything.
Good food, birthday parties, welcoming tables, and an easy plan when twelve people say yes.
The everyday questions answered in actual everyday language. No insider vocabulary required.
Buy this. Skip that. Use the perfectly good thing already in your closet.
When Faust really means it
The stamp for inspiration, fixes, and finds Faust truly believes in. It is not handed out because the page looked lonely.
The tiny chip at the store is charming. Your room gets the final say.
Real help. Always good intent.
For the everyday decisions that somehow become a three-hour internet search. Bring your question, your real budget, and what you already have. We’ll help you choose what to keep, change, or try next.
Who’s behind it
The sense of humor? That’s his mom’s. The joy is remembering her and sharing it with you.
Faust has made seven homes with his husband Glen, hosted more than 500 gatherings, and learned that the best answer is usually the one people can actually use.
For more than 20 years, he has helped friends and friends of friends make rooms, tables, and gatherings work for their lives and budgets.
These days, home is somewhere between the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia and Miami, usually with Sidney nearby, wine for Faust, and bourbon for Glen.
Most of FaustKeeping is free and always will be. The whole idea is that you can pull it off too.
Read our storyFaust
Ask Faust in action
Faust says
Pick one thing they love and plan one activity around it, such as making paper crowns. Repeat a favorite color on the table using what you already have and let the cake be the centerpiece. Cake already has a fan club. It does not need twelve supporting acts.
See what else people askA room to pull together?A party to pull off?
Maybe you’re wondering:
Yes, the shower curtain counts.
Bring me what you’re working on. We’ll sort through the options, make sense of what matters, and choose practical next steps that work for your life.
You have a Home Team.
$45 for one hour of Faust’s time.
Need more time? Additional hours are $45 each.
No meeting required.
Start with a few details in the form. You can share photos, a voice note, or a recorded video. Choose a written reply, a voice note, or a recorded video from Faust. Prefer to talk live? Video calls, phone calls, and live text chat are available too.
Sending your request and the initial exchange to clarify your needs are free. You and Faust will agree on the work and hours before payment. Paid time covers the agreed review, preparation, and response or conversation.