Home, Improved

Fariha Nasir is a self-taught designer and DIY expert with a passion for making ordinary spaces extraordinary. Armed with a fine arts degree and a can-do creative spirit, Nasir launched Pennies for a Fortune in 2019 to document the DIY journey of transforming her Houston, Texas, builder-grade house into her custom dream home. Since then, she has helped her followers transform all sorts of homes and tricky spaces. She has collaborated with Chasing Paper, West Elm, and Home Depot, and starred in the Magnolia Network’s Problem Spaces. Her 163,000 Instagram followers appreciate good design and the unique opportunities of DIY. Arlyn Hernandez is an LA-based writer, editor, and stylist. She served as executive editor at Luxe Interiors + Design, was design editor at Apartment Therapy, and worked as chief content officer for Emily Henderson. Hernandez is a frequent contributor to Domino.com, Lonny, 1stdibs, and Real Simple.