Kaage Homes

05/23/2026

Covered in construction dust and still so much left to do. But this moment. It is so special. 🫶🏻

05/21/2026

05/16/2026

Hi my name is Grace and I am addicted to stone.

Natural stone, specifically.

Quartzite. Dolomite. Marble. Onyx. Travertine.

I’ve spent years sorting through slabs. And believe me when I say… some of them would have been better left in the quarries they came from.

Somewhere along the way I decided SOMEONE needed take it upon themselves to go out there and curate ONLY the most beautiful options from the most trusted suppliers in the world.

I volunteered as tribute. 🙋🏼‍♀️ No need to applaud, please. You’ll embarrass me.

And this is one of my all-time favorites. A translucent Cristallo quartzite that’s as beautiful as it durable.

Does it costs as much as a car? Ok fine, yes.

But unlike my first Ford Explorer it will never break down on the way to Lake Geneva and ruin your weekend plans. And it certainly won’t run out of gas and lead you to Jiffy L**e for an oil change and three new tires that you swear you just replaced.

Can you drive it? No, not really. But you CAN come see it when we open next month. Bring your project ideas. We’ll get you all the right materials. That’s a promise.

Lighting is going in next… see you back here soon. 🫶🏻

05/08/2026

Someone check on me. I am not okay.

03/29/2026

🩶

03/24/2026

WE KNOW. The suspense is killing us, too.

I feel like I finally know what it’s like to work at Hermes when a new Birkin bag comes out. God BLESS.

Literally, everyone wants one of these lots.

My own mother asked if there’s friends and family pricing.

Do you want to know how many active inquiries we’re working from people who voluntarily requested to be put on our waitlist?

621.

SIX HUNDRED 👏🏻 AND 👏🏻 TWENTY ONE

That’s not 621 individuals. It’s 621 groups of people. I mean… you’d fill up the bleachers at Wrigley field.

Now the developers are racing to prepare lots so all of you can sail quietly into the sunset building your dream homes.

And, because these developers are also fourth generation builders, they’re ahead of schedule. Obvi.

Still, taking down a building as old and as historic as The Scott Foresman campus isn’t as easy as dropping a Las Vegas casino.

Trust me, I asked.

But no, the demolition process is not what you see in movies. It’s meticulous. It’s preservation.

It’s essentially disassembling the entire building from the inside out.

And (exciting news) the formal groundbreaking ceremony is this week and I want you there.

Seriously. If you’ve been following this project or are one of the 621 people on our list, you MUST make arrangements to meet us this Thursday for the big ceremony.

Everyone will be there. And you should be, too.

DM me to join and I’ll send you the invitation linK. I’d love for you to come!

And for those of you waiting for these lots to be “done” before choosing the right one. Just know you are making me EXTREMELY nervous… for you.

We are already over halfway sold out and the remaining selection is getting more and more limited.

These lots are going to sell out no matter what. And soon.
So if you have a friend on the fence share this with them. Before it’s too late.

Ok I’ve gotta run ✌🏻 the real estate team is selling these but our design firm is doing a select few too, and between the groundbreaking this week and our Kaage Homes Workshoppe (like the new name?!) opening next month, I’m a little pressed for time.

The TLDR? Please don’t miss out. We are flying over here.

Xo,
Grace

03/22/2026

Last week after I sent my last newsletter, I got an unusual number of replies that all said some version of the same thing:

“Wait… I didn’t know you were a writer.”

Which made me laugh a little, because writing is actually the thing I thought I was going to do with my life.

In college, I studied journalism. Not casually. Not as a backup plan. I fully intended to become a professional writer.

The kind who lives in coffee shops, writes books, files stories on deadlines, and has strong opinions about fonts.
In fact, the summer after I graduated, while most of my friends were getting their first real jobs, I did something that in hindsight feels very on brand for me.

I took the entire year off… to write a book.

Not start a book.
Not outline a book.
Write a book.

And I did. I finished it. Every page. Beginning to end.

And then I promptly saved the document into what I can only describe as digital storage purgatory, where it has remained for the last fifteen years, never published, never printed, never seen again by another human being.

Not because I didn’t want to write.
But because I have a problem.

Actually, it’s less of a personal problem and more of a hereditary condition.

I come from a very Scandinavian family, and on my mom’s side we have a phrase we use to describe this condition.
We call it Swedish guilt.

Swedish guilt is the very specific and very real feeling you get when you are sitting still, relaxing, doing absolutely nothing… while fully aware that you could be doing something productive instead.

It is the inability to enjoy peace when improvement is possible.
It is the voice in your head that says,

“Yes, you could sit here… but you could also rebuild the entire patio.”

Many members of my family suffer from this.
Including me.

Years ago, when I left one corporate job to pursue another, I was put on what’s called garden leave, which, for those of you unfamiliar, is a very extended period of time where you are technically still employed but not working. You are being paid to… stay home.”

*COMMENT ‘NEWSLETTER’ FOR FULL STORY* 👀

…and find out why girls with Swedish guilt build the best houses 🫶🏻