A Short Story

Jeanée is a true word nerd who grew up in Opelousas, La., then moved to Atlanta to attend Oglethorpe University. After earning her BA in English and the title of Poet Laureate, she moved to Massachusetts to be an assistant editor at Storey Publishing, where she helped shape some groundbreaking nonfiction titles … like Squirrel Proofing Your Home & Garden.

Her role at Storey paved the way for a career as a freelance editor and journalist. She contributes home tours, celebrity profiles, and other lifestyle stories to publications such as Architectural Digest, Domino, and Travel & Leisure. You can see some of her favorite projects here.

After two decades of helping other people tell their stories, Jeanée pivoted to comedy in 2020, when laughs were harder to come by than toilet paper. Her first rom-com movie, DOG PERSON, is in the early stages of casting.

She currently lives in New York with her photographer husband, their latest rescue mutt Billie, and a shameful amount of dog hair.

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  I’m a repository of random information. Thanks to editing and proofreading nonfiction books like these since 1999, I can dispense facts on squirrel-proofing a garden, baking a chewy chocolate chip cookie, and mixing herbal remedies—in addition to grammar and style. It all started with an assistant editor position at Storey Publishing, which married my passions for crafts and communication.

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  I write home tours for shelter magazines like Dwell. For this article, I interviewed architect Staffan Svenson about the flight-inspired home he designed for an airline executive and his family in Atlanta. Image by Raftermen Photography.

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  I wrote an essay for Atomic Ranch about the vintage-modern design of our living and dining rooms, illustrated with photos by my husband, Andrea Fremiotti. I reflected on the unique challenges of decorating a steel, prefabricated Lustron home.

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  From 2012 to 2014, I owned the Finely Crafted mini boutique inside midtown Atlanta’s Paris on Ponce design market. I curated handmade goods in a modern style from about 40 makers, and I co-designed several exclusive products. The remaining inventory is still available online.

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  The American Craft Council publishes one of my favorite magazines, American Craft. So I was honored when the staff invited me to pick the winners of their spring 2014 retail show in Atlanta. Here I am presenting an award to innovative jewelry designer Brandon Holschuh. Photo by Elizabeth Ryan of the ACC.

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  In 2013 I recruited four artists in different media to help me design unique, modern products for the Finely Crafted boutique. Here’s a photo of me and Leah Duncan, one of my favorite illustrators, checking the color on our succulent prints.

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  I’ve always hungered for good design, no matter how small my budget or living space. When my college roommates were tacking up movie posters and street signs, I was sewing curtains and painting modern art on the closets. In 2005 I gathered my cheap chic ideas in Abode à la Mode: 44 Projects for Hip Home Décor, published by Sterling.

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  In 2009 I collaborated with my pal Garth Johnson and Eyekiss Films on the instructional DVD Re-Construct: Eco-Friendly Crafts Made Easy. I designed and demonstrated 11 home decor projects that gave new life to humble materials like cardboard, old appliances, and eggshells. Garth, the creator of the Extreme Craft blog, infused the demos with his snarky humor and passion for DIY.

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  From 2006 to 2011, I co-designed vintage-meets-modern Honeydoux jewelry with my sister Suzanne. Our upcycled glass button rings were chosen for the cover of the book 1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse, by Garth Johnson.

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  When I’m not pecking on a laptop, you might find me playing fetch with my dogs, doing yoga, volunteering at a craft show, flipping through a shelter magazine, hosting Project Runway night, or shaking a cocktail.