Welcome to My Sanctuary
Photo: Jordan Somers
By Ashleigh McCurdy / @Life_DesignedByAshleigh
I was born and raised in Seattle.
This city raised me. Its neighborhoods, its people, its rhythm, they’re in me. I have deep roots here, and at the same time, I carry something else just as substantial: my Southern roots.
My grandmother is from Louisiana, and with her came Creole heritage, Southern tradition, and lessons that shaped the woman I am today. She taught me how to cook real food, the kind that feeds your soul as much as your stomach. She taught me how to bake with patience, season with intention, and move through the kitchen like it’s a sacred space. But more than that, she taught me how to be a lady. How to carry myself. How to keep my home. How to make sure that when people walk through your door, they feel peace.
She believed your home should be your refuge, your place of peace, your shelter from the outside world. A place where love lives. Where God resides.
Your Sanctuary.
That belief stayed with me.
Growing up, my mom expressed that same care in a different way, through creativity and design. She redecorated our home often, always giving it new life. Every Christmas was a new theme. One year whimsical. Another traditional. Sometimes butterflies, sometimes dolls, sometimes bears, always thoughtful, always intentional. Our home never felt stagnant. It felt loved. That’s where my sense of homemaking and design truly began.
And then there were my aunts.
My mom is one of four sisters, and I learned something different from each of them just by watching. One taught me the importance of knowing our Black history. That I couldn’t design a future for myself unless I first knew precisely where I came from and those who paved the way before me. Another sparked my love for movies, art, and storytelling. She showed me beauty through jewelry and creativity. Another taught me how to host: how to gather family, prepare a home, cook with love and intention, and make everyone who walked through the door feel welcome and seen.
I didn’t realize it then, but I was being shaped.
Today, I’m what my family lovingly calls the “resident auntie.” And I wear that title proudly. I love being the one my nieces and nephews can come to for advice, for guidance, for a place to land. I want them to know that my home is always open. That I’ll teach them how to host, set a table, care for their space, dress with confidence, and move through the world with grace.
This space — this Sanctuary — is my way of honoring all of that.
It’s where my Seattle roots meet my Southern upbringing. Where design, cooking, hosting, tradition, and womanhood intersect. Where legacy lives in the everyday moments, the meals we prepare, the homes we curate, the way we gather and care for one another.
I’m sharing this not because I have it all figured out, but because I believe deeply that how we live matters. That our homes should support us. That beauty doesn’t have to be loud to be powerful. And that Sanctuary isn’t something reserved for special occasions; it’s something we build, day by day.
If you’re here because you value intention, warmth, tradition, creativity, and living well, you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be.
This is personal.
This is legacy unfolding.
This is just the beginning.
Why I’m Starting This
I started this journey with a simple but powerful mission:
to help women design their lives with intention and purpose.
“I want women to know it’s okay, and necessary, to be both soft and strong. To desire beauty and structure. To want peace and power. To crave ease while still reaching for excellence.”
The Sanctuary is the newsletter I wish I had in my late teens and early 20’s. It’s the reassurance I need in my 30’s and the lifestyle guide I would love to have as I embark on my 40’s and beyond.
The one that helps me:
Enter any room grounded, confident, and entirely in yourself
Create beauty and wellness routines that support your real life, not just an aesthetic
Speak with clarity, confidence, and quiet authority
Navigate conversations, negotiations, and networks in ways that leave a lasting impression
Refine your presence; physically, mentally, and emotionally
Design a life that feels elevated, intentional, and ease-filled every day
Know where you should be and how to show up with purpose when you get there
Navigate throughout the city; where to go, activities to try, restaurants to visit, small businesses to support, and where to have fun while in Seattle
Step fully into the most confident, thoughtful, magnetic version of yourself
And just as importantly, how to curate a home and an aesthetic that feels refined, intentional, and welcoming. A place where you feel grounded, and where your friends, family, and guests love to gather.
Photo: Jordan Somers
What You Can Expect Here
Each week, this space will offer a thoughtful mix of insight, strategy, and inspiration.
You’ll find:
Glow-up strategies you can apply in real time
Elegance and lifestyle upgrades that feel attainable, not performative
Deep, practical “how-to” guidance from social capital to self-discipline
Beauty, wellness, and routines that actually work
Mindset shifts that change how you move through the world
Home improvement, cooking, gardening, floral design, and DIY projects
Practical skills that turn into meaningful hobbies and lifelong tools
Much of this is informed by my 10+ years as an interior designer, combined with lived experience, observation, and the wisdom passed down to me by the women who raised me and those I admired.
Some weeks will be tactical: scripts, checklists, routines, systems.
Some will be deeply personal; things I’m learning, unlearning, and growing through.
All of them will be intentional.
All of them will be valuable.
This is a space for leveling up, physically, socially, professionally, and for designing a life and environment that feels as good as it looks.
If you’ve been craving guidance that feels grounded, elegant, and real, you’ll want to stay.
Stay with me.
Tune in each week.
We’re building something beautiful here.
With love always,
Ashleigh
