Letter from the editor: A house is not a home

“A house is not a home.” — Dionne Warwick

A home, by definition, is “the place where one lives permanently, especially as a member of a family or household.” We are the key to making a house a home. Otherwise, it’s just a structure of wood, brick and cement.

As Glennda Baker, a real estate agent in East Cobb and viral TikTok star, told me during an interview at her home for this issue’s cover story, the home is a representation of the self. Once someone crosses that threshold and enters your space, they’re no longer an acquaintance or a stranger — they’re a friend. I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Last fall, my boyfriend Kevin Wilkinson-Couchoud asked me to move in with him, and we’ve been making our house a home ever since. While there are still some boxes to be unpacked, and we haven’t found the right couch for the living room, it’s been a wholesome experience creating a space we both love, together.

Recently, we spent the weekend refurbishing two iron-rod chairs that had seen better days. The wooden panels on the seats had rotted and the iron on the back and arms were rusted to a faded brown. As a team, we took a trip to Lowe’s to gather new wood, screws and bolts, a wood stain and a wire brush to bring life back to the pieces. While he sanded the edges of the wood, I got to work scrubbing off as much of the rust as I could. We stained the wood together and watched as the chairs transformed from broken to reclaimed. Now, we can sit on our front porch together, enjoying the summer breeze, our hard work and each other.

Whether your home is a single-family household, a craftsman, a studio apartment or a refurbished van, I hope you can appreciate this year’s Home Issue of Cobb Life. There’s a little something for everyone.

For the hostess, we have a story on the Pineapple Porch, a chic home boutique in East Cobb that’s bound to have the perfect piece you’re looking for. For the home chef, we have Southern appetizers you and your guests will appreciate. For the HGTV lover, check out our piece on the renovation of a historic Marietta home. For the Zillow hobbyist, we have a list of the most expensive homes sold in Cobb County last year (special thanks is in order for Donna Green, a family friend and Cobb real estate agent with Maximum One Realty who collected the data for us!). For the trendsetters, we have our cover story on Baker, her rise to TikTok fame, her success as a real estate agent and the mother who encouraged her journey. For those who are family first, we have an Author Q&A with Roni Robbins about her book “Hands of Gold,” a novel inspired by her grandfather’s real-life experience.

As always, we have the latest May releases, noteworthy news from around Cobb, familiar faces in Cobb Scene and our Now & Then photo segment.

I hope you enjoy these stories as much as I and the creators behind Cobb Life did putting it together. Most of all, I hope you enjoy your home.

And remember, “A house is not a home when there’s no one there to hold you tight and no one there you can kiss goodnight.”

— Madison Hogan

Cobb Life Editor