06/03/2026
There's nothing better than designing a home that meets someone right where they are. We're honored Dwell chose to feature Laura's home, a space designed for a brand new chapter. See the full feature on their page.
Laura was ready to start a new chapter. After a divorce and the pandemic, which made working from anywhere a real possibility, she decided to make a move from Wi******er, Massachusetts, to her favorite place in the country: midcoast Maine. She envisioned a cozy hideaway in a friendly community somewhere that valued the arts and the outdoors, and a hub for her two grown children and their families. But there was one major issue with this plan: Laura didn’t like any of the homes she toured in those areas. “I was driving here frequently to check out listings, and during one of those trips, my son turned up one [listing] for land and we stopped by and fell in love instantly,” Laura says of a property they found in St. George. “On my second visit, a neighbor walked over to say hello and offered to answer any questions, which helped make my decision easier.” But then a second issue came into play. “I was naive in thinking that building would be less expensive than buying a new house, or at least not more expensive,” she says, after seeing an estimate. At this point, a friend in Maine directed her to Bright Built, a Portland prefab company with 20 models to choose from. From the outset, the numbers worked better for Laura, she says. And “since I was going to be building something new, I wanted to minimize my climate footprint and avoid fossil fuels and short-term building materials.” She decided on the Little Diamond model and worked with Jessica Benner, the studio director and co-owner of BrightBuilt, to turn it into her dream home. “I wanted a space where I could host dinners and create art,” Laura says. “I did not want an ostentatious home, but one that would make people happy to be in—including myself.” And with $1,083,142, she got just that. See where every dollar went in her : https://www.dwell.com/article/budget-breakdown-st-george-prefab-brightbuilt-home-little-diamond-6e6fc954