Owen MorrowBeginning in New Bern, North Carolina and now back in her hometown of McConnelsville, Ohio, Misty Bragg has long been a fan of all things home décor. But marrying and starting a family at a young age, while also trying to live a life based off her husband’s military salary, did not allow for the largest budget when it came to indulging in home goods. This minimalist budget didn’t stop Misty from trying to create a home that she loved and one that her family felt comfortable in.
With DIY projects and repurposing of thrifted items, Misty was creating pieces of décor that she fell in love with that really made an impact on her home and caught the eye of many of her friends. While working on these projects, Misty thought about the many other military wives that were at home during the day that may have never even touched a power tool.
“I realized that there were many women like me out there that didn’t necessarily have the creative outlook that I do, that may have been struggling to decorate their homes in a way they loved.” said Bragg. After this thought, Misty took to social media, the quickest way to reach a crowd, and created a blog aptly named “MisDIY” (a play on her name) along with social accounts, that demonstrated these DIY Projects along with ideas tips for home design and décor. Fast forward to just a few years ago, the “MisDIY” Instagram account boasts almost 73,000 followers who draw inspiration from Misty and appreciate her eye for design.
Seeing the excitement on my customers faces when they enter and see what I have to offer is really what keeps me motivated for the future.
In recent years, Misty has been re-evaluating how her blog turned business would function. Hosting Facebook sales once every month, Bragg quickly realized that her curated collection of thrifted items were popular amongst so many and she would need to have multiples of items to appease those in a bidding war for what she was selling. After spending some time contemplating the future of MisDIY, Misty came to the conclusion that she would need to curate items that still fit her brand, but could be easily accessible for multiple customers. Because of this need and slight change in how business would be handled, Misty felt that an updated name would be useful in creating a “store-like” brand, hence the current name of “misDIY Collective.” Nowadays the brand boasts some of the DIY projects that so many fell in love with, but also other types of home décor and lifestyle goods.
Towards the end of 2020, the first misDIY Collective pop-up shop took place at Old Bridge Brewing Company in McConnelsville. After a successful in-person shopping experience featuring her fall collection, Misty popped up again the following month, adjusting her inventory for holiday and winter shoppers.
Now in 2021, the brand has secured a somewhat more permanent spot in the quaint village of McConnelsville. Adjacent to the taproom of Old Bridge Brewing Company, Misty has developed more of a storefront style space, something she has dreamed of for a while. Operating on her own hours in a physical location, Misty has been able to begin to build her customer base even more than before.
“Seeing the excitement on my customers faces when they enter and see what I have to offer is really what keeps me motivated for the future,” she explained. For Misty, creating these moments is what she wants her brand to be all about, not just selling items but also helping the customers understand how exciting the decorating process can be.
Misty is so grateful from the support she has received from friends, family and followers along the journey. “Having people that truly support you is really the biggest part of business and I have been truly blessed with an amazing support group,” said Bragg. Currently the misDIY Collective storefront is set to be open until Mother’s Day of this year and truly has something for almost anyone. Misty is so excited for what this time brings her business and is even more excited for the future of what she has created and curated over the past couple of years.
misDIY Collective is located at 281 West Main Street in McConnelsville, Ohio adjacent to the Old Bridge Brewing Company taproom. Currently the store is open on Thursdays from 12:00 p.m to 6:00 p.m., Friday & Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and on Sundays from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.. To find out more information and to stay in the know with everything misDIY, follow misdiy and misdiycollective on Instagram and on Facebook. For business inquires, Misty can be contacted at misdiycollective@outlook.com.