Home is a Four-Letter Word

Me and my home improvement journey

Bio

I’m Gillian Drummond, a journalist, blogger and P.R./communications consultant. I’m also a former magazine editor and sometime radio announcer.

My public relations clients include Susan G. Komen for the Cure Southern Arizona and Fine Art Consulting.

Freelance writing credits include: Tucson Lifestyle, Tucson Lifestyle Home & Garden, The Guardian, The Arizona Daily Star, Inside Tucson Business, The Express, The Scotsman, Sunday Times Scotland, The Telegraph, British Airways’ High Life, Caterer & Hotelkeeper, Marketing, Eve, Prima, Family Circle, Ladies’ Home Journal.  (And see me on TV!)

My work has been syndicated to the Sydney Morning Herald and The Melbourne Age, mentioned in blogs, on Home Depot’s website, and in academic papers. I’ve also written website content for other businesses.

What I offer: writing, research, editing services; public relations and media consultancy; blogging and website content. For quotes or more info, email me at gcdrummond@aol.com

Here are some of my articles:

The in-depth story behind the Trauma Center at Tucson’s UMC Hospital – a place that hit worldwide headlines after the January 8th shootings – Tucson Lifestyle magazine

A majority report, all in the eyes, originally written for The Guardian, syndicated worldwide

The Foreclosure Flippers, Arizona Daily Star

A look at Tucson’s Metal Arts Village, the new artists’ spot everyone’s talking about.

“These, the remants of people’s lives, are what The Girls deal in twice a week…” – A look behind the scenes of an estate sale – Arizona Daily Star.

Sleep disorders are so common now that “sleep medicine” has become its own industry – Tucson Lifestyle

A “recovering Bohemian” and how his home changed his own personal style, Arizona Daily Star

They love the stargazing. They like that they’re easy to maintain. And it’s private, they say – no exhibitionism allowed. They’re Tucson’s outside showerers – Arizona Daily Star.

2011: Year of the Thrifty, Experimental My exclusive look at 2011 trends.

A chat with a cowboy poet, Arizona Daily Star

Diminutive dwelling is dazzling, Arizona Daily Star and tinyhouseblog.com

How to change up your space on a budget of zero, Arizona Daily Star

“This is a tale not just of restoration and rebirth, but of coming full circle” – A look inside one of Tucson’s historic gems.

Why first impressions count for this businesswoman who is making a nice little earner out of…. door accessories.

The woman who loves watching paint dry.

Bucking the trend – twice. The couple behind a Tucson company that specializes in restaurant construction, launched in one of the toughest economic climates ever.

MORE ABOUT ME (if you’re still nosy)

  • Escaped the wilds of Scotland to Edinburgh and University, where I discovered the student newspaper and rapidly lost interest in my degree (Linguistics, apparently)
  • Left Edinburgh (reluctantly) for the Big Smoke, because it’s hard to work in the meedja in Britain unless you’re in London
  • Worked in trade magazines on a host of weird and wonderful titles (I loved it, I’m a trade mag geek), then went freelance, covering consumer affairs for the likes of The Scotsman, Sunday Times Scotland, Daily Telegraph, and Prima magazine.
  • Was poached by the then editor of Family Circle and lured back into permanent employment. Loved that too. But when then boyfriend announced he had a job offer for a company in Tucson, Arizona, we (a) got the atlas out to see where the hell it was, then (b) seeing it was close to Mexico and not too far from California either, decided to give it a go.
  • Now I neither want to live in Mexico nor California. I’m dead happy here in the Sonoran desert. It’s beautiful, it’s laid-back, and the people I surround myself with are the loveliest and most interesting ever (except for the gang back in Blighty, of course – love you folks still!).
  • We said we’d give it two years. The two became five, the five became seven, I had a wobbly moment of wanting to buy a crumbling pile of property back in Scotland, it passed, and here we still are – 12 years later. Now I can’t fathom leaving here and this life.
  • Designers for hire

    If you always wanted to hire an interior designer but didn't have the dough to do it, now's the time.

    The American Society of Interior Designers Southern Arizona Chapter has launched Design for Hire, offering professionals at a cut rate: $85 for one hour, $150 for two.

    Between February 1 and March 30, take your pick from color consultations, furniture placement, remodeling and more.

    To register call 520-834-6968 or go to www.asidtucson.org

  • I spy

    Spotted at an art exhibition by students of BASIS Middle School in Tucson was this very funky sculpture.
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