Maida Korte with Karen Kalfas Live at Tattered Cover Aspen Grove
About this Event
We are excited to welcome former HGTV guest, Maida Korte in conversation with local artist Karen Kalfas on Thursday, September 17th at 5:30 PM at our Aspen Grove location!
Registration includes the following options:
- A signed Paperback copy of the book … OR
- A $5 Gift Card to Tattered Cover Book Store
We will have a limited supply of additional books for guests to purchase in store. Only a book ticket guarantees you a copy of the book.
This event includes an opportunity to meet the author, participate in an audience Q&A after the book talk, and get your book(s) signed and personalized. Photos with the author are welcome!
If you are unable to attend the event after purchasing a ticket, you are required to pick up your copy of the book (with proof of purchase from your event registration) within 7 days after the event date. If the book is not picked up by that date, you relinquish your copy to Tattered Cover Book Store.
ABOUT THE BOOK
What if the only way to rebuild your life is to begin by tearing down the walls?
When a successful designer, entrepreneur, and lifelong city dweller hesitantly agrees to follow her husband’s dream of country living, she doesn’t expect to be undone by a sagging Victorian farmhouse and the relentless wind howling through uninsulated walls. But as holes are patched and rooms slowly take shape, something surprising happens: space opens up. Not just in their crumbling home, but in her heart.
Told with humor, vulnerability, and the insight of a woman rebuilding more than just a house, Gutted: How an Old House Remodeled Me is a love story—not only between a wife and her husband but also between a woman shaped by fast-paced living and a slower, quieter way of life. With each creaky floorboard and stripped layer of old wallpaper, Maida Korte discovers unexpected beauty, remembers buried dreams, and finds strength in the women who came before her.
For anyone who has ever wondered what lies beyond the edge of timelines and control, this is a warm, wise, and deeply human invitation to slow down, dig deep, and make peace with change—one shingle at a time.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Maida Korte loves to write about the intersection of interior design and family life, revealing the humor, heart, and lessons found in both. A midwestern native with a tireless work ethic, she raised four daughters while running a design firm—an experience she jokes qualifies her to run a small country. A former HGTV guest, she holds degrees in interior design and writing. Gutted is her debut book. Maida lives in Lake in the Hills, Illinois, with her husband.
ABOUT THE CONVERSATION PARTNER
Born with a lifelong passion for creativity, Karen Kalfas turned a love for aesthetics into a successful career as an interior designer – a professional path mirrored by her high school best friend, Maida. Their shared artistic journey truly began at Wheaton North High School, in Wheaton, Illinois, where they were inseparable fixtures in the art department. Those formative years were filled with wild adventures, laughter, and crazy bonding experiences that cemented an unbreakable, lifelong connection. Though miles now separate them, Karen and Maida remain deeply intertwined in their friendship, rooted in the rich history of their youth. Now retired from the interior design industry, Karen continues to fuel her enduring creative spark, channeling that passion into oil paintings of the beautiful Colorado landscape of her current home, birds, pet portraits, and anything that catches her eye.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 7.25 to USD 22.55
