We’ve been lucky to work with Manny Makkas of Makkas Workroom on numerous projects. He’s a supporter of and familiar face at our Boiler Room events, as well. We were excited to have Manny in to hear more of his origin story and got a full-on odyssey. His story is THE Greek American immigration story.

Last year we were lucky to have Steve Payne of Payne|Bouchier Builders on a panel discussion titled “Preservation Vs. Performance,” and we wanted to bring him back to the Boiler Room to revisit two moments—which we played recordings of on the boombox.

We also wanted to hear his origin story–which is amazing! In his youth, Steve hitchhiked across the country doing all sorts of jobs in pursuit of actualizing the knowledge he learned from both his father and his Hampshire College geology professor. This fellow woodworker and mountain climber proved to be a major influence on Steve.

Editor in Chief of New England Home magazine, Jenna Talbott, stopped by the Boiler Room for a conversation and to sign our copies of It’s Lonely in the Modern World: The Essential Guide to Form, Function and Ennui, a book she co-authored with writer Molly Jane Quinn. Published in 2011, their book expanded on their now infamous Tumblr, Unhappy Hipsters, that struck such a nerve that within hours of the first post TheNew York Times took notice and made it viral. Quickly, they had a book deal on their hands. And this all started with them making up their own “imagined and irreverent” captions to the gorgeous photos in Dwell magazine.

Over the years photographer Greg Premru has shot many of our finished projects. Having him in the Boiler Room allowed us to get to know his origin story as a photographer. It was also a look back to the time of film-based architectural shoots, where it could easily take over thirty minutes of prep work to line up one shot.

We’ve known Trevor Fulmer before he launched his rug line, but we got to know him better at his launch event in 2024. It felt like a family reunion, meeting his parents and entourage of relatives who were all so proud of him. 

Two years later, we finally were able to get Trevor into the Boiler Room to ask him about his origins in interior design and his boombox story—it’s an amazing one that  involves both Debbie Gibson and something much bigger than something you can fit on your shoulder: a white Toyota Previa.

One of Boston’s most outspoken advocates for the region’s historic buildings, Matthew Dickey has been a familiar face for years. His Instagram, @streetscapecurator, is a testament to storytelling-as-a-public service done right. And it’s so much fun.

After attending the November 2025 B/A/D Talk, we were curious about its origin story. So we invited Paul Reidt (President) and Karla Monkevich (CEO) of Kochman Reidt + Haigh Cabinetmakers to join us in the Boiler Room to tell us more about this long-form discussion series.

Iris Marcus, expert finisher and leader in the industry, stopped by the Boiler Room to talk shop and music. We’ve been fortunate to have worked with Iris over the years on numerous projects.

Ten years ago, Sarah and Josh Muncey were new clients of KCB. We continue the professional relationship through our estate care service, but by now, they are much more than clients; they are our friends.

In this episode, Sarah and Josh shared what it’s like being KCB clients, from buying their house, through the long process of a complete renovation, to the resulting beautifully restored historic home.

Julie Murphy, expert seamstress, CEO and owner of Designer Draperies of Boston, sat on a panel with Kevin last May at the Luxury Home Design Summit titled, “Unfiltered Insights: What Works (and What Doesn’t) in B2B Outreach for High-End Design,” along with Taste Design’s Patti Watson and Dustin Hayes of Hermosa Digital as moderator.