For Trell Thomas, growing up in Cassatt, South Carolina, in a modest home filled with love, Thomas remembers its sensory details: the smell of cocoa butter and soul food. It was always a place where he could dream, surrounded by warmth and love. That core memory continued to grow and shape who he wanted to be as a homeowner.
After living in cities across the country, including Washington, D.C., Portland, Atlanta and New York, Los Angeles was the first place that felt like it could be home. For October’s House to Home, Power 100 honoree Thomas is taking us behind the curtain and through the journey of how he found his dream home in L.A.
Thomas knew this was the place for him to lay roots and even changed his driver’s license there and began to imagine settling down. Buying in L.A., though, seemed daunting. Rather than accepting the idea that homeownership was out of reach, Thomas decided to ask a different question: Why couldn’t it be possible? “I set out on the journey, and I knew that I wanted to be in the mix,” he told EBONY. “I wanted to be in the energy of the city, and I wanted like to feel like I was in L.A. with my home.”
The search took Thomas through roughly 30 properties. He knew they wanted to be in or near Hollywood, and have the views of palm trees and skyline, so when he finally walked into the condo he now owns, the decision felt immediate: “This is it.”
The road to that moment included an unexpected full circle. Years earlier, a realtor had made Thomas feel judged and uncertain about whether he was truly ready to buy. When Thomas returned to the search with a new realtor, whose patience and support helped him feel at ease, the same realtor from that earlier encounter was selling the condo. Thomas remembers the moment as a reminder of standing firm on what you want, which helped him as he stuck it out through his house hunting experience.
Buying a home also called for a different kind of discernment than renting. Thomas wanted to feel sure—not free from nerves, but free from doubt. “I’ve always been intentional with trying to find spaces and making sure that the space works,” he said. “You have to really keep in mind when you’re buying places that you take on everything, not just the mortgage and stuff, but you take on like the energy of the space.”
After Thomas sealed the deal on his new home, the energy he wanted the home to feel like was “a big hug” after the demands of entrepreneurship of his business, Black Excellence Brunch. Since he worked from home much of the time, the layout needed to support both focus and restoration. An office created separation for work; the bedroom became a sanctuary; and the bathroom was designed to feel like a spa. “I’m an entrepreneur, so I don’t have the typical 9-5 hours, so when I come home I wanted it to feel like a place of possibilities and have that work-life balance,” he said.
Thomas’ style balances clean lines with texture and imperfection. Inspired by Wabi-sabi, a Japanese aesthetic that embraces the beauty of imperfection, he is drawn to pieces that feel a little rough alongside smoother, more polished elements. A broken or imperfect vase can belong in the right place, bringing character and balance to a room and feel more like his vibe and personality.
The master bathroom has become Thomas’s favorite room. Baths are part of their self-care ritual, and the tranquil space is also where some of his best ideas have arrived. During the renovation, when the room was stripped back to its framework, Thomas wrote intentions on the walls: “This space is a space of peace” and “This space is a space of love.” Those words, hidden behind the finished walls, remain part of what makes the room feel personal. “I feel them pouring through space and even seeping into other rooms,” he said.
Over the three to four years Thomas has lived there, the home has changed alongside him. ” I’ve laughed, cried, been inspired, created and I’ve also gotten a lot of my power back,” he said. I feel like when you are able to really make a space your own, you see parts of yourself you may not have been necessarily ready to face or see.” Making his own home, Thomas has been able to truly evolve.
The home also holds reminders of Thomas’s work as an entrepreneur and the journey behind Black Excellence Brunch. Awards and meaningful gifts are on display, while plates used for the earliest; self-funded brunches now serve as dishes when Thomas hosts guests. “When we had special company, we’d pull out the fine China. My mom would go in her China cabinet, and I now have the opportunity to do that,” he said.
For anyone unsure where to begin personalizing a space, Thomas recommends starting small—and starting with what already draws you in. Instead of building a whole home around a magazine or Pinterest image, find one object you genuinely love, whether it is a vase, a table or even a coaster, and build from there.
That advice reflects Thomas’s own approach: let meaning lead, and let a home take shape over time. “A house is built with walls, but a home is built with meaning,” he said. Thoughtful design, soulful details and hospitality can turn a physical space into a sanctuary—one that honors where you come from, celebrates who you are and leaves room for memories to come.
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