Meet Laura Herb | The Golden Guest House

We had the good fortune of connecting with Laura Herb and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laura, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I felt I had no choice. My life up until then was full of choices. This time I was newly separated with a 5 year old daughter in tow 50% of the time. I couldn’t afford my home. I had left my interior design career in the 2008 economic tar pit that swallowed 75% of the design / build community in Chicago. It had been 8+ years since I had worked in an office. My earning potential was still way off the mark. I imagined paying people to pick my daughter up from kindergarten, and to mow the lawn I wouldn’t have time to mow, just to do a job that wouldn’t pay me enough to keep my home anyway. On top of that, my daughter needed me. On top of that, I was suffering with an acute anxiety disorder, and wanted to bite everybody’s face off. I had to do something unconventional. I needed to heal. And I needed to imagine a new life.

It was a comment from Elizabeth Gilbert that found me right where I was at, and I’m so grateful to her. I’m paraphrasing, She said, when trying to figure out what to do with your life, ask yourself, “What is that thing I would do, even if it were going to fail?” Essentially, since every thing I could think of, would not work, what is it I would like to spend the next 6 months doing before someone comes along and drags me out of my home? So I started doing yard work, because it felt good and because if I need to sell my home, the yard should look nice.

I had also been a lifelong lover of space. Spaces, I learned as a kid, had the ability to reflect back to you, who you are. They were an art to be lived within—a place to be found, comforted, and to feel loved somehow, by beauty. Space had been my most sincere and truthful partner all along. I had been to graduate school to study architecture, and worked in two of the most well esteemed design offices in Chicago. So to heal myself at this stage in my life, it also made sense to embrace my dear enduring friend, design. I retreated back inside and allowed myself to continue lovingly dote on my home. It made me feel better. It let me be the parent I needed to be.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Nothing makes me happier than hearing that families or friends who came for a wedding, a Red Rocks concert, or just a tour of local microbrews, had an outstanding visit to Golden.

One of the reasons the Golden Guest House is so popular, is the location. We are across the street from Clear Creek. Clear Creek tubing has become very popular. I provide complementary inner tubes for my guests.

I also do design consultation on the side. I have one or two clients per year by word of mouth—mostly residential remodeling. The name of that business is Clear Creek Interiors.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We are on the same block as two of Golden’s not-to-be-missed list. Colorado+49 Taphouse and Cidery has a flawless menu and a long list of beers and ciders that they’ll can for you on the spot to go. Golden City Brewery is a long beloved backyard brewery with food trucks and lots of local chatter.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I love Ti-a Woven Goods. She’s been at the Golden Farmer’s Markets this summer, and her baskets are stunning. She pays women in Ghana over fair trade for their hand made baskets and they are beyond beautiful.

Website: http://www.thegoldenguesthouse.com/

Instagram: Thegoldenguesthouse

Other: Thegoldenguesthouse@gmail.com https://www.airbnb.com/h/entiregoldenguesthouse

Image Credits
Couple of photos of my daughter and me. Also forgot to mention the Golden History Park is right across the street from us. The park is a big draw for weddings. A shot of the annual Golden Fine Arts Festival on 11th street —right in front of the house. A shot of a widespread panic concert from a guest. A fair amount of my guests come for Red Rocks shows. A shot of a guest in the kitchen enjoying the freshest Coors beer they’ve ever had—straight from a brewery tour-just 3 blocks away. A shot from one of the both mesa trails. A shot of a sidewalk chalk artist from Arts Week in Downtown Golden. Pic of the Peaks to Plains trail that heads into Clear Creek Canyon from the center of downtown Golden. One of the best things about Golden is all the interconnected trails. Two photos of other local businesses that I’ve promoted on IG from our farmers market, and art fair. Two more shots of the farmers market, and a shot of downtown Golden. We are one block from the welcome to Golden sign.