All
furniture for this project was generously provided by Raymour & Flanigan in
exchange for this post. All expressed opinions are 100% my own.
What happens when you gather 6 home design bloggers, a nonprofit social service agency, a newly renovated home, and a furniture company committed to community involvement?
Hope, that’s what happens. When I was given the opportunity to combine my day job and my love for home design and styling in a special project for Amos House, I jumped at the chance.
What is Amos House, you ask?
Amos House is a leading social service agency in Providence, Rhode Island, that offers housing, addiction recovery, helps individuals gain parenting skills and reunify with their children, job training, and boasts the largest soup kitchen in the state, serving anywhere between 300-800 meals a day.
Helping people help themselves is a part of Amos House’s mission, and having recently renovated a 4 family apartment home to provide beautiful and modern affordable housing to the community, this is exactly what my friends and I set out to do. I believe that when individuals are given opportunity and the right tools to succeed, they are set up for a brighter future.
Tasked with furnishing and decorating 4 apartments, I reached out to Raymour and Flanigan, who are always there to answer the call to give back to the community. Raymour and Flanigan signed on as the sole sponsor, and furnished the living and dining areas of all 4 apartments! I couldn’t feel more blessed to have their support. I then reached out to my friend Charlotte (At Charlotte’s House), who’s Bloggers Heart Habitat program inspired this project (You can see all of the BHH projects that I worked on HERE. )
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| 2 Bedroom Apartment Before |
I then recruited Diane (The Rath Project), Michelle (Weekend Craft), Lisa (Shine Your Light) and Emily (Emily Everyday). With 4 blank slates, and a very generous furniture donation from Raymour and Flanigan, we divvied into teams and got to work.
With blogging being such a solitary activity, these types of projects are always fun to do because it gives us bloggers a chance to hang out and get to know each other a bit better.
Emily and I worked together on one of the 2 bedroom apartments, which used to be the Social Services office of Amos House. This apartment started out amazing to begin with, with two fireplaces, beautiful large windows, wide board wood floors and an open concept layout, all it needed was a few welcoming touches to make it feel like home.
Knowing that there would be children occupying these apartments, Emily and I chose items that were kid friendly, like this sofa in microfiber upholstery, and a beautifully patterned, low pile rug which which can easily be spot cleaned.
A lot of the items in this space, were found online in the Raymour and Flanigan outlet. Raymour and Flanigan offers a wide variety of items for every style and every budget. (You can shop this post by clicking the links listed down below)
Can we just talk about this coffee table for a second?
It’s Gorgeous! It’s Stylish! It’s Solid! It’s Kid Friendly, and best of all, it’s Super Inexpensive!
One of my favorite things to do is to mix and match coffee and end tables. I tend to aim for metal nesting tables, as they are light weight and can easily be moved around when needed.
When Emily and I found this adorable little car, I thought how perfect is this? It functions as decor and a toy 🙂
The biggest challenge in this apartment was that there was only one free wall, so we had to float the accent chairs, and place the TV stand in front of the widow, but I think it works and the new resident is free to move things around however she wishes.
Michelle and Lisa put out a request for donations of household items on their Facebook pages, and received a few donated TVs and lots of household essentials, such as pots and pans, towels, dishes and even cleaning supplies for the 4 apartments. Their generosity amazed me!
With having a little extra room in our budget, we were able to choose some items for the kitchen. This kitchen cart provides extra storage and prep space.
When it was time to reveal the space to the new resident, I was so excited that I forgot to take pics! You can check out the video in my “Amos House” Instagram highlight. Later the new resident came to me and said “Do I really get to live here?” My heart was so full!
More than just material things, having a home that she is proud of, will help she and her family get off to a beautiful, new start.
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| Emily created this amazing mood board, shop the look, by clicking the links below: |
Malta Rug / Corrine Side Chair / Laila Sofa / Accent Chair / Benjamin Nesting Tables / Cocktail Table / TV Stand / Dining Room Table / Larchmont cart
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Apartment 2
Emily and I worked together to choose furnishings for the 3rd floor attic apartment. This apartment had its share of challenges with its slanted ceilings and single window in the living space.
Choosing a layout that would accommodate a living and dining space was definitely a challenge.
The TV console is a great way to include some added storage for toys, books, and media accessories.
Using the sofa as a space divider was an ingenious way to create two zones, one for lounging and one for dining.
I ended up mixing and matching the dining table and chairs. It originally came as a set but after all of the furniture arrived I began calling this room “The Fifty Shades of Gray” apartment. Almost everything in the space was gray, haha! So I snatched some of Charlotte and Diane’s chairs from their apartment for staging purposes, however the chairs that go with the set are gray cross back chairs.
This slipper chair is truly a looker, dare I say sexy even, with it’s leather piping. All the heart eyes!
In choosing the sofa, I went with the same principles as with the first floor, durable–check washable–check, dark to hide inevitable wear–check.
What stood out to me most on this sofa, were the throw pillows (GASP!) I’m usually one to always omit the throw pillows that come with sofas. But I feel like you can never go wrong with a modern black and white plaid.
To add a pop of color to the space, I threw in these green velvety pillows, that tie in well with the wall art over the dining table.
I absolutely adored this ottoman, and it worked perfectly to create a cozy little reading nook under that window.
Doesn’t this wall art look familiar?
Some coffee table books (courtesy of Emily), a small vase, a faux fern, finished the styling off in this space just right!
Utilizing some strategic space planning, and smaller scale furnishings, we were able to create a space that is charming and mega stylish!
You can shop this apartment below:
Alexis Chair / Dining Set / Dining Table / TV console /Dining Chair / TV Console / Sofa / Ottoman / Nesting Tables
This was such a fun and rewarding project, and there’s no way I could have pulled this off without the generous support of Raymour and Flanigan, and my friends who gave of the their time and talent to make this project such a success!
Be sure to check out the other spaces from this project below, you won’t be disappointed:
We are so grateful to Raymour and Flanigan for their unwavering support and commitment to community involvement.
Carli you are absolutely amazing for making this whole entire project happen, between partnering with Raymour & Flanigan (who are so incredibly generous!) to rounding up such a great group of bloggers, and setting all this into motion, it was a lot of work on your behalf but look at this end result!! WOWWWWW about your first apartment with those floors and the two fireplaces……and the third floor with the slanted ceiling came out great! Love the layout and how warm and welcoming you made this space!! Congrats and thank you for inviting me to be part of such a special project. XOX
Carli, Great job! How long do the residents get to live in these apartments? What are the requirements? Thank you for helping these people in need.