SATURDAY: Design D'Jour MODEL Before and After

Design D'Jour post this week was shaping up to be a "reveal" of sorts, but a gap in plans and a missed telephone call has left that a little up in the air. So, here are some before and afters of a model apartment project in Amherst, New York I did last year:

The Before

Not quite the place you could expect a young urban professional to call home, right? That's exactly what my client said to me when she asked for my help - and did I ever agree. The problem? A TIGHT budget - and I mean, TI-II-IiiiiiiiiGHT budget! 670 square feet and only $3,000 and 48 hours to make it model perfect for perspective tenants.

The After (Day)

The chairs flank a modern table made to mimic the lines of brick layer tables. The sofa, a contemporary classic is covered in a mushroom brown colored velveteen cotton and stools serve as additional seating, or as convenient side tables. The collection is meant to be fresh and sophisticated, urban but eclectic, and gender neutral.

The After (Night)

I opted for warmer colored fabrics and softer more textural fabrics in this space to give a warm and welcoming, "Cozy" feeling to this space. With more than 6-months a year lost to snow and ice, coming into a warm and cozy living space is what we all long for.

The dining room area before:

And after (day):

And after (night):
The table before (which will make a re-vamped debut soon) was much too big for this space. I opted for this bistro size table and chairs (BigLots, $187.) and this bookcase/buffet (Christmas Tree Shop $129.99) to give this space a larger feeling while still having all the function.

I replaced this:

With this:

The wooden bowl atop the black cabinet relates back to the warm wood tones of the living room tables, while the cream accents and green-stained picture frames bring in color tones of the accessories found throughout the space.

The kitchen after. Another "tablescape" I worked with very little money to create. A new lamp shade from Hobby Lobby (14.99) on an existing lamp, and 4 bottles of Pellagrino behind a bamboo cutting board ($6.99 - Christmas Tree Shop) was all it took to create a stylish, high end display.

The master bedroom (largest bedroom) before. (Above.)

The vignette/tablescape atop the master bedroom dresser. Existing artwork was layered along with black felt boxes to create depth and interest. The palette was soft and neutral with a pop of ...

Peacock blue! Oh, how I love thee! White pintuck duvet layered with a peacock blue throw, 2 dupioni silk toss pillows and we had a soft but equally masculine feeling space - don't you think?

And to minimize my art costs, I extended the rods 3' to either side of the window and hung peacock blue drapes I found at Pier 1 for $39.99 per panel. Sheer voile panels in between make best use of all the light the room gets throughout the day.

The guest (smaller bedroom) before:


And it's new "Green" makeover:

The second bedroom after. Ikat in navy and white pair up nicely with kelly green trellis duvet and art that is an Artie original. To bring the color of that green around the room, I simply stopped at Hobby Lobby and picked up this 24x36" canvas, and then color matched the green of the sheets to Lowes "Globe Artichoke" by Olympic Paints. A small tester size paint can for $2.94 was all I needed.

I hope you enjoyed your tour! See you again Monday, (maybe) definitely Tuesday - for one of my inspiring designers yet! Stick around!