Guys -- this was bad. 

Like really, really bad. 

When Dan brought me in here I was flabbergasted. Truly I don't think I've seen such a dramatic before and after, and that includes 6" shag rug carpeting soaked in dog pee. (Sorry, but it's true.)

Of course it had potential - there were tons of windows, we were going to open it up ... this one was going to be wild. 

This was a closet of some kind but now? THAT IS JUST THE SHOWER!!!!

And not just any ENORMOUS shower - a rain shower. So luxurious - it was definitely an improvement. 

This spot was a galley kitchen that was off the main room of the kitchen, Since we were moving the sink out into the main kitchen space with the new layout, it opened up some interesting possibilities for this little space. Ultimately we decided this unit could really use laundry!

Such a difference getting all that cabinetry out of such a small space. Next week I'll share more on what this place looked like once we were finished! You won't believe it - no seriously, you actually might not believe me. 

This little house. *longing sigh*

It's in a small historic section of the south side of the city full of mansions - when the Jewelry industry was thriving in Providence and before the highway was built, people lived in this area that was so close to their work. Some of the houses are grand and monstrous, but I prefer one's like this - just a nice little home with a great yard and tons of potential!

Not that pretty now, but so cute!


And this is a lot of green space for the city (this is without showing you what's behind the camera), plus it has a driveway - enough for two cars!

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And this "kitchen" -- it was divided into a small little pantry and the larger room below, but this area where you see the stove will become a half bath which the house desperately needed. And that fridge? That is the location for the new wet bar!

This room (above) is the new kitchen. Big island, open shelving - it will be a cook's kitchen for sure, with loads of functionality.

So demo is done and the putting it back together process is already well underway - we just finished insulating yesterday. This master is a completely different space - vaulted ceilings, exposed beams, recessed lighting and gorgeous hardwoods - it's really going to be breathtaking.
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But this.

This will truly be the biggest and most amazing transition for this house. This bathroom was not only fifty-shades-of-brown, it was cramped and dingy. As you can tell from the one angle I could get of it. This is going to be a completely different with loads of updated old-world charm (the sneak of the clawfoot tub was on my instagram)

Moore to come! (HA!)


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So excited for this one - Danny beat me to it, posting some pics on Instagram but I had to give this the full treatment because he did GOOD. In case you forgot, this is what we were working with up here just a few short months ago: 

A lot of lessons learned in this project - it's not perfect, and there are plenty of things that we would have done differently but man oh man - I would have LOVED to live in an apartment like this when I was renting!

​The bedrooms each have a window, but I like this one best because of the skylight. I have always liked them - and that closet is pretty good too, goes all the way back and down the angled wall! 

Those bricks were tough because we wanted to leave them but weren't sure how because we didn't want them to make a mess of the rooms, but sealing them turned out great. I was nervous of how it would look but it does look really good. 

Especially in the front hallway/stair: 
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First and third floors are rented but we still need to find someone to take the Second floor so if you know anyone who is looking, send them our way!!
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It's so much better.

Ugh, remember when it looked like this? www.instagram.com/p/BV8fASNlMP9/?hl=en&taken-by=elmrealestateanddesign

This is so much better *exhale*

I love a gutted space - something about the blank slate of it is so exciting. A little frightening, but mostly exciting haha. Remember that pretty gross apartment from the last post? Well, look at 'er now:

RIGHT???

Tons of natural light - and that chimney? I can't wait for the finished product on this one - we aren't very good about taking before shots so this one will be super satisfying to see the before/after.

With a brand new bathroom, walk-in closets, and laundry in the unit, whomever moves into this place will be very happy. Dan wants to a white, more minimal kitchen so I am getting that design together for him. Some of my inspiration: 

Simple, clean, and classic ... with a little modern sensibility. Know what I mean?

Would you be excited to find an apartment with one of these kitchens in it?

If this looks like a doozy, that's because it is. Cave-like is what comes to mind.

That texture on the wall alone is enough to make most people turn around and walk right back out the door. Those are the ones that are my favorites though - the ones that don't look like there's nothing to be done.

What do you mean you don't want to walk in here barefoot?

These photos were brightened quite a bit and a large flash was used to get it to look even remotely light enough to show. It's being demoed right now and I can't want to see the space with all the distraction taken away. As much as I do get a feel for what I want something to look like in the first few moments, there's something that happens when I go in once it's been "wiped" so to speak. It's like I drag and drop in my minds eye.

Needless to say you can see there is a lot to do here. Blank slate photos and some idea boards to come this week!!

Ok so this is a doozy that will probably require multiple posts but wanted to start the journey of this property. We bought this property from a man whose family owned the house for many years. There had been a fire and he was working to get it back to livable conditions and had fully gutted all three floors. This would be the largest project we had taken on by far, but we were very excited at the possibilities for this space.

This is the third floor - what was the attic will now be a fantastic open concept two bedroom apartment. This was taken standing in the back entry to what will be the kitchen - there is now a skylight in that ceiling bay on the far left and that laminate flooring is all pulled up. And if you're wondering if the chimney looks a little crooked, it is - because who was ever going to see it if it was in the attic? Haha!

Third floor bathroom all framed out - there is some really great tile going on this floor and that window is going to look pretty bananas when this starts to come together. I love the space in this bathroom - especially since the whole apartment has the slanted ceilings, it's great that it will have such a roomy bathroom. 

Pitter patter. This space makes my heart sing. The natural light, all that brick (which we are leaving exposed as part of the design) and those original built ins with the glass doors. I just ... *sigh*

The kitchen will mostly be located on the far side of the fireplace and the three bedrooms are all on the left side of the photo. There will be an awesome bold tile detail in the kitchen that I'm super excited about and these floors, though you can't tell from the photo, will clean up nicely! 

A little sneak peak for what's coming! Keep checking back for updates!

Our parents think we are nuts. Leaving a perfectly good, very nice single family home with a gorgeous yard on a great street to move into the second floor apartment of a 3-family house in the city. I mean, we were technically in the city before, but it felt like the suburbs ... in that I got in my car for everything, including my morning coffee. 

The photo above was taken  in the kitchen of our two bedroom apartment that is in walking distance to some of the best coffee and restaurants in all of Providence. We couldn't be happier here, and while we realize this isn't the choice for everyone we have been thoroughly enjoying the benefits of our new location. 

This was a fun space for me to design - with super tall ceilings and a ton of natural light it was hard to go wrong. I did have an EXTREMELY tight budget, and I couldn't paint the walls a different color, but almost everything in this kitchen will be re-purposed for a future project or two so nothing will go to waste as we renovate this space into our master bedroom down the road. More on that later ...