Lotus and SHACK get underway with the Women's Refuge project...

We’ve now completed two fantastic working-bee days at the Women's Refuge and have made wonderful improvements. The girls from Lotus - Angela Wilson, Amanda McSeveny and Georgie Wollaston were there. Along with Lance, Rob, Helen, Prim and myself from the SHACK team. As well, the following kind-hearted people volunteered their time and energy - Joy Jagleman, Jane Liu Fang, Tracey Gronau, Erin Barlow, Dee Geary and Katy Geary.

On the first day, we made great progress in the shared living and lounge rooms. We cleaned and completely repainted it a cosy, soft white with a lovely pale tea-coloured feature wall. Lots of muscles were used to detach a bank of built-in cupboards which were relocated to the other end of the room which created a much more usable area for the lounges. It is so much brighter and more welcoming. One of Shack’s handsome Rhode Island Large Buffets will go in on our final styling day.

The second day saw us buzz around like crazy – making huge changes to the kitchen / dining room and sunroom.

The kitchen and dining room had one dark red wall and the rest of the walls were lime green. It was very dark and gloomy. The sunroom was packed full of old stuff and not usable, so needed a particularly good clean. So it was all looking a bit grim.

In just over four hours we repositioned the fridge to open up the space, cleaned and repainted the kitchen / dining room and the sunroom – what an incredible difference! We also brought in the New York plain 1.8m table and Parisian chairs and put up the New York square mirror, it looks so good!

Everything was taken out of the kitchen cupboards and reorganised by a professional organiser Sue Blake and her hard-working assistants. They also sorted out all the books – two very big tasks.

The biggest change however was to the sunroom – it is on its way to becoming ‘the sanctuary’ – a private space just for the mothers to rest and think in peace and quiet. The luxurious new rug has gone down, the gorgeous white and gold vintage Victorian iron bed is in position.

At the next working bee, the finishing touches will happen in 'the sanctuary’ – the linen will go on the vintage bed, the sheer white voile draping for the ceiling, the hand-painted gold table – it will be so pretty and restful.

We'll also be completing the styling of the living, lounge and dining rooms by hanging artwork, mirrors, curtains, Christmas bunting and other decorative items. We look forward to everything coming together in time for the families to enjoy these spaces for their Christmas holidays. They definitely deserve some beauty and joy around them as they journey through a very difficult time.

The ladies get busy restoring furniture...

Wow Lotus is heading into a very very busy end of the year and we are super excited about the projects coming up. Not only do we have our refuge makeover with SHACK but we also have makeover Part 2 for Simone* as well as a makeover for another gorgeous young lady. These final few months of 2011 are going to be simply awesome as we help to 'Restore Hope and Beauty' to families who are rebuilding their lives after experiencing some really challenging circumstances.

As usual the Lotus ladies are always up to something and last week was no exception. This time we rolled our sleeves up and literally got our hands dirty as we cleaned, sanded and painted some tired pieces of furniture. I personal love watching the transformation that can occur as you chose to see potential in something that many people would simply toss out. Of course many hands made light work and the ladies got stuck into all of the preparation work so that I could paint and finish off some bedside tables and a wonderful little child's table and chair set. Check out our handy work.

Jane jumps straight into sanding.

Tammy and Angela give the mouse sander a workout.

Roslyn joined us this week and we put her straight to work.

Thanks Roslyn for your willingness to jump in and do whatever was needed.

We are so appreciative of your efforts.

We had several sanding projects: 1) some very very tired walnut coloured side tables,
2)some little timber children's chairs, 3) a gorgeous ornate dining table (which is still being worked on),
and 4) a few stools which have been ear marked for future restoration days. 

 After a quick bite for lunch the ladies tackled the first coat of paint.

Children's chair before

Children's chair after

 

 

So here is the finished product. These were not originally a set but after some gluing, sanding and paint this little veneer table came up a treat and I think they look great together. I loved restoring these little chairs and completing this table and I can't wait for the right little person's room to place them in.

 

So these are the before photos of the bedside tables. 

 And here are the finished draws. I am really really happy with how they have come up and I hope Simone* loves what has been done with her bedside tables. I can't wait for her to see them when we get to complete Part 2 of her makeover.

Thank you ladies for all of your hard work and for helping me with all of the prep work on these items of furniture. Together we have done a fantastic job and I know their future homes will love them.

As we have restored beauty to these tired pieces of furniture, may they in-turn be inspiration to their future families, as they courageously rebuild their lives. 

Very soon we will be posting the dates for our refuge makeover with SHACK so make sure you keep an eye out for those dates if you would like to be involved.

Lotus Interiors - Restoring Beauty

*Please note that names have been changed.

Lotus Interiors and SHACK are making over a Women's Refuge...

To date Lotus Interiors has only made over the private homes of individual families. But Lotus Interiors is about to take on a new and very exciting refuge makeover project. In conjunction with SHACK, who have been one of our greatest supporters we will be endeavouring to restore beauty and hope to the women and children who receive such desperately needed assistance from this Women's refuge.

Shack is a local family owned and operated small business with stores at Chatswood Chase, Home HQ Artarmon and Moore Park SupaCenta. They opened their first store on Sydney’s North Shore in the early 1990’s out of a passion for beautiful things and the desire to share them. Over the last 18 years, Shack has become a leader in the lifestyle industry and has earned an enviable reputation for its dedication to its customers and for sourcing items of beauty from across the globe at affordable prices.  Shack has been there supporting the work of Lotus Interiors since the beginning and all of our families have received some of their beautiful homewares. They have generously given everything from exquisite cushions and linen, gorgeous silk flowers, decorator pieces, artwork and furniture items. For this latest project they have even contributed the passion, dedication and knowledge of some of their fabulous team. Together SHACK and Lotus Interiors are extremely excited about being able to support the work of Erin's Place.

The Women's Refuge that we are assiting provides supported crisis accommodation for women with dependent children who are escaping domestic violence. The facility offers communal type living for up to four families at a time, each occupying one bedroom and sharing all other household facilities and living spaces. The service provides counseling for both women and for children, court support, advocacy, information, brokerage and emergency financial assistance, as well as appropriate referrals to other agencies.

Here in Sydney many women and children fleeing domestic violence end up in refuges just like this one. They are scared, hurt and broken. At present this Women's Refuge is tired and neglected – a lot like the people who land on its doorsteps!

Help us restore hope and beauty for these families as they find rest in the walls of the Women's Refuge. Together we can make it a beautiful sanctuary where families can heal and begin again.

For ways you can help, please see below!

- Lounge -

- Enclosed Verandah -

- Bedroom -

- Bedroom -

- Dining -

What can you do to help!

1. Donate an item:

•  Indoor plants / pots / hanging baskets
• Cane/wicker day bed or outdoor type lounge
• Grass floor mat (must fit within 2.5m x 3m) – for enclosed verandah
• Fairy lights
• Large rectangular wall mirror for dining room
• 3 medium size mirrors for bedrooms
• 8 dining room chairs (easy clean)
• Computer or laptop – for older children to do homework
• WII games for kids to play on
• Stools or Ottomans for kids desk/homework area
• Lounges (leather or vinyl – easy wipe down) – preferably charcoal / grey or chocolate
• Paint – neutral colours & gloss white!!! Lots of it!
• Carpet – would love to be able to re-carpet 2 of the bedrooms if someone can help!
• Cushions &; decorative items
• Matching manchester for (3) 2 x bedrooms – all rooms have doubles and single bunks per room

2. Volunteer your time or skills: 

• House Painters - professional or amateur all welcome! We want to re-paint the bedrooms, living room and dining area.
• Artists - create a painting of hope to be placed a family bedroom. Email us for more details!
• Handy people - to help hang paintings & curtains etc on the makeover days
• Tradesperson - to help “possum proof” an enclosed verandah!
• Carpet Layer
• Beauty Therapists/Massage Therapists/ Hairdressers - to pamper the mums on makeover days. Contact us to find out more.

3. Offer Financial Support:

If you can’t volunteer your time or can’t provide any of the requested items and you would still love to be involved, then we would love your financial support. Your contribution will purchase a required item or provide financial assistance to pay for tradespeople or the necessary hardware to make this project possible.

You can show your interest by emailing us on lotus.interiors.team@gmail.com

A Birthday Wish Come True....

We are currently working with mum, Simone* and her three daughters, Karen* (12), Melanie* (5) and Sarah* (3). Simone* was born in Peru, one of six children, in a very poor farming region. She grew up witnessing her mother, a victim of terrible domestic violence. Simone fell pregnant with her first daughter Karen and unfortunately her daughter's father didn't want to know them. Simone and Karen moved to Australia looking to start a new life. Simone married an Australian man and had Melanie and Sarah, then found herself the victim of domestic violence. Simone and her three girls have been living in crisis housing for the past 12 months and have recently moved into permanent housing.

Melanie & Sarah's Room Before

Melanie & Sarah's Bedroom After

We aimed to help this familiy by making over their house in a few stages. In the first stage we set about making over the girls bedrooms, to coincide with a birthday party that was to take place the following day. We put together a pretty room for the younger girls with floral quilts and gorgeous artworks donated by SHACK homewares. A simple restored lamp and a beautiful donated flag bunting across the room also made a great feature.

Karen's Bedroom Before

At Karen's request we created a gorgeous room in a mix of black and white, silver and gold. Thanks to SHACK homewares for their stunning linen and soft furnishings we were able to give her bed a slightly grown up feel. We incorporated various donated items with Karen's own collection of books, toys and posters (every 12 year old needs a poster of Zac Efron!!). An incredible artwork called "Crowned" created by Amanda of Beautifully Recreated set at the head of the bed finished the room beautifully. Hanging all of the artworks in the girls rooms was made easy thanks to a wonderful donation of Command Hooks we received earlier this year from 3M.

 Karen's Bedroom After

"Crowned" is the work of Amanda McSeveny - beautifullyrecreated.com.au,

2011, Mixed Medium on Canvas

Simone and the girls were extremely grateful for the generosity of the Lotus team and I'm sure it was an unforgetable birthday for Sarah. Simone was overwhelmed and said she just kept going back into the rooms to look at them. It has once again been a pleasure to be involved in creating these rooms for such deserving and appreciative young girls. Thank you to all the generous donors of both new and pre loved items, who have made part 1 of this makeover possible.

Stay tuned for the completion of the rest of their home.

Restoring Hope and Beauty....

PS - If you have a small outdoor setting that you no longer require that is still in good condition could you please let us know at lotus.interors.team@gmail.com as we would love to be able to provide one to this family.

 

*Please note that names have been changed.

Making a house a home...

Recently, The Lotus Interiors team worked their magic for Amy*, 19 and her beautiful 14 month old son Luke*. Like many of the families we help, Amy had left an abusive relationship and had very little with which to start their new lives.

Dinning Room - Before

 Dinning Room - After

After moving into her public housing placement, the Lotus team came to visit and had the opportunity to assess what was needed to turn this house into a home for Amy* and Luke.* Armed with an itinerary, we raided our storage unit for the necessary items and called in the cavalry to help create some items to help personalise the environment.

We decided on a red, blue and yellow colour scheme for Luke’s room and thanks to the wonderful efforts of Chantal, we even had beautiful new curtains made specially for his bedroom. The bed linen and cushions were kindly donated by Shack Homewares, and Samantha from Shack even designed and created a gorgeous artwork for his wall.

Luke's Room - Before

 Luke's Room - After

 In the living room, a friend had given Amy* a 3 piece lounge setting, so we created the theme for this room around them using textured finishes and warm earthy colours. Thanks to Marie Hampson for making the wonderful curtains for this room. The living room is the heart of the home and has a welcoming feel to it. It is now a place where Amy* can have friends over and feel comfortable entertaining and also provides Luke* with another place to play with his mum and his toys.

 Lounge - Before

Lounge Room - After

Following through with the warm, rich colour scheme of the living area, we wanted Amy’s* room to feel like a sanctuary where she could go to really relax and unwind. With it’s thick red velvet curtains, sumptuous cushions and a beautiful bedspread courtesy of Shack Homewares, this bedroom really is a beautiful space.

   

Amy's Room - Before

  

Amy's Room - After

This house has undergone an amazing transformation to become a home for Amy* and Luke* - a place where they can feel safe and secure, and start their new life together.

The Lotus Interiors team is proud to be able to help families like Amy’s* to take a positive step towards the future by restoring beauty to their lives and providing them with an environment that inspires hope, happiness and self worth.

Thanks to all those people who continue to make this possible for us through their generosity, time and a myriad of special skills!

Restoring Hope and Beauty....

*Please note that names have been changed.