Contest: Turn Your Apartment into Your Dream Home

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Carolyn Murnick, and editor at New York Magazine, hired Homepolish to help her turn her Bed-Stuy apartment from this...

Carolyn Murnick, and editor at New York Magazine, hired Homepolish to help her turn her Bed-Stuy apartment from this…

..into this. Photos: Homepolish

..into this. Photos: Homepolish

As New Yorkers we pay dearly for limited space, and this can lead to a bad Ikea habit–when close to half your income goes toward rent each month it can be hard to justify investing even more in your apartment. We’re here to tell you though, creating a beautiful and comfortable oasis in the middle of a city where personal space is at a premium is SO worth it. And professional help transforming your home into exactly what you want it to be is not nearly as expensive as you might think.

Homepolish is a genius new service that connects you to an interior designer for totally reasonable rates. They do full home designs like the one pictured above (more on that in a minute) and renovations, or they can help you turn an office into a baby’s room, or an underused space into a dining area, working within your budget. In fact we like what they’re up to so much that we teamed up with Homepolish and WorkOf–which curates and sells apartment transforming furniture and accessories–to give you a chance to win a modern and elegant piece that will set your bedroom aglow or completely transform your living room. Enter now. 

We also chatted with Anna Gray, a Homepolish editor about a dramatic design job their designer Adam Verboys recently did in Bed-Stuy (it caught our eye on their portfolio pages), and how less extensive projects can also transform a space.

This lamp from WorkOf will really tie the room together. Photo: WorkOf

This lamp from WorkOf will really tie the room together.  Enter now. Photo: WorkOf

Brooklyn Based: What are two things that almost anyone can do right now, at low cost, to improve their apartment?

Homepolish: 1. Paint your walls! Understand what kind of natural light your space gets and what vibe you’d like to evoke. Find inspiration images on Pinterest that match those two criteria and pick a few colors that might work. Painting (and researching) takes time but it’s inexpensive and makes a huge difference to any room.
2. Adding color and texture with accessories is inexpensive and easy. Cushions, decorative items for your shelves, small rugs and even coffee table books can do a lot to change a room.
What were the main design challenges on Carolyn Murnick’s Bed-Stuy apartment?
The apartment was completely empty before Adam Verboys (our designer) took on the project. Our client, Carolyn, had just moved to the neighborhood after living in a Williamsburg loft for eight years so the adjustment from open floor plan to brownstone was interesting and fun. Updating the building’s classic architecture (crown mouldings, beautiful hardwood floors, big old windows) with color and midcentury pieces was an awesome project to watch unfold. The entry way was totally bare but Adam had the amazing idea to add a fake fireplace! it looks incredible and takes up no floor space but totally improved the area.
What were some of the strategies the designer used to make a classic, vintage-feeling brownstone look so fresh and modern?
The purple walls and strategic placement of the colorful abstract painting in the dining room were important additions to the space. Midcentury furnishings automatically make a space look chic but they say so much more when in interesting colors like the blue of the dining chairs and the reddish eggplant of the sofa. The stone coffee table and stainless steel finishings in the kitchen/entry do a lot to make the home feel modern, too.
What are some ways that Homepolish can help that might not be obvious?
Homepolish doesn’t specialize in any one design aesthetic so we can cater to every client’s decor interests from eclectic midcentury–like Carolyn’s–to pared down spaces for the laid back to Hollywood regency for the super chic. We want people to know that interior designer can exponentially improve your life! Sometimes your apartment just needs an objective (and talented) set of eyes to give it a once over. The changes that will seriously improve your space aren’t always obvious.

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