The Bachelorette Pad: Before Photos

It's a new year and I have a new project to share with you! Well, it's not that new but I'll get to that part in a minute. When I asked my client if I could post about her apartment on the blog she was very excited and before I even had a chance to ask her what to call her project she asked if it could be called "The Bachelorette Pad!" Perfect! Unlike The Bachelor, she actually wanted to get involved and be a part of the process including adding her side of the story to the blog.

"I am not sure what exactly prompted me to overhaul my apartment. It might have been a bad breakup, a Nate Berkus episode on Oprah, or the twentieth time I tripped over the badly tattered area rug. I had owned my apartment for about four years but I was still living with remnants from my first rental or hand me downs from family members (and we aren't talking nice heirloom hand me downs, more like, "we were going to donate it anyway furniture")."

"I had been reading Heather's blog for some time and thought she was just like me in that we were both young single girls living in New York City. But she had one thing going for her that I did not have: style (seriously, I buy more shoes at SuperRunners than I do at Bergdorf's). I decided to email her out of the blue and see if she would help me - lucky for me she was up for the challenge."

"So here we are a few months later getting ready to set our plans in motion. Since that first email I sent her until now things have not gone according to plan. I work in finance and the budget was well, "compromised." But I have complete faith that even with a slashed budget Heather will bring some of the style all of her loyal readers have come to know and love to my bachelorette pad."

Besides working in finance, The Bachelorette runs marathons and participates in triathlons (something that we all know is not my department) so we have to make room for lots of sports equipment and paraphernalia. She also asked if we could incorporate her race bibs into the design somewhere so we're going to frame them and hang them as art. She worked very hard for each and every one and they deserve to be proudly displayed! She also has a lot of wonderful furniture that we are keeping like the entry table above.

There are also some pieces that will be going such as the dining table and wicker chair, as well as the metal shelves that were the first thing you saw when you walked into the apartment. The Bachelorette never used the table so she was the one to suggest getting rid of it. I plan to move her desk from another corner of the living room to this wall so it will serves as another entry table of sorts and will allow her to look out the window while she works on her laptop instead of at the wall.

The navy blue sofa was a custom piece and was very expensive so of course it is staying. The pillows however will not. She also has some wonderful family art pieces including the needlepoint above the sofa that was made by her grandmother that will definitely be staying. It's those elements that make a home so personal and interesting. The one thing she shared with The Bachelor was a lack of lighting which was a top priority.

I'm not sure if you can tell but the chair is plaid. I joked with The Bachelorette that unlike The Bachelor whose apartment needed to become more adult, hers needed to become less adult. Another tag line could read, " from Greenwich to Glam!" She's a young and single girl and needs an apartment that reflects that a bit more but still remain her style. We're also looking at larger bookcases and shelving units for that wall and will move the small bookcase to another area.

The bedroom is a good size but didn't really have much going on. We've already ordered a headboard, draperies, new side tables and a new area rug. While I am still searching for the perfect bedside lamps. She also wanted new bedding so I think this room will see the biggest change.

We've already had the apartment painted (check back for a paint post) and it's made a dramatic difference. New York apartments tend to be painted a matte or eggshell finish which works well for some but in apartments without much light, it doesn't. We chose to paint most rooms in a satin finish for a little sheen.

I'll be at The Bachelorette Pad this week to start installing some of the furniture, moving things around and working on some projects. The project was delayed a little due to the economy. No one wants to be buying furniture when they could be layed off tomorrow but it looks like she is in the clear so it's full steam ahead, although we're not going crazy! She is very excited to see the apartment coming together and I can't wait to give her the glam apartment that she deserves! Check back for more updates!