Mission Possible: A Designer Decorates a Blank Apartment in 4 Days
When interior designer Dona Rosene picked up a call from a number she didn’t recognize at 5 p.m. on a Monday, she had no idea how busy her week was about to become. A single guy named Jared Husch from Miami had found her via Houzz. He was moving to Dallas that weekend, and he needed his new apartment completely outfitted by the time he arrived.
Bringing just his clothing, his dog and a juicer, the 27-year-old Husch asked Rosene to make the place clean and masculine. While she had a lot of freedom in the design, everything she chose had to be readily available and delivered by that Friday, four days away. Husch gave her a $10,000 budget for furniture and accessories. Here’s how she did it.
Monday evening: The call. After the initial phone call at 5 p.m., Rosene and Husch emailed back and forth; he sent her pictures of his new empty apartment plus the floor plans and styles he liked. The contemporary apartment had dark wood floors, white walls and exposed concrete.
“I worked on some budget numbers to see if I could even do it,” she says. “I wasn’t completely convinced he was serious” that first night.
The apartment enjoys great views from the 20th floor of a building in Dallas’ Uptown neighborhood, an artsy enclave.
Tuesday: Rosene hits the ground running. She quickly learned she could pick up pieces from stores like Z Gallerie, West Elm and Crate & Barrel if they were in stock or on clearance. She hit local Dallas store Weir’s Furniture and found the sofa for $1,299, deciding such an important piece was worth the big dent in her budget. She also found the media cabinet, bar stools, nightstands, bed and mattress there.
From there she hit up West Elm and Pier 1 Imports and took photos to get an idea of her options and how to pull everything together. She snatched up a striped lumbar pillow at Pier 1, deciding it would give her the bedroom color palette, and put the swivel chair and ottoman on hold. The pillow gave her a cool masculine mix of teals, grays and browns to work with.
She found the bed at Weir’s for $300 and spent $1,000 on a good mattress and box spring, consulting with Husch by phone about his mattress firmness preference.
A late night trip to Bed, Bath & Beyond scored her the bedding. “The rectangular quilting kept the clean and masculine lines,” she says. Bleary-eyed, she made it to the checkout area with seconds to spare before closing time, also picking up sheets, bed pillows and other necessities.
Continue reading Mission Possible: A Designer Decorates a Blank Apartment in 4 Days
Bringing just his clothing, his dog and a juicer, the 27-year-old Husch asked Rosene to make the place clean and masculine. While she had a lot of freedom in the design, everything she chose had to be readily available and delivered by that Friday, four days away. Husch gave her a $10,000 budget for furniture and accessories. Here’s how she did it.
Monday evening: The call. After the initial phone call at 5 p.m., Rosene and Husch emailed back and forth; he sent her pictures of his new empty apartment plus the floor plans and styles he liked. The contemporary apartment had dark wood floors, white walls and exposed concrete.
“I worked on some budget numbers to see if I could even do it,” she says. “I wasn’t completely convinced he was serious” that first night.
The apartment enjoys great views from the 20th floor of a building in Dallas’ Uptown neighborhood, an artsy enclave.
Tuesday: Rosene hits the ground running. She quickly learned she could pick up pieces from stores like Z Gallerie, West Elm and Crate & Barrel if they were in stock or on clearance. She hit local Dallas store Weir’s Furniture and found the sofa for $1,299, deciding such an important piece was worth the big dent in her budget. She also found the media cabinet, bar stools, nightstands, bed and mattress there.
From there she hit up West Elm and Pier 1 Imports and took photos to get an idea of her options and how to pull everything together. She snatched up a striped lumbar pillow at Pier 1, deciding it would give her the bedroom color palette, and put the swivel chair and ottoman on hold. The pillow gave her a cool masculine mix of teals, grays and browns to work with.
She found the bed at Weir’s for $300 and spent $1,000 on a good mattress and box spring, consulting with Husch by phone about his mattress firmness preference.
A late night trip to Bed, Bath & Beyond scored her the bedding. “The rectangular quilting kept the clean and masculine lines,” she says. Bleary-eyed, she made it to the checkout area with seconds to spare before closing time, also picking up sheets, bed pillows and other necessities.
Continue reading Mission Possible: A Designer Decorates a Blank Apartment in 4 Days
