Friday, February 15, 2013

The Next Lotus Project....


We are currently getting set to help out an amazing family who came out to Australia from England only to arrive and have their 7 year old little girl diagnosed with cancer. She has been receiving treatment for the last 12 months which has been a devastating, rigorous and challenging road. To add to all of this their other little girl, who is 5, is autistic and rather a handful!

Their home is sadly lacking in beauty, hope and joy and Lotus Interiors would love to help them bring these things back and in some way provide a sanctuary admist so much adversity.

The house is tiny and full of bulky furniture so we hope to track down some storage pieces better suited and help them get more organised.

DONATIONS REQUIRED

*Compact storage pieces eg....bookshelves, wardrobes, chests of draws etc

*Tv/slim line unit for a plasma tv.

Please email me the measurements and a photo and we will see if they will work in their home. Thank you all in advance for your support and generosity.

Friday, January 4, 2013

A Beautiful New Home For Christmas!

Julie and her beautiful little 16 month old Lucy have had a difficult road but now it's time to turn a corner with a glamorous new home to match. The wonderful Tammy & Megan joined me to transform this tired little unit into a stylish and sophisticated home that Julie can be proud of.

BEFORE

AFTER




Many thanks to Katherine Holihan for the the gorgeous artwork, to SHACK Homewares for the pretty tea set and to Sarah Castillo for the glamorous suede chairs.


BEFORE
                                                         
AFTER



A big thank you to Haylee Sloper for the black floral cushions, to SHACK Homewares for the gorgeous french provincial white table and other accessories.



BEFORE



AFTER




A Special thank you to Sarah Marriot from Hare + Klein Interior Designers for personally making the gorgeous denim pin board and to SHACK Homewares for the various accessories. Julie is studying a law degree so this desk area has arrived just in time as she studies for her exams. How inspiring!
                                               
BEFORE



AFTER


Thank you to Tanya Morgan for the beautiful bunting, to SHACK Homewares for the artwork and to Voula Papageorgiou for the cot manchester.
                                               
This was our final makeover for 2012! WE HOPE THAT ALL OF OUR SUPPORTERS HAVE HAD A HAPPY CHRISTMAS! We appreciate you all so much. See you in 2013!



Angela Wilson
Founder
Lotus Interiors


Friday, December 7, 2012

Fresh start for a young mum

Karen is a young mum who fell pregnant at 19 with her first daughter Penny. Karen was in a toxic and unhealthy relationship which ended leaving Karen and Penny homeless and living with various friends until they received assistance. When we were introduced to Karen she was pregnant with her second baby and we had planned to makeover her unit before baby arrived but as things would happen, Susan arrived very early! 

As she was premature she was to spend some time in hospital before coming home which has allowed us time to proceed with our makeover as planned and we were so pleased with the result.

We provided a cot for baby Susan and decorated it with the clients own soft toys and bedding. We added a large white toy box to the girl's room for extra storage. Some lovely bird and butterfly artworks were hung above each bed and the beds were all made up with fresh linen and decorative cushions and soft toys.

Girls bedroom before makeover

Girls bedroom after makeover



The girl's beds makeover


Karen's room was decorated with two beautiful artworks and matching timber bedside tables and lamps. The Madras Link linen and cushions donated by SHACK homewares looked beautiful and the clients own red and white parasol matched the scheme perfectly. Some beautiful vases from Katherine Holihan and some of the clients own items were placed on the chest of drawers. We also added a gorgeous white Boori bassinet for baby's early days. Red and white boxes from Howards Storage and other donated baskets made neat storage solutions.

Karen's bedroom before makeover



Susan's room after makeover
We hope the girls are all settled back at home now and enjoying their newly decorated rooms. We hope to have given this young Mum a well deserved treat and inspired her own creative flair! Thank you so much to all involved and to all those who contributed items for this makeover.

Tammy Scharenguivel & Georgie Wollaston

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Out of Africa

Background

Sophie was born in Liberia Africa.  She lived with her parents and siblings until 1989 when the war began. Sophie’s tribe were one of those particularly targeted during the war causing Sophie and her father to flee the country with only the clothes on their back in search of safety. She believed her mother had died in the war as they were separated and never saw each other again. Sophie lived in a refugee camp in Guinea for 15 years, where she experienced extremely traumatic physical and emotional abuse, constant danger and extreme poverty. There was little or no education in the camp.

In 2004, Sophie immigrated as a refugee to Australia with her father and siblings, settling in Newcastle . Sadly, a few years later her father passed away. Sophie found it difficult to find work in Newcastle so after her father died she moved to Sydney and shared a unit with an African friend.  At that time she was able to secure work as a housekeeper and is now a valued staff member.

Shortly after moving to Sydney the lease on the rental property Sophie was sharing ended as the landlord decided to move in.  With her lack of family support, education and poor English skills, Sophie found it impossible to find a rental property.  The landlord allowed her to store her property in the garage temporarily but with nowhere else to go, all she could do was live in the garage.  

Fortunately Sophie found assistance. She has maintained her employment (gaining many awards for her outstanding work), and continued to work hard to provide a future for herself. She has had to face many challenges.  Sophie has experienced great disadvantage in her life, yet despite this she remains positive and optimistic. She currently attends TAFE full time to improve her English and continues to work before and after class as well as weekends. 


The Makeover Day

We began at Rhodes Self Storage and with Rob's assistance loaded a car full of beautiful donated homewares. Sophie is living in a studio apartment which provided the challenge of combining the kitchen, living area and bedroom all in one room. 

We were so privileged to have photographer Aran Anderson come along on the makeover day to photograph the room. We appreciate this very generous gift of his time and expertise, as you will see below his photos are incredible.(www.aranandersonphotography.com.au)

We went with an African inspired theme and some of the vases and statues recently donated by stylist Katherine Holihan fitted the theme perfectly. 

Kitchen before makeover




Kitchen after makeover

A set of three dark timber stools donated by Sarah Castillo and a refurbished side table gave Sophie a relaxed and versatile area to sit with visitors or pull up to the kitchen bench.




Bedroom Before Makeover

Cushions from Shack Homewares added a luxurious feel to her bed and a print also donated by Katherine Holihan together with Amanda McSeveny's group of four paper artworks also looked beautiful in the room. Some fabulous items donated by Howards Storage World were great for storing shoes and other personal items with limited space. Donated cane baskets were also used to create additional storage that looked great.





Bedroom Makeover After



Outdoor Area Before Makeover

Sophie's unit also had a very large balcony where we were able to create a comfortable outdoor living space which will be great in Summer.





Outdoor Area After Makeover


A huge thank you to all those who were so generous in contributing to this special day for Sophie.


Wednesday, September 12, 2012

The Lotus team has been at it again...

This time we introduce Sarah Marriot, interior designer from Hare + Klein who has generously been allowed to assist us during her paid hours! A very big thank you to Meryl Hare we are so touched and grateful for Sarah's wisdom and expertise. Also a big thank you to Lotus volunteers - Ros, Rachel & Katy - you guys inspire me!


Mary*, a beautiful Indigenous mother and her young 2 year old son were the recipients of our next makeover and what a makeover it was! Mary* has grown up with domestic violence in her home and then ended up herself in a volatile relationship. She has however demonstrated incredible resilience and has strived to provide a better life for herself and her little boy by studying law through distance education. Understandably she struggles with self esteem and regardless of all her achievements she continues to have a negative self perception. We hope that this beautiful transformation will bring her renewed hope and belief in herself for the future.


Kitchen Before

The kitchen was very dated and retro so to speak - so we decided to work with this and this is the outcome! A very special thank you to Sarah Castillo for the gorgeous suede chairs, to SHACK for the numerous nick knacks and to Hare + Klein for the vase and crockery.


 
Kitchen After


The living room lacked personality! Now it doesn't! Again many thanks to Sarah Castillo for the gorgeous antique coffee table and to stylist, Katherine Holihan, for the art work.


Lounge Before


Lounge After

Mary's* bedroom was tired and disorganised.


Bedroom Before



Bedroom After

Now it is a beautiful sanctuary! A special thank you to SHACK for the gorgeous bedding, cushions and Louie chair! We all wanted to take them home! Thank you to SHACK customer Edward Winterton for donating the SHACK wardrobe - it is absolutely stunning in this room. Also to Louise Walsh Interior Design  for the beautiful handmade linen pillowcases......you are so generous!


Finally her little boys room was in need of a pick me up.....so that's what we did!



Child's Room Before

Child's Room After

"Volunteering my time alongside the Lotus team was rewarding in so many ways! After spending the day transforming a house into Home sweet Home was awesome! And seeing the huge difference it made to such a beautiful girls life was so special. What a great team of people working together to help a restore hope to young woman and children." Sarah Marriott.

Another job well done!

Angela Wilson
Lotus Interiors
Founder

*Please note names have been changed.