My Home Initiative was an interior design collective supporting people stuck at home during the pandemic.
When Covid hit, three of my colleagues from Parsons and I decided to form a group to help people adapt their homes to meet the challenges of quarantine. We did remote interviews, brainstormed creative solutions to improve the space, and proposed changes (namely, rearranging furniture and changing lighting). Rarely did we suggest purchasing new things. Rather we repurposed, rearranged and reused what was already there. We were relatively free from aesthetic considerations because it didn’t really matter if the room looked a bit awkward—it was a pandemic! This allowed us to prioritize reuse and well-being. We really ought to be working this way all the time.
For Alex we focused on the living room. In the interview he said he wasn’t using this part of the apartment much, and it was clear he didn’t feel connected to the space. We swapped the sofa and media console to make room for the table where Alex does collage and drawing in the corner. Sitting here means he can see through the apartment instead of looking at the wall. We also had him mount the guitar in the middle of the west wall to be visible from the kitchen, where he works—like an invitation.
Ray and Sam were struggling to fit both their lives into their one-bedroom apartment. Ray is in med school and Sam works in advertising. It was hard for them to both get work done in the same space, and the furniture layout was not conducive to multiple uses. We suggested moving the sofa and television into the far corner of the living space, freeing up space at the window ledge to serve as a second work area. The additional floor space this creates makes it easier for them both to exercise. “It’s like a new apartment,” they said.
Helen is an actor, a teacher and writer, and has worked from home for years. Like many freelancers in the city, she relied on hotels, coffee shops and other public spaces to get work done in public when she felt lethargic or just needed to get out of the house. In quarantine, she spent most of the day in her home office, which she also uses for yoga and exercise, and sometimes as a bedroom if she can’t sleep and doesn’t want to wake her husband. She reported feeling lethargic around the middle of the day, and the position of the furniture was getting in the way of yoga. We recommended a new layout with a couple simple changes. The bookshelf moves to free up space for yoga, and the futon and desk swap sides. This second suggestion was in an effort to maximize the benefit of natural light—sunlight comes in the window and illuminates the north wall. Natural light is best for working. It increases energy and helps us focus.
Bea is a tattoo artist working in Italy. During quarantine, she wasn’t able to go to her studio to work, but she had a spare room in her house that was being used for storage. My Home Initiative performed some space-planning magic and transformed this space into a peasant and functional work space. Bea was thrilled.
