Inspiration in the Studio

Earlier this year, Elizabeth O’Neal, our Senior Designer, was chosen to design a custom chair to auction off to benefit the Green Chair Project as part of their Chairity event! The Green Chair Project is a non-profit organization that re-homes any home furnishings item from those that no longer need it to those that have a need. This is the definition of community and one of our favorite organizations to support!

It was such an honor to participate in this mission, but unfortunately, the actual in-person spring event was rescheduled and has now morphed into the new virtual world (thank you, Covid). The Green Chair Project will be auctioning off ten chairs created by local designers. The on-line auction begins on August 27th at 5pm and we wanted to give you a sneak peek of our own!

Elizabeth took a well-loved, traditional style chair and updated it by painting the legs, adding a modern fun fabric by Windy O’Connor and finishing the trim with a greek key detail above the legs.  The before and after photos are impressive!

Check out all of the chairs and register to bid through this link. This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to find that unique piece to add character to your home AND support a great cause at the same time!

Special thanks to our special friends at FinishPros, FiberSeal of the Triangle, and A. Hoke for sponsoring the project and helping bring Elizabeth’s vision to life!

Happy to attend Western Wake Women’s Club event for Meg’s Smile Foundation – one of the fundraisers we loved supporting this past year!

Cheers to 2018!  It’s going to be an incredible year and we cannot wait to share our design adventures.  There are some pretty fabulous projects in the works and we’re working hard to bring them to life.

Before we completely say goodbye to 2017, we wanted to take a moment to notice the charities and fundraisers we had the honor of supporting this year. At the end of the day, this business is about relationships and community. We believe that it is our responsibility to do our part to make our little corner of the world a better place.

We are so thankful for our clients who trust us with their most personal spaces and our team of vendors who support us in so many ways. Long ago we made the decision to support our clients’ charitable efforts. The generosity of our clients is impressive and it’s our mission to support their efforts. We are humbled and honored when we are asked to participate. From large, national organizations to smaller ones right in our backyard, we loved giving back.

Boys & Girls Club of Wake County | It’s amazing what a talented group of designers can do!  We were honored to participate in the DJF Builders Designer Showhouse to benefit the Boys and Girls Club.

The Green Chair Project | Repurposing and reupholstering for charity is a win-win at the Green Chair auction!

Old Baldy Foundation | So enjoyed hosting an Oyster Roast this fall with our friends from Bald Head Island and supporting Old Baldy.

The Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center | Amazing things are happening at Duke and this is a charity near and dear to our hearts.

Western Wake Women’s Club | A diverse group of selfless women who understand the importance of community.

Artspace Inspiration Fund | An annual event supporting the arts!

Town of Cary Gifting Tree Project | We hope this is just the first of many opportunities to do amazing things in Downtown Cary.

As we set team intentions and goals for 2018, giving back to our community remains a priority. We are thrilled to use our new studio as a setting for community outreach and events, and we look forward to both deepening and creating new relationships with our neighbors doing incredible work to lend a hand or touch a heart.

This is the perfect feel-good post to kick off Easter weekend! The Green Chair Project has an impressive mission: to reuse donated household furnishings to renew lives of participants referred from area programs who are recovering after homelessness, crisis or disaster. Martha has been having a little fun over the past several weeks to help the cause. The CHAIRity Designer Chair Auction is a collection of repurposed chairs created by local designers. The top four chairs will be included in the live auction at the Heart & Home Housewarming Benefit on April 18, 2015.

Please consider voting for Southern Studio Interior Design’s Chair created by Martha here.

And now the real story behind the chair!  This was a slipcovered chair that was well used and abused as Martha’s desk chair every day for several years. She spent many hours creating beautiful designs while sitting in this chair. When The Green Chair Project asked us to participate in this event, we thought it was the perfect opportunity to repurpose the chair for a great cause.  Check it out…

BEFORE

AND AFTER

A very special thank you to Dan McKenzie and our friends at Finish Pros for donating their craftsmanship in reupholstering the chair! To purchase tickets to the Heart & Home Housewarming Event on April 18th, click here.  And, for all of our clients who ask what they should do with their well-loved furnishings that are no longer needed, please consider supporting and donating to the efforts of this great organization!