Spirit Bay

Notes from the designer, and a flashback to the pandemic

This project was originally supposed to be a simple and straightforward apartment refresh. All that we needed to do was reconsider the layout and furniture. Easy!

Or so we thought.

Apparently, we didn’t account for one tiny detail standing in our way—a global zombie apocalypse.

Normally it takes two weeks to complete a concept and ready-to-buy list for a one-bedroom refresh, so we were ready to finish it fast. But this was in April 2020 and nobody back then could imagine that a pandemic would affect every aspect of our lives for so long.

But there is no shadow without light, and maybe if we hadn’t been forced to solve so many challenges during the designing of this apartment we would never have come to realize and appreciate that we were actually working with our perfect client—Lenore V.

From the first email and call, Lenore and I had an instant connection, the feeling that we just jumped on the same wave together. I had a strong image of what would be the perfect place for her, and my gut was telling me that she was going to love it.

The main reason why Lenore decided to do something about her apartment was that as soon as she started to work from home, she started noticing things that weren’t on her horizon before. Things like: Oh, my place could be cozier. Or, Gee, this furniture looks so old and heavy.

What felt OK in the dynamic world of going to work in an office now started to feel claustrophobic. And what started as a glimpse of the need for some home refreshment became an idea of changing the home design.

Every conversation with Lenore was motivating and inspiring, as she has this very warm energy inside, and we really wanted to create a space that embraced that energy, nourishing and supporting her in her daily life. We wanted the space to be about her plans, her goals, and her relationships. All of this needed air that would shape her apartment, let her breathe freely, and meditate. And the air needs space.

That was pretty much the main approach to working with the project, and the one non-negotiable point was a “get-rid-of” list. Using items she already had, but only the essential stuff, we presented plans, schemes, and pictures to show Lenore what her place could look like. Thankfully, Lenore was really receptive to the idea of maximizing the essential.

Of course, we didn’t expect that the pandemic would stay with us for soooo long (nobody did!), or that it would totally change the work and city environment. In May 2020 we were ready to schedule a furniture delivery. While we were dreaming of a wonderful place to live, the world had gone mad. Everything was closed. People started leaving the city. We had to put the project on hold, and it looked like we were not going to be able to see it to fruition.

A wave of protests started. Looking at the totally destroyed 5th Avenue was heartbreaking. Understanding how difficult it is to build something, seeing the destruction of businesses that provide work for people (yes, black and white) was devastating. At one point I was just sitting and crying, because it seemed like there was no place for beauty or creation in this world anymore. Certainly, there was no place for design. The designer needs to be inspired; how can you be inspired if you are scared? And on a very dark day, when we were thinking of shutting everything down, Lenore called.

“I got the new apartment!” she said.

Apparently, there was a bright side to this darkness, and simply because of the exodus from the city, Lenore’s building was suddenly half-empty. As the pandemic hit real estate hard, the management company offered to give her a bigger apartment in the same building.

We were happy. This wasn’t just about a returning client. It was another angle to look at our business. An inspiration. A challenge. An opportunity! Because, hello, if people are living somewhere else, they still need shelter and WiFi :) And design. The idea was that we, like so many businesses, could recalibrate our service to an online field, and it could be more open to location. We tried, and guess what? Right now we have clients in different time zones, and as long as we can match our working schedules we can work with them. But all of it started with our project experience with Lenore, who showed us that people could be great.

The new apartment was bigger, brighter, and had a better layout. It was worth waiting for. Though the improved space required a reassessment of our previous plans, since we already had a vision it was easy to convert it to the new place. Within a week the concept was ready, and we knew how everything would need to flow in its own space. 

It was time to start ordering. The timing was perfect because the furniture showrooms came back to life! Even so, all supply deliveries were postponed. and it would be completely impossible to continue the project if we didn’t have a good understanding with Lenore. That’s why right now we are even more direct in knowing who our client is.

It took real teamwork to see it through to the end of this project. But we—Lenore and us—had to finish the design. We had to see the final result. So we stayed, and waited, and waited, encouraging each other to have hope that one day it would be complete.

Honestly, nobody knew when that day would come. We did our best to patiently and consistently, step-by-step, guide Lenore through the process, and I am so grateful that she didn’t give up. It wasn’t easy!

But… every week a new piece of the design grew like a flower, shaping the space, first with baby steps and then more and more confidently. Until one day it was done.

The name of a project is really important to me because it’s the inspirational essence of the work. We changed it several times during the completion stage. However, only now, looking back to the journey we have made, I arrived at Spirit Bay. 

Why? Because challenging times test people, bringing out their best, and sometimes their worst. In the midst of all the chaos, we wanted to create a space for Lenore’s spirit to be calm and protected, like a bay protects a boat from the stormy seas.

I wish that everyone out there finds their own Spirit Bay. We all need one.

Mariya from Rafaelles