From Chaos to Calm: A 900-Square Foot House Reimagined for a Family of 4

Amanda de Beaufort's Maplewood, NJ, House

Amanda de Beaufort first popped up on our radar via her line of naturally dyed textiles (see Color Explosion: Linens Imbued with Natural Plant Dyes). Shortly thereafter, we learned of her knack for remodeling (see her self-penned Rehab Diary: A Dated Kitchen Gets a Modern Upgrade in Maplewood, NJ). Since then, her business has grown, as have the two children—Adela (now 11) and Henry (now 13)—that she shares with her husband, Alain.

Meanwhile, other than the kitchen, their home remained largely the same as when they first purchased it back in 2016—same trim size (900 square feet), same quirky storage nooks (the former owner was an enthusiastic DIYer). Amanda and Alain loved their little house but wanted it to grow with them, so they hired Hollie Velten-Lattrell, their friend and a rising interior designer who specializes in giving suburban homes a Brooklyn bohemian viewpoint. Adding square footage wasn’t a possibility, as the lot itself was tiny as well, but reimagining storage and updating the kids’ rooms held potential for a true transformation.

“There was so much wasted space, no storage, a chaotic feeling in the kids rooms,” says Amanda, who considered redesigning them and the bathroom herself before deciding to enlist Hollie. “I admire Hollie’s eye and talent—she comes up with so many unexpected ideas.” Plus, Hollie, who shared studio space with Amanda for a few years before opening her own storefront, already knew the kids well. “Because I already had a relationship with Adela and Henry, who both happen to be aesthetically astute and to live around the corner, they would make pit stops to the studio and work in there with us,” says Hollie.

Here’s what the family collaboration with Hollie yielded. (And be sure to scroll to the bottom for “before” photos.)

Photography by Claire Weiss of Day19, courtesy of Amanda de Beaufort.

Amanda de Beaufort Kitchen Rehab Diary — Above: Even though Amanda likes the look of open shelving, she opted for real cabinets in her kitchen. “In such a small space, I think the clutter of open shelving would make me crazy,” she wrote in her Rehab Diary.

Above: When it came to Henry’s room, “I really needed Hollie’s team, I had no idea how to organize the space with his bed and the fixed ladder that took up so much of the room,” says Amanda. Hollie’s solution was to add unfussy built-in plywood storage and swap the fixed ladder for a rolling library ladder. At right, Henry carries his Main Squeeze Pillow up to the loft.