Rental Revamp: An Architect Couple Reimagine a Dated Queens Apartment for Just $5K
Using found materials and DIY know-how, Jordan Meerdink and Shalini Amin create a polished home that emphasizes their African roots.
Using found materials and DIY know-how, Jordan Meerdink and Shalini Amin create a polished home that emphasizes their African roots.
The apartment that architect couple Jordan Meerdink and Shalini Amin rent in Ridgewood, Queens, had a lot going for it—picture molding running across the walls, transom windows above the doors, a tin ceiling in the kitchen.
"But everything was kind of hidden," says Jordan. One of the transom windows was completely painted over, and the walls were a pale yellow, linen-like color that was not doing the garden-level apartment any favors. However, seeing the potential, they made a deal with the landlord: If they took on the labor of repairs and upgrades, he would provide the materials.
All told, the couple estimate they transformed and outfitted the apartment for a total of $5,000, thanks to a combination of smart shopping, DIY hacks, and salvaging. "We’re pretty good at trash-digging," quips Jordan, noting that nearly all of the raw building materials they used were found.
Before: Looking from the middle room into the bedroom. The railroad-style apartment had been painted a yellow-ish linen hue, and the hinges of the transom window above the bedroom doors were caked in decades of paint.
Shalini Amin & Jordan Meerdink
A fresh coat of Benjamin Moore Super Hide Ultra White flat paint brightened the apartment. The accent pillows, made of African mudcloth, were sewn by Shalini’s sister. The rattan rocker is from Article.
Shalini Amin & Jordan Meerdink
The front door of the 627-square-foot railroad-style pad opens to a foyer in the middle of the unit, which the couple uses as an office and storage space. The dining and kitchen areas are off the right, along with the bathroom and access to a private backyard. To the left is the living space and beyond that, the bedroom.
The first thing Jordan and Shalini did was replace a "saloon-style" door separating the living space from the foyer with a 12-panel wood-and-glass door that matches the French doors to the bedroom. After that, they patched and repaired the walls, painting every room with Benjamin Moore’s Super Hide Ultra White in flat to brighten the space and hide any imperfections.
Then, they moved room to room, starting with the bedroom. Here, they added new window treatments and wall-mounted shelving. They upgraded the ceiling fan by swapping its deep red blades for white ones, and the fluted, tulip-shaped light shades for Edison-style bulbs (two other ceiling fans got the same treatment).
The refurbished transom window opens to allow extra air flow throughout the apartment. "I waited for a thunderstorm, and smashed out decades of paint every time there was a big crack of lightning," says Jordan.
Shalini Amin & Jordan Meerdink
See the full story on Dwell.com: Rental Revamp: An Architect Couple Reimagine a Dated Queens Apartment for Just $5K
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