Company Profile: Parker Sims Interiors

I have to confess that I was particularly thrilled to receive an email from Ivie Parker, partner and account manager with Parker Sims Interiors (http://www.parkersimsinteriors.com/) in Charleston, SC. There are two reasons for my over-the-top excitement: 1.) the incredible repurposing work her firm did for their local 30th Anniversary Habitat for Humanity Model home and 2.) it means word is spreading about my Rethink and Reuse project.

Charleston’s 30th Anniversary Habitat for Humanity Model home is the organization’s first “green built” home; they partnered with the Sustainability Institute for the building education and then with Parker Sims for the interior design, which was headed up by Adrian Sims, partner and principal designer.

Parker Sims Interiors reused existing materials as much as possible in an effort to educate home visitors that all of us can incorporate more environmentally friendly characteristics and features into our homes. Ivie dubbed their repurposing of objects as “eclectic, hip and unique,” and I think those are very suitable adjectives.

Parker Sims Interiors is the second interior design firm that has offered great ideas about repurposing objects, fabrics, etc., and I’m thrilled to know that there are designers that are willing to reinvent a landscape using old materials.

Please see below for photos and information about the interior of the 30th Anniversary Habitat for Humanity Model:

All of the living room furniture was re-upholstered from existing pieces from Sea Island’s Habitat for Humanity ReStore.

Light fixtures were repurposed from existing objects: a vintage chandelier was rewired and repainted with Sherwin-Williams Harmony paint (low VOC, or low volatile organic compounds); a distressed basket was wired as a dining room fixture for a great cottage feel; and a salvaged bird cage was wired and painted (also with Sherwin-Williams Harmony paint).

Natural accessories – bamboo baskets, reeds and grasses – were used as accent pieces.

The entrance to the house boasted a vintage ceiling tile mirror, an architectural remnant lamp, a weathered and reclaimed wood console table, and an antique wooden dough bowl.

An old piece of iron was welded into a dining table.

They used custom-designed driftwood beds with hand-crafted headboards made with driftwood found on South Carolina’s low-country shores. The beds assembled by wooden pegs – no nails or hardware.

Parker Sims Interiors custom designs these driftwood beds.