Photo: Courtesy Make It Home
It’s not only Silicon Valley startups that originate in garages. Former antiques dealer and interior designer Carolyn Flannery’s nonprofit, Make It Home, began with amassing furnishings in her Marin, California, garage. Through connections made from volunteer work, Flannery passed along pieces “to foster youth embarking on their independent living journey or foster families accommodating new arrivals,” she recalls, ultimately expanding beyond the foster care system to “any social agency with clients needing furnishings.”
Make It Home receives donations—including accessories and small appliances—from designers, stagers, organizers, real estate agents and the general public. The items are checked, cleaned and, if necessary, repaired. Based on client needs, room concepts are developed by Make It Home volunteers, many of whom have experience in design and staging, and then installed. Carpentry classes recently launched, and the organization’s first upholstery class is slated for January. “We are not just providing furniture,” Flannery says, “but also delivering dignity and pride of place that will hopefully aid future successes.”
