A creative collaboration turning salvaged materials into inspiring spaces
At Community Forklift’s recent Salvage Soirée on October 16 and Community Day on October 18th, creativity and sustainability took center stage with five interactive salvaged spaces curated by a talented group of local creatives. The spaces were more than just eye-catching displays — they served as gathering points, conversation starters, and examples of how salvaged goods can be given new life through thoughtful design. Thank you to Unparalleled Eye Designs, Maddy Brannon, The Adored Nest, Snappy’s Small Bar, and Maison Wynn for transforming reclaimed materials into these immersive installations that celebrate reuse, community, and design!
Unparalleled Eye Designs
Noel Benitez, Owner and Lead Designer
Website: www.unparalleledeyedesigns.com
Instagram: @unparalleledeyedesigns and @facademirrors
Inspiration: Unparalleled Eye Designs weaves stories of the ancient world and her global travels into “Guilded Fragments”. Inspired by rich histories and sumptuous colors, Noel has curated these salvaged pieces to echo how past legacies can be beautiful and welcoming in our modern world.
Maddy Brannon
@maddytheb
Website: maddybrannon.substack.com
Instagram: @maddytheb
Inspiration: At Estate Sales, often the dining room table is covered in everything that was once stuffed into dining room drawers, allowing strangers to admire and salvage those pieces to make their own homes special. This table represents that lifecycle, and all of the wonderful pieces left from Estate Sales, transferred to Community Forklift so that they might still find a home.
The Adored Nest
Andrea Small, Founder/Principal Designer
Website: www.theadorednest.com
Instagram: @theadorednest
Inspiration: Welcome to the Renewal Office. Thoughtfully layered lighting, comfy seating, and touches of greenery create a space that energizes, inspires, and soothes. Take a seat, breathe, and let your surroundings fuel your best work.
Snappy’s Small Bar
Kate Talbert, Dive Bar Vibes
Website: www.snappysdc.com
Instagram: @snappysdc and @divebarvibes
Inspiration: It’s a little dive, big on community. A salvaged bar top holding secrets from a dozen lives. A neon buzzes with the hum of the city itself. A glassy eyed friend just watches the stories pile up on those worn stools. This is a collection built from beautiful cast-offs—scraps of history and forgotten lives, coming together to tell a new story.
Maison Wynn Interiors
Maison Wynn / Wynnwood Team
Website: www.maisonwynn.com
Instagram: @maison_wynn_interiors
Inspiration: Showcasing the charm of Parisian interiors shaped by time—where ornate details, weathered finishes, and graceful patinas turn age into elegance, revealing a deeper sense of character and romance.
Every time you donate or shop at Community Forklift, you’re helping us lift up local communities through reuse. We turn the construction waste stream into a resource stream for communities in the DC region – by keeping perfectly good items out of the landfill, preserving historical materials, providing low-cost building supplies, and creating local green jobs.
