Dwellings Issue XII: MaLa Project NYC

For the latest installment of our Dwellings series, we head to MaLa Project NYC, a new restaurant in the East Village (122 1st Ave. to be exact) that is serving up some very tasty Chinese cuisine. Although a restaurant is not a dwelling per se, there’s certainly a benefit to making your patrons feel at home. And Amelie has done just that. For the task of decorating the MaLa space, she knew that she wanted to utilize mostly vintage pieces but did not have the time to go digging around a warehouse for that diamond in the rough… And that’s where Furnish Green comes into the picture.

Amelie found us just in time for our annual Small Business Saturday Sale and snatched up a bunch of great items for her own small business. And while we appreciate the support shown to us by all of our customers during this particular sale, we’re very happy to have been able to help out a fellow small business and give Amelie the opportunity to make some of her restaurant design goals a reality.

In constructing MaLa’s interior aesthetic, she has taken a raw industrial space and transitioned it into a warm and inviting atmosphere that’s ideal for social dining. Amelie’s selection of alluringly eye-catching accent pieces feels very much at home against the rustic feel of the exposed brick walls. The space is open, clean and somewhat minimalist while managing to feel cozy and quaint at the same time.

FG Pieces: She utilized one of our long narrow farm tables for communal dining and large parties. And a vintage dry sink became the perfect waiter station. A set of vintage china is the flatware at the bar, and a retro rattan tray has been used for spice display.

In her design of the space, Amelie has successfully wed stark urban industrialism with charmingly inviting details. The starkness of some industrial elements like the shiny metal ceiling is nicely contrasted by the warmth of the brick walls and the abundance of green leafy plants. MaLa Project features some distinctive and arresting design that includes some choice Furnish Green pieces as well as an intriguing menu.

We hope you enjoyed this installment of our Dwellings series! Stay tuned for future posts, and email us at furnishgreen@gmail.com for a chance to have your space featured!