A while ago I had the pleasure of meeting Dorothy Lovell, owner of Island Krave (on 21st) and Pimento Island Bistro (Colley) in Norfolk. I was immediately at home around her. First off, she loves Eva and we all know that is a HUGE thing with me. She’s also the sweetest woman on the planet who just happens to be straight from the island of Jamaica (awesome accent and everything!).
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Photos taken from article in Southern Grit Magazine . Chris Fellini/Joshua Fitzwater.
Dorothy contacted me after she got the space, started working, and then realized that she wanted a little help making the space special-a designer’s touch. Together with Dorothy, we were able to take this space on Colley and transform it for $1500. You heard me. $1500 for alllll decor, art, and some furniture….
Unfortunately I don’t have any great before pictures-huge mistake because this place was very different…and not in a good way! These are from after Dorothy took over and started cleaning up the space!
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Here’s a bit of the magic transformation.
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These $12.99 baskets from Ikea (below) and the $59.99 wicker drum shades from World Market on the pendant lights realllly added the island impact on a budget!
Behind the bar, we used raw crates from Michaels ($10/ea–unless you had the coupon…and you know I did) to store glasses and bottles. Dorothy and her husband stained & hung them organically on the wall, similar to the installation of the wicker baskets.
I found a bunch of listings on Craigslist with old intricate wooden dining chairs and sent them to Dorothy to go purchase. The original plan was to paint them all vintage white and distress them….but thankfully we didn’t follow through with that painstaking process.
The outdoor seating area on Colley with a little quirky eclectic mix of orange chairs makes Pimento the perfect Ghent hang out. Now it’s your turn to come check it out and get as addicted as I am to Dorothy’s smoked island meats!! She even added Bananas Flambé to the menu for me….holy heaven above!!!!!
In addition to the design of the space, I also got to re-design her logo and update the menu. Here is the final product!
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