I Lost My Childhood Home in the LA Wildfires — Here are 5 Brands Offering Free Home Decor for Starting Over

In early January, my magical beachside village of Pacific Palisades was reduced to ash in the Los Angeles wildfires — and my family lost our home of 31 years, alongside thousands of our friends and neighbors.

We’d moved into our cozy one-story house nestled in an area referred to as the “Alphabet Streets” back in the early 1990s. After graduating college, I schlepped to NYC for a PR internship and have lived there ever since, but nothing makes me happier than returning to my family’s perfectly curated haven, filled with antiques and treasures dating back hundreds of years.

The moment I found out the Palisades fire had spread to the Alphabet Streets on the evening of January 7, I booked a one-way ticket to LA. I couldn’t bear the thought of my dad and mom, who had both recently retired after long careers in law and career counseling, respectively, being in the position of having to restart their lives from scratch. They had made it to the finish line, and somehow found themselves back at the starting gate.

To call the last few weeks a blur would be an understatement. Week one was focused on survival; we had to identify a place to sleep each night away from the path of the fires as they blazed on. We toted duffel bags of donated toiletries, shirts, and socks from one place to the next in a borrowed car (our cars had also been gobbled up by the fires). 

Then came the frenzied period of finding a permanent rental. Open houses were an almost comedic ritual of crossing paths with our fellow displaced Palisadians: My mom’s bocce ball teammates, parents of kids I’d once babysat, friends from high school — you name it — all of us vying for the same limited properties on the market. We joked the viewings were more like support groups; we’d hug, laugh, cry, and reminisce, showing each other pictures of the dusty plots of land we’d once called home. 

Finally, just over a week ago, my parents signed the lease for a new house. 

At last! A permanent place to live! 

Quickly, my joy soured as I realized that (gulp) … we don’t own anything to fill this empty house with. The breadth of loss when your home evaporates into nothing is unfathomable, and I honestly didn’t know where to start. 

Lucky for us, the LA community stepped up in a way that words cannot describe. Volunteers came out in droves, donation centers popped up all over the county, and an outpouring of kindness overwhelmed many of us with love and support.

In just the last week alone, we’ve been able to transform this empty house into a warm, safe space for my parents, thanks to the most incredible interior designers, organizations, and brands who are offering free and discounted furniture, complimentary design help, and much more. 

If you or someone you know has been displaced by one of the many LA wildfires, here are a few brands that are offering donations and free resources to help get back on your feet.

What began as a handful of grassroots efforts from various local designers ultimately came together in a tour de force spearheaded by designer Adam Hunter, designer Tamara Kaye-Honey of House of Honey, and the team behind CA Home+Design. Launching under the umbrella of a relief project called LA CAN DO, this group of industry insiders has been accepting truckloads of donations from all around the country — from sofas and dining tables to art and accessories to basic household items — and organizing them in an LA-based warehouse. Soon, they’ll open their doors to connect affected families like us with the items they need to start rebuilding their lives in a new home. All you have to do is fill out this intake form to get on their list.

Days before the LA fires began, Louis Dargenzio, the previous head of Sunset Studios, had planned to launch a new company, Zello, as a way to connect the entertainment community. But as he watched the fires devastate his beloved city, Dargenzio pivoted his business plan and transformed the company’s Burbank showroom into a donation center. He tapped his connections across Hollywood — actors, stylists, set decorators, agents, and even lawyers — and brought them together to volunteer. 

Now, Zello Support receives daily shipments of new and gently used furniture and home goods from TV and movie sets and offers 30-minute time slots for families to “shop” the showroom. My parents and I wandered through rows of dining tables, couches, rugs, chairs, lamps and much more with a set decorator at our side, who was making suggestions and offering friendly design advice. At the end of our slot, a team loaded it onto a truck and delivered it to our new house, free of charge. To apply for a time slot, fill out this form on their site.

Best known for their luxurious, organic cotton sheets, Boll & Branch had already created a charitable arm called “Helping from Home” back in 2020 to provide products to those in need during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Once the fires hit LA, the brand was ready to hit the ground running with bedding donations. Over 4,000 families later, Boll & Branch continues to generously offer free sheets, bedding, and more to anyone displaced by the wildfires. And as someone who personally slept on their supersoft bedding for the first time last night, I would highly recommend it. You can add your name to their donation list via their website. 

Haley Weidenbaum of the custom window treatment brand Everhem opened the doors of the brand’s local showroom in January, offering free shades, drapery, hardware, and café curtains to anyone affected by the fires. She soon realized so many of those who would be in need of curtains may not have a home just yet. As my mom and I perused the brand’s gorgeous display at Litt Concept House last week — comparing our visions for a home we hadn’t moved into — Weidenbaum assured us the brand will be there for us when we’re ready. For a selection of free offerings, email hello@everhem.com, or DM the brand at @everhem, and their team will help find your perfect window treatment.

For nearly two decades, Tracy McCubbin’s dClutterfly has been a staple in LA’s home organizing and decluttering scene. In the wake of the wildfires, the team has been conducting grassroots efforts to connect families not only with furniture and household goods but also bespoke pieces that help make a house feel like home. Just last week, they hooked up a local family with a piano! Anyone who needs furniture — or has furniture to donate — can email info@dclutterfly.com for the appropriate form.