Just three weeks ago, on a brisk, sunny Saturday, I had the pleasure of leading a team of over 70 volunteers, made up of Real Simple staffers and their family and friends, in a community service project like no other I've seen.

Our very own Kristin van Ogtrop put it best in her Editor's Note (December issue, just out now) when she said that we "took over a public elementary school in Brooklyn and Real Simplified it."

It was a massive effort - weeks of preparation, and dozens of eager, helping hands toiling away for over 6 hours - painting, organizing, cleaning - all in an effort to make the school a more enjoyable, enriching environement in which to learn.

You can read more about what went into the day here, but I thought it would be nice to share some more photos of the transformation that took place. Enjoy!

A special thanks to the generous vendors who donated product for this special Real Simple makeover:
Method (hand soaps/lotions), Lowe's (massive amounts of paint and supplies), Pulp Products (memo boards), Alternative Apparel (tshirts), Icebox (printing on tshirts), Gaylord Brothers, World Globes, and Learning Resources (materials for library), West Elm (furniture), The Container Store (organizing products).

All photos by: Liz Arenberg