Case of the Mondays: Apartment Living Room
For this week’s COTM, I’m inviting you into my apartment living room.
It’s always been a work in progress, and today is no different!
Now, don’t get me wrong. Having it be a work in progress isn’t a bad thing. I actually think it’s a good thing, and an even better thing to share! Not everything has to be perfect and I think it’s so great to see your own reality reflected in that of others. Also, isn’t it always a work in progress? Our homes and tastes evolve over time, and it’s nice to change and freshen things up every once in a while.
I haven’t always felt this way. I’ve put off sharing my own space a lot because, as a designer, people expect your home to be out of a magazine. But we’re just like everyone else and are all at different stages of our home design and décor journey. We are busy with work and sometimes our homes get put on the back burner. I’ve put off doing anything big here because of several reasons I think many of you can relate to when it comes to making updates in your home. Here are a few of them: I don’t have the time or finances (I was a full-time student for 5 years). I live in a rental apartment and shouldn’t invest in making it nice if I don’t own it. I have trouble making decisions for my own space – what if I change my mind in 6 months? Can you relate to any of these?
Now, I’m at a place where I can budget both time and money for small DIY projects on weekends. I have also lived here for the better part of a decade and don’t plan to move anytime soon, so why not freshen it up and make it my own (within reason and with respect of the landlord). And, most importantly, I’m getting better with picking away at it and not pressuring myself to have it perfect all at once – it’s all about the journey, isn’t it?
“I’ve put off sharing my own space because, as a designer, people expect your home to be out of a magazine.”
Current situation and the plans:
We painted the wall behind the sofa green a few years ago and have really enjoyed having colour there, but I’m leaning towards changing the colour. Brendan and I both want to keep it green, but I’m thinking a slightly muted and more sophisticated tone of green will be a nice change. We LOVE our oversized sectional.
Instead of having a disorganized gallery wall above the sectional (which we had there before), I opted for an oversized abstract piece that works well with the scale of the sectional. I picked it up at HomeSense a few years ago. The colour palette suits the space and the brushed gold frame adds a nice touch. And gives me a great reason to bring some more brushed gold accents into the room, like the coffee table I’ve put on the mood board.
On the TV wall from left to right, we currently have a macramé plant hanger in the corner with 2 guitars hung up beside it, a picture shelf above the TV and credenza, and the Stendig calendar above the liquor server (see below). My main changes to this wall are to remove the guitars (relocate), paint the wall white, and lower and extend the picture shelf to match the length of the credenza below it.
On the kitchen wall, we’ve got a round mirror that I love (I like that it brings a curved form to the rectilinear space). We also located our vacuum here because we didn’t have any other suitable place to plug it in. But I think I’ve come up with a solution and will hopefully be moving it soon!
Below is a quick sketch of the floor plan. The layout will stay the same, so the plan isn’t much different from the current setup. It’ll look really nice, though!
Design intent:
I would categorize the design style in the apartment at vintage bohemian – an eclectic mix of vintage furniture and objects, paired with new and modern pieces. I think using furniture and decor from varying eras and price points gives a room spirit and character. And don’t forget: books and plants furnish a room, too.
Below is the mood board for the living room:
What needs to be done:
Remove art, shelves, etc. from walls
Patch and repair, then paint
Reinstall art and shelves
Stage the space and enjoy!
What needs to be purchased:
A selection of art from Etsy, Minted, Juniper Print Shop, etc.
Frames in varying sizes and colours from thrift stores, Ikea, etc.
And last but not least…
BUDGET:
<$700 (coffee table, shelf, and paint)
As I tackle the project, I will share the progress on my IG and when it’s all done, I’ll get it up on the blog!
Next week on COTM, I’ve got a surprise announcement that I’m super excited to share with you, so stay tuned to find out what it is. 😊
All the things,
Hello! Catherine here.
I’m a Vancouver-based interior designer and love all things creative! I’ll be sharing things that inspire me, posting design tips and DIY projects, chatting about all kinds of topics, and hopefully inspiring some people to make little changes at home to create an environment that is functional, beautiful, and a perfect reflection of you!
