Place

This weekend I moved into my new apartment with the help of my parents. This place is cozy, quiet, just big enough, and it seems like a perfect space for me to call my own.

Living alone will prove to be a new challenge for me– we will see how I feel about it three months from now. But today, I feel good! :) Someone once wisely told me that it was important for me to live alone at least once in my life. I am glad to be taking that chance.

Here is a little tour of my new space!

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Welcome to my cozy apartment!

Upon first walking in, you get a lovely view of the living area. This is the place that I tried to make as homey and comforting as possible, because I anticipate spending most of my at-home hours here.

Little bits of comfort surround my spot on the couch:

Abundant warm light from my favorite floor lamp, the doily lantern, various candle holders, and the overhead light.

Plenty of pictures and mementos from my travels.

Works of art created by my own hands, or by my dear friends.

A bookshelf full of to-reads.

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One thing that I struggle with in a living space is how to deal with that all-consuming monster: the television.

Ideally, I would happily live without one. However, my running Smallville marathon just clamors to be completed… so the beast will remain for now.

Maybe someday I will keep my (tiny) TV in a cabinet somewhere and instead put photos or trinkets on the little table beneath this gorgeous Indian tapestry.

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After living in Austria, I think I will always obsess over having plants in the home.

This arrangement of flowers was one of those beautiful ideas that actually worked out exactly as I had imagined: filling my many jars/bottles with single stems of flowers from a coordinated bouquet really works wonders for the space.

I love this little touch of the living in my cozy living area.

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Welcome to my kitchen… the place where all the magic happens!

I am so pleased with this little kitchen layout– I have everything within easy reach, and there is just enough room for one other set of helping hands to tag along for the adventure.

My new glass kitchen lamp really adds a sense of magic to the kitchen, and I really enjoyed chopping carrots by its light. Everything just seems so much more special with the right light shining on it… even plain old carrots.

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And, finally, the work station. This desk is absolutely PERFECT for my needs as a student, cook, and artist.

At the moment it is covered with the remains of my unpacking adventure. However, I intend to keep the surface completely clear. That way, it waits expectantly for the next art project or meal to take place. As I have yet to discover the appeal of eating at the bar from a stool, this will be my eating place for the time being.

As with everything in life, this little bit of my apartment remains a work in progress.

I am very happy with how my lovely little place is turning out, especially considering the fact that we put it all together in just one day!

“A place belongs forever to whoever claims it hardest, remembers it most obsessively, wrenches it from itself, shapes it, renders it, loves it so radically that he remakes it in his own image.”
Joan Didion

Mandi