How to Decorate for Your Inner Teen, But Like, As An Adult
ICYMI, there are six planets currently retrograde. This heavy backward momentum from the cosmos means transportation slows down, exes pop backup on your radar, future plans get put on hold, and it gets very, VERY easy to fall down a nostalgia rabbit hole.
Why do I bring up this astrology trivia in a piece on decor? Because I am currently basking in the time-bending experience of decorating a space nearly identical to the apartment I rented 13 years ago. In fact, it’s in the same building. I fell in love with the vintage 1920’s charm of the place as a small-town girl moving to the big city and 13 years later, it’s still the space to which I compare every other studio apartment. So why not move back?
Through a retrograde orchestrated chain of events, I recently stumbled upon photos of my original unit and was struck by how different, yet the same my grown-up decor is by comparison. I use the term “grown-up” loosely since my aesthetic is and will always be some version of a child’s bedroom spray painted with adult profanity.
Even with better organizing habits, newer furniture, and way less stuff, I can still see how 25-year-old Michelle grew into her adult sense of interior style…and learned a few important lessons along the way.
Adult Decor Lesson #1: Plan for the Energy of Your Space
I’ve become a pro at studio apartment living over the years and I’ve had every sort of unconventional furniture arrangement in an effort to make a small space work. The first time around in this building, I put my bed in the kitchen. The layout of the apartment is H-format which means the kitchen/dining area is separated from the main living space by a hallway that’s flanked by the closet and bathroom. Positioning my bed where most people would put a dining table made sense at the time because it freed up the living room for entertaining. However, as I’ve grown older and more aware of the energy of each room, I’ve realized that bedding down next to a buzzing fridge by the light of a glowing microwave isn’t the best recipe for a good night’s sleep. These days, I keep my slumber far away from any heavy-duty appliances and sleep much sounder because of it.
Adult Decor Lesson #2: Prioritize Your Comfort Over Imaginary Guests’
As a Cancer sun sign (read: homebody, caretaker, mother of the friend group), this lesson took me WAY too long to integrate. Until very recently, I’d decorated every space I inhabited with entertaining in mind first and my own needs second. This people-pleasing personality quirk hit its peak when I moved to LA and purchased a sofa NINETEEN MONTHS before I got myself a real bed. Clearly, I needed someplace for all of my imaginary guests to sit during COVID lockdown in a city where I had exactly four friends. Thankfully, I’ve since learned my lesson. My current apartment doesn’t have a sofa, but it does have a comfortable bed, two cozy chairs (one of which has survived both spaces), and a desk chair I can always pull from the other room if I need to seat more guests on the very rare occasion I actually get to entertain.
Adult Decor Lesson #3: It’s Ok to Buy New Stuff
One of the biggest changes between 2009 to now has been how I acquire furniture. Approximately 99% of the furniture in my first apartment was made up of hand-me-downs and resale deals. In fact, the tiny vanity-style desk I had in my first space was acquired from my Grandmother after it had lived in her home for decades. While I loved the family connection and “this is true vintage” bragging rights I got from owning said piece, the desk itself kind of sucked. The drawer stuck, I was always short on work space (especially with a giant ‘90s printer at my side), and it wasn’t anything like the all-white aesthetic I truly craved. It took selling almost all of my belongings for a cross-country move before I discovered that, though I believe strongly in recycling home goods, it’s ok to buy an item new if it just works better for your life. I now enjoy plenty of room to spread out and a blank canvas for creating on my brand new, mid-century modern style white desk.
Adult Decor Lesson #4: Less is More
Perhaps one of the best parts about this H-format apartment layout is the massive closet space. In my twenties, I took up every single inch, but after the aforementioned twice cross-country move, I’ve learned to downsize. Sure, I still have a closet full of clothes, but they’re no longer packed together within an inch of their life AND they’re all things I actually wear. I can still spot the skull-patterned Target button-down in my first apartment photo that was purchased on a whim before I remembered that, actually, I hate button-downs…yet it still came with me on my next three moves.
Lesson #4 goes double for bath and skincare products. In a pre-war space with little powder room storage, you find just how many personal care products you’ve acquired over the years. In my twenties, there were products overflowing from the medicine cabinet and out onto the sink plus 3-4 plastic drawers underneath that, all filled to the brim with skincare shit I didn’t need. Thankfully, in adulthood, I’ve discovered 5-10 products I truly love and can now rotate through a regime that fits nicely behind a tiny cabinet door.
Adult Decor Lesson #5: TVs are Overrated
Now, I realize this particular lesson is a bit controversial. It’s not for everyone, but as a girl living solo with perfectly acceptable streaming internet, I never miss having an actual TV. Perhaps I’d feel differently if I was planning for family movie nights or a massive super bowl party, but since my cat could care less about what I’m watching and I’m not that into sports, I’m ok with cozying up to my Macbook and transforming any surface of my space into a private theatre. Plus, not having a TV frees up the space to make other items the main focal point of my living area. A row of color-coded books has now replaced my once massive DVD collection and a mini-altar space feels that much more serene when not sharing the spotlight with a massive flatscreen.
Adult Decor Lesson #6: Only Grow Up When & How You Want To
While I may have replaced some decor habits from previous decades with more logical, minimalistic, or aesthetically pleasing choices, I will forever maintain that growing up your home’s style does not have to mean settling for boring. My current space is still saturated by color, pinned up with washi tape, and littered with movie, tv, and music references that delight my inner teen, they’re just all done with a little more forethought, a lot more organization, and—let’s face it—better how to’s on the internet.