Over a year ago, I moved from South Carolina into my tiny studio apartment in Westwood, Los Angeles.  Grad school has completely taken over my life, and I can honestly say I've never worked harder.  Unfortunately, that doesn't leave me much time to update the blog, so I wanted to say hello, again by welcoming you into my home.

You're probably surprised that I haven't shared photos of my little place sooner.  That is because since moving in, it has been my continuous project.  Whenever I get a break from school, I get to work on making my apartment just a little bit homier.  The more of myself that I add to this place, the more I feel like I belong.



My first week alone in L.A., I tackled this large wall canvas of the Disneyland castle logo.  It's huge, and it took me a lot of time and a lot of paint, so I'm glad that I got this out of the way before I gave my life to architecture school.  At first, I mounted it to the wall using Command strips.  A few days later, it fell.  That 's when I decided, to heck with it - I'm here to stay, and I'm using nails!



And in case I ever forget where I am, I have not one, but two Pottery Barn pillows to remind me.  I'm not obsessed with Los Angeles - it's just the only pillow cover that I could find to replace the Happy Holidays cover for the 12x24" pillow that my mother bought me.



I leave my right closet door open most of the time because I'm always in and out, and I honestly prefer looking at my clothes than I do the bland closet doors. The skinny hangers can be obnoxiously expensive, but they really are a total space-saver. Still, I have outgrown my closet and expanded into additional drawers.



My apartment is fully furnished which is convenient while frustrating for someone who craves total aesthetic control. It's nice furniture, but I would've chosen all white or even black or dark brown or anything besides what I have.  But I didn't have to move it in, so I can't really complain.

The rug is my most recent and happiest purchase for my apartment.  The carpet is dreadful, and it's amazing how much brighter the room felt once I added a little sunny yellow to the floor.



And speaking of sunny yellow, you might have guessed that it is my favorite color. Yellow and hot pink make me ridiculously happy.



Another project that I accomplished before school started is the four square pieces of artwork hanging on the wall.  Taking photographs of Los Angeles landmarks gave me incentive to get out and explore my new city.





Another wall of DIYs - a framed collection of a few of my photographs, a framed cork board for storing and displaying necklaces, and my personal favorite - the Instagram wall! For the longest time, had no idea what to put in this weird space. Then I got the idea to print out copies of some of my favorite Instagrams and tacked them to the wall using small finishing nails. So cheap and simple!



My kitchen is tiny, and my appliances are sized to fit. I actually couldn't find a cookie sheet small enough to fit into my narrow oven, so I have to use a pizza pan instead.



When I was at Disneyland with my mother this summer, I absolutely geeked out over these Haunted Mansion floor plan plates that I found at Vault 28. I was so excited that she bought them for me. I love the hatches and the thickness of the poche and it's overall gritty and pixilized appearance. So perfect for the Disney architecture nerd.




Finally, my bathroom is actually pretty big in comparison to the rest of my studio. There is a lot of floor space, and I definitely would have traded the big bathroom for a larger closet.



And my bathroom walls are still blank, so I have empty wall space to continue to decorate my apartment.





Thanks for joining me on a tour of my little place! I hope to be back soon to share some adventures!

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