I really love taking a sneak peek inside peoples’ homes. Often for decor inspiration but also because there’s something so intimate and fascinating about seeing what’s on someone’s bedside table. Or what’s stuck to the fridge. I hang out for the house tours on Cup of Jo and Apartment Therapy, so I decided to do my own!

Andy and I moved to our two-bedroom apartment back in January. We came from a share house where we pretty much owned nothing outside our bedroom, so we ended up buying a lot of furniture very quickly. I spent hours trawling Facebook Marketplace for secondhand bits and pieces that were quirky and not too expensive. Then we hired a van through Car Next Door to go and pick everything up. The day we moved turned out to be 46 degrees (114 fahrenheit)! It wasn’t a pleasant experience, to say the least. I was most concerned for my precious house plants, but they all made it safe and sound!

Entryway:

There isn’t really an entryway to our apartment, so I just sort of made one. That little table was $45 from Facebook Marketplace and it’s the best dumping ground for headphones, sunnies and wallets at the end of the day. The mirror is from Target. Unfortunately because we’re renting we have to use those 3M hooks that don’t damage the walls and I swear the ones that are visible (like the one holding up the mirror!) make my eye twitch.

Lounge room: 

This room is probably my favourite in the whole apartment. I love the big windows and sitting on the balcony in summer is just the best. The rug is the most expensive item in the room! I had my heart set on an authentic kilim handwoven rug and new ones start at about $1200+. This one is secondhand (again thanks to Facebook Marketplace) and cost $450. We bought it off a lovely older couple who had an amazing apartment on St Kilda Esplanade with 180 degree views of the beach and the city. It was worth it just to see the view! Our couch is from Ikea and probably the one thing I’m not 100% sure of.

I didn’t want to cover too much of the rug with a coffee table so I opted for a glass one (also secondhand). Space is tight in our apartment so I like how it doesn’t look too bulky. My other favourite thing in the room is the white sideboard which was a steal at $180. Someone has obviously ‘done it up’ by painting it white and added leather pull handles. The photos above the TV are ones I took on our travels in Ikea frames. The chair and lamp and both from Kmart.

I love old family photos. The ones above are of Andy’s maternal grandparents in the States and my maternal grandparents on their wedding day in Ceylon. The skull was purchased on our trip to Mexico and the dog vase is from West Elm.

Dining area:

The table, chairs, bookcase and record player cabinet are all (drum roll please) secondhand from Facebook Marketplace. I’m beginning to sound like a broken record. I wasn’t sure about the green chairs but now I can’t imagine sitting on anything else.

The Aboriginal painting is really special as it came from Laverton, Western Australia, when my team and I went out there to live broadcast some radio shows. That was my second last week of work before Andy and I left to travel. The New Yorker prints were purchased on a trip with my friend Kate. Men with small stands sell them alongside Central Park for something ridiculous like $7 each (literally for a piece of paper probably printed on a Canon at home). She has similar ones at her house in white frames. I love them.

I bought Andy the record player for his birthday, it’s a lot of fun.

Kitchen:

I have to admit, the checkerboard kitchen floor was a huge selling point for me! Other than that this kitchen is in desperate need of a makeover. The cupboards are small and poky and there’s virtually no counter space. We’ve made do with a secondhand bench that has great storage space underneath.

Guest room:

Given we have a lot of interstate family and friends the guest room is a great asset. It’s a constant battle not to fill it with crap, so I remain hyper vigilant!

The macrame wall hanging if from Knot Karen. Bookcase, frames and storage cubes from Ikea. Plant stand from Garden World.

Our room:

I find a greyscale bedroom super relaxing. We don’t get a lot of natural light in here so I’m amazed that plant is not just alive, but thriving. The photos above our bed are ones I took in Arizona and had blown up and printed through PhotoBox. The frames and cushion are from Ikea. The bedside tables and lamps are from Kmart.

The hallway:

Buzzing people in with that old school hallway phone makes me feel like I’m in a movie.

Well that’s our place! I have omitted a photo of the bathroom/laundry because it’s uninspiring and I’m still mad that a plant died in there. This apartment has so much potential and if I owned it I would immediately rip out the bathroom and kitchen. But for now I’ll just enjoy the relatively cheap rent and the fact that it feels like home. Thanks for reading x