Maggie's New Apartment

Hey LMP fam! I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted on the blog, but it’s only because I’ve been booked and busy with my new biz, Nestia! I’m sure many of you know about it, as Seri is one of my biggest cheerleaders and we’ve been able to work on some amazing projects together already. Those projects include a book nook mural for her boys bedroom, styling and decor for her rental house in Florida, and so much more for her new house… which you will have to stay tuned for!

I’m excited to be back to write a fun post about my NEW apartment since so many of you loved the last apartment. I spent so much time making it special and beautiful during the height of covid lockdown in NYC. I was able to get those photos published by Apartment Therapy and The New York Post! These features eventually led me to creating my business to help people paint and decorate their homes…. and now here we are! Now that you’re all caught up to speed, let’s talk about my new place. All the photos above are from BEFORE I moved in, just to give you some reference points for this transformation.

I moved out of my old apartment when the lease was up in May because my roommate was moving in with her boyfriend and I figured it might be the perfect time to find my OWN place! I was lucky to land something right down the street from the last place while the prices were low due to the pandemic. It was technically a 2-bedroom, with the only common space being the long narrow kitchen, so it’s really a perfect spot for one young adult. I made the front bedroom into a living room and a workspace, but I can switch it up and work at my kitchen table sometimes too. It really was a great find and I love it more and more each day.

I decorated FAST. This was mostly because I was working with Buzzfeed going live on Amazon weekly for 5 weeks to decorate my entire space with an audience watching. You can watch my first episode here and find the rest through Buzzfeed’s channel! So let’s talk about my living room first… I went all out with a pink and orange ombré wall! You can watch me paint it here. I was inspired by the colorful rug under my console table which I bought on Amazon. I found an amazing CB2 queen size pull out sofa on Facebook Marketplace, a natural shape wood slide coffee table from Wayfair, and so many beautiful decor elements from Amazon, all of which you can find the links to here.

Next, let’s talk about the kitchen. In NYC, you have to think about space above all. Learning how to store everything in a way that works and doesn’t feel cluttered can be so hard. I used lots of shelves to help me solve that problem! Lots of links to items I loved for my kitchen can be found on the Nestia blog. I found the marble and brass round table on Facebook Marketplace but it was originally from World Market. I bought the amazing rug 2 years ago on my trip to Morocco, and the decor elements throughout the space are items I’ve been collecting over the years. But most notably, I replaced the standard, ugly “boob” lights that most apartment buildings install in every room with these awesome geometric lights from Amazon. They truly made all the difference!

Moving onto the bedroom! I was very limited on space for my bed, so it logistically had to go up against the wall with no headboard. So instead, I painted one! I installed sconces, planned the mural around it, replace the hardware on my existing dresser and closet, added some other brass elements, and suddenly the room came together. All the bedding and many of the little decor pieces were from Amazon as well, and you can find the links here.

Let’s get down to the nitty gritty: the bathroom. In any old NYC apartment building, you’ll rarely get a landlord to update the bathroom with new tiles, fixtures, tubs, or vanities and you really just have to work with what you’ve got. I actually really loved the traditional black and white tiles so I worked with it! I found the cutest shower mat from Urban Outfitters and based my colors around that. I’ve had so many people compliment how cute this tiny tiny space turned out and I truly love it too.

Last but not least, I have a hallway that leads from the kitchen, past my bedroom, down to the living room. I certainly wasn’t going to leave it alone! I created an epic mural that trailed from the ceiling to the wall and reflected the other side with a gallery wall of mirrors. Not only do those mirrors bring in so much light from the front room, which is bright and flooded with sunshine each morning, but you can see little bits and pieces of my rainbow striped painting in each mirror as you walk by. It’s truly quite magical.

While I think I will constantly be changing this space, finding new pieces I love, and painting more murals, I love the status of my apartment now. Colorful, fun, bright, eclectic, and most importantly- it’s all mine.

x

Maggie

incredible photos by Rachel Leiner Photography