Teenage flophouse

Since I’ve been back, I’ve been consumed with the idea of getting my apartment sorted out before I go ahead and get a job. I’m in this weird drifting period between wanting to have a really mature, austere home and being a rotten teenage scumbag with dubious taste and the tendency to never finish what I’ve started. The home I’m living in now is the nicest I’ve ever had. It’s the top floor of an Edwardian home, and it’s been fairly tastefully renovated with respect to its period. Recently renovated, too, so everything’s in really solid condition (especially the floors - don’t get me started on crummy flooring).

Anyway, this is the state I’m in right now. For the past few days I’ve been running out to IKEA, home depot and other giant box retailers, spending a mint on little necessities with no vehicle. Exhausting and time consuming. Andrew’s been helping me put stuff up too. We put in a blackout roller blind in my bedroom (totally for A’s benefit - I could sleep all day long under the sun no matter what, but in my experience, boyfriends tend to want all the light blocked out!) and finally hung a light in the kitchen (the rental came with overhead lighting but it’s rather boring and ineffectual so I’ve spent a bit on twinkle lights [there’s that teenage bad taste seeping through] and other task/spot lighting to try and add some level of warmth to the rooms). I’ve also amassed a collection of artwork (two amazing print gifts from a very talented photographer friend, my sole purchase at The Cheaper Show; A Dan Siney print, a Fred Herzog print, a small painting by Brad Woodfin and one by Luke Ramsey, a couple of giant posters, two record covers [a first-pressing of Unknown Pleasures and Peter Gabriel’s S/T album], and some gig posters from Seripop and a painting by my friend Emi [traded for a Blythe doll!!] and that GIANT Enzo Mari pear print. Oh also that lovely red bear is from Sarah Edmonds).

Sooo this is how it looks for right now. My aim here is to live with the standard renter’s conundrums (can’t paint, can’t take down those stupid curtain rods, can’t put up wallpaper etc. etc.) and still have it feel like home to me. I’m open to suggestions (but basically only from you, Anna). I’m struggling to keep things “edgy” and interseting, not totally spartan and disparate and still tasteful!!

PS: I totally didn’t clean before taking these photos, they’re taken at night so the white balance is for shit and I hope you’re not actually deceived with regards to the size of the place by the extremely wide lens I used.