A Stylish Girl's First Nest

Whenever the latest issue of one of my favorite design mags arrives, I make one last review of the previous issue to see if I want to tear any ideas out or just keep the issue for future reference.  When I went through the March Traditional Home mag last night, I was drawn again to one feature.

There was a profile of a twenty something, freshly minted fashion writer's first apartment.  Her mother is an interior designer so that certainly helps when you're trying to turn out a stylish first nest.  Together the two produced an awesome little space for daughter Lauren's Rye NY apartment that is a perfect marriage of budget (she is, after all, entry level fresh out of college) and investment pieces.

Here is designer mom, Suzanne McGrath and her daughter, Lauren sitting on Lauren's investment piece, a Mitchell Gold love seat (definitely would not have been room for that in my first apartment budget) in a timeless ticking pattern.  The fun yellow lamp was unearthed under a couple layers of dust at a flea market.  The sweet little blue coffee tables were a consignment shop find.  All other items in view were already owned by either Lauren or her mom.

Honestly, I loved everything about this space except the fact that the window treatment does not go all the way to the ground.  I love the light airy fabric and the print, but I cannot stand panels that fail to reach the ground.  To me it always looks like you're just making do instead of waiting until you could get what you want.

What I love though is the bench under the window where she stacks her books. 

Lauren gave a fresh coat of white paint to a dresser from her great-grandparents and found new hardware in a sale basket at Anthropologie. The top three drawers store Lauren’s clothing, while lower drawers contain a mishmash of everything from large-scale kitchen platters to linens.  All of us living in smaller spaces prefer items that do double duty.

The old cane-sided chair was a Craigslist find (she paid $25 for a pair).  Originally painted pink, Lauren painted it black and upholstered it in inexpensive fabric, finishing it off with brown velvet trim.

The little dining area is mostly furnished with finds from her family and given a fresh coat of paint.  The shelves on the wall are IKEA and are filled with inexpensive pieces, some of which Lauren spray painted to make them look like mercury glass.

Her bedside table is actually a desk her mom rescued from the street in NY 20 years ago.  I love the spindle legs.  The fake Murano mirror was slightly damaged so she was able to get it for a steal from Anthropologie and the other items from her dressing table are courtesy of a consignment shop.  My favorite piece is the lucite stool.

Enjoy the weekend in your own nest.  See you next week.