Welcome to my space!! I’m so excited to finally share the last part of my apartment with you guys! It’s been a little over a year since Jordan and I moved to Brooklyn and slowly, but surely, I’ve been finding the perfect furniture and decor to fill our space.
I’d call our apartment style a mix of mid-century modern furniture with bohemian details (and lots and lots of greenery!). Working on a limited budget, I found nearly everything in our space at Raymour & Flanigan, Etsy, Amazon, Wayfair, West Elm, and Target.
The color scheme in the living room developed totally on its own. Deep terracotta red, navy blue, cream, and neutral browns and greys fill the space, plus varying green tones from the plants. The rug really pulls all the colors together!
Decorating Tip: If you’re not sure where to start in your space, find a rug you truly love and use that to create your color palette!
If you haven’t seen the rest of my apartment, check out my posts below:
Bedroom Tour | Storage, Decor + Furniture
Furniture
Our furniture features (mostly) mid-century modern silhouettes with clean lines, deep walnut wood, neutral tones, and a mix of textures.
I tried my best to keep all wood within the same deep walnut tone and our couch is a brown/grey textured weave.
Before moving, I was set on a plush sectional or L-shaped couch with a chaise lounge. After actually seeing the space, we decided a large couch and loveseat would work better in the space. This set from Raymour & Flanigan was a steal coming in under $1,000 (usually the price of just one couch).
The media console is also from Raymour & Flanigan! I absolutely love this piece – its fabulous for storage and truly holds SO MUCH (all of our electronics, my camera gear, desk supplies, and dozens of extra iPhone cords) and it is just the right height for our TV. We initially had a smaller TV hung on the wall, but for xmas last year we got each other the new TV…we were very happy to make the upgrade!
The coffee table is from the same collection at Raymour & Flanigan.
If you’re looking to add a statement color to your space, try a navy blue or emerald sofa in velvet. Or try a leather couch for a truly luxe look (there some highly affordable faux leather options out there)! The richness of the color will add so much to your space. Our couch is one thing I can definitely see myself upgrading in our next space. I’ve linked some splurge/ save couch options below!
Splurge – over $500
Save – under $500
Bar stools are from Target!
This entryway storage shelf and bench was such a great find! Our tiny front closet does not fit all of our stuff and this piece from Wayfair holds our extra jackets, shoes and in the winter, scarfs and hats. Overall great for extra apartment storage!
Ahh the clothing rack, it’s a love/hate relationship, but a must have in my apartment. When I’m prepping a shoot or packing for a trip I like to hang all of my outfits on the clothing rack. I also use it to keep new items and seasonal pieces top of mind! Because we all know clothing has an odd way of just disappearing into the closet abyss!
This one from Ikea (and is only about $25!). And, if I’m being honest, it does not always look as nice as it does in the photo below (though I certainly wish it did!) ha.
Most of our furniture is on the inexpensive side, but one item we splurged on was the bar cart! Check out my Bar Cart styling post here!
Decor
The decor in our apartments adds more of a bohemian/eclectic style to the space! I love combining gold metal, mirrors, and glass + stone elements through trays, vases, and accessories. You’ll see neutrals throughout, with subtle pops of color in the rug, pillows and of course, the plants.
Combined, Jordan and I brought a dozen travel memories, pieces of art and prints, books and special mementos into the apartment. Everything may not match perfectly, but the meaning and memories behind the weird odds and ends in here make me feel at home. Try working those memorable pieces into your own decor!
We collect match boxes from all the hotels and restaurants we visit when we travel! And I’ll have to give Jordan most of the credit for populating the bookshelf – I’m more of an e-reader gal.
I love using travel mementos to decorate the apartment – this shell is from a trip Jordan and I took to the Tobago Keys (an island north of Grenada). We found it washed up on shore and declared it a “perfect” shell. Would you believe me if I told you it weighs over 10 pounds!?
Decorating Tip: Trays are a great way to organize and display items on coffee tables, counter tops and shelves! The hexagon mirrored trays are from Amazon.
Pillows are from Burrow, Nordstrom Rack and Dormify! They pull similar colors in from the rug to create a cohesive color story in the apartment.
Our apartment only has two ceiling lights in the kitchen. Luckily, we get a ton of light and sun in through the floor to ceiling windows, but at night we live for the lamps. I like a cozy warm glow and don’t mind the natural sunlight cycle.
I found these hexagon shelves on Etsy! You’re able to buy in sets of 3 and they’re fully customizable in both size and color so you can design them to fit your space! For reference these are dark walnut size 14″ x 12.25″
House Plants
My obsession with love for plants really took off when I moved to Brooklyn.
The plants add so much color and life to the apartment! Now that all the leaves have fallen and the city is grey, coming home to thriving green plants brings me an overwhelming amount of joy every single day. As of today, we’re up to two large, five mid-size and four small plants throughout the entire apartment and we’re ALWAYS looking for new ones to bring home!
I’ll tell you a little about each that you’ll see in the living room! & if you’re not a green thumb (or live on a first floor walk up with minimal sunlight) I’ve rounded up a few faux plants that will totally fool anyone who visits your place!
The plant wall is all one plant! Our beautiful Golden Pothos grew like CRAZY when we brought it home and left it in the bright sunlight. Pothos are notoriously easy to care for and hardy (for those who struggle with keeping their plant bbs alive)! After about 6 months, a few of the vines had grown over 15 feet long. It ended up being the perfect plant to weave through the trellis and create the plant wall.
The plant wall is the star of the apartment and one of my most satisfying (and easy) DIY projects to date! I’m writing a ‘how to’ post so you can build your own plant wall – make sure to follow me on IG (@theincogneatist) to be notified when it’s live next week!
For the first 6+ months of us living here, we could NOT decide what to put on the wall behind our couch. It’s very large and one of the first things you see when you enter the apartment. It had to be, well, perfect! We went through a few ideas like a gallery wall, macrame hanging (I was obsessed with this baby for months!), and different wall hangings, etc…..
Ultimately, we ended up putting this off for months until Jordan spontaneously ordered the trellis and it was decided..plant wall it is!
It ended up being the most inexpensive option that brings us the absolute most joy! Watching it grow is weirdly addicting and the plant is thriving from all the extra sunshine it’s exposed to.
HOW TO GUIDE COMING NEXT WEEK!
The Bird of Paradise was one of the first plants I got for the apartment! I actually found it for $20 dollars at a bodega (and didn’t even know what it was at the time) and it only had 4 leaves! It’s really flourished in the last year.
When you’re looking for planters, consider using baskets or clear glass pots to hold your plants! Having a variety adds more of a bohemian look to any room. I find most of my favorites on West Elm, Target, HomeGoods and Amazon…
This little planter I picked up at HomeGoods has some clipping from the plant wall that have rooted into the soil and are now growing a second smaller plant! I think that’s just so cool 🙂
This is a Hoya (or Wax) plant, but I’m not sure exactly which variation. It was actually a gift and only a week ago it started growing a vine and shooting up the window! Super low maintenance and easy to grow!
Also, this view…cannot get enough <3
This English Ivy is finally flourishing. She’s seen better days, but was dying this time last year. I was able to salvage a few healthy vines and it’s been doing pretty well in it’s new home! I’m not entirely sure what caused the initial demise, but I think it wasn’t getting enough sun in the original location (near the kitchen and furthest from windows).
Our Dracaena plant is the largest we have (I guess we should call it a tree at this point!). We have bright white walls and heigh ceilings so finding elements to balance the room was so important to creating a cozy space when we first moved in. The height and dense green leaves help to achieve a more balanced space. This plant (also called a Mass Cane) is also highly effective at removing toxins from the air!
Thank you so much for reading! Make sure you follow me on Instagram for updates and alerts on new posts. Like I said, I’ll be posting a DIY Plant Wall post next week 🙂
*Melissa
I love your apt and the warmth and feel of your apt with the plants.
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Thanks Rosemary! The plants really give it that cozy vibe – you really cant have too many! x, Melissa