The Estate of Things

My friend Joel has a beautiful doll of a girl roommate named Aubrey and she is a genius. They rent a Spanish bungalow in West L.A. (total score… full on 3br 2ba house, exposed beams, an amazing backyard and studio out back. I’m gonna show you pics!)

Aubrey is a genius because she has a really fun ceiling, and she painted the room grey with a complimentary dark grey above and I love it. Don’t you!?

Here’s some more pics of the home, so you can salivate a bit. It’s affordable too. Affordable like less than $1000 per month per person.

I love the art deco tile that you run into in LA homes.

Sunbeam & Beams!!

Nice chairs. (Sarah must be wondering, but they are not Joel’s. They are the previous tenants)

What’s up trellis?

Kate and I have been talking a lot about what to do with the dining table and 4 chairs that her mother gifted her. The apartment is close to 100% empty and so we really don’t need to prioritize replacing it with the desired tulip & wingback combo (or whatever might be more desirable.) Looks like we have another project on our hands. I do love spray paint.

I was initially inspired by the upholstery on this chair at Downtown but I got over it when Sarah told me that she was not a fan of this chair.

So, we hit up some fabric stores today to see what we could find. The trip to Sew L.A. (in Silverlake) was a beautiful one. Sew L.A. is a fantastic resource for fabric made familiar by your favorite Etsy sellers.

I was hoping for a Chiang Mai, and thinking we could make a quick impact without too much effort. I probably wouldn’t normally have thought to go this route without the prod from Jamie’s recent addition to Furbish Studio, seen on iSuwannee.com.

(thanks Apartment #412 and Rowdy from Furbish Studio for the images)

After a quick stop in the coffee shop across from Sew L.A. I saw the green crocodile upholstery on the chairs there, and I couldn’t get it outta my mind, so the kitschy cute styles at Sew L.A. were no longer an option. In my single sightedness, we hit Sunset blvd toward downtown on the quest for croc.

The garment district was pretty awesome, starting first with Michael Levine Inc. After a few snaps with the camera, I was asked not to take pictures inside. (my apologies that I can’t visually share with you the awesomeness. You’ll have to come visit.) They had all of the novelty fabrics that Sew L.A. had and soo much more. (but not the right crocodile or chiang mai). All in all - a great day - though I came home overwhelmed and empty handed. Let me know if you have any ideas that I should be considering for a table make-over.

Not the right crocodile, but getting there.

Kate doesn’t know what Toile is. We’ll help her.

Hi Friends.
Today I have a question for you. (Specifically you Sarah! What do you think?)

When you are a renter and you would like to make updates to your home to make it more enjoyable, and you know that you’re ideas are in good taste and will more likely improve the quality of the home - is it better to ask for permission - or forgiveness!? I’m thinking about my new and tiny kitchen.

This is what I’m working with. (thanks iPhone cam)

Sarah added the image below to her Tiny post, about small kitchens. It gave me a bit of vision for the kitchen in my LA rental. Obviously, I cannot replace tile or reconfigure the appliances (as much as Kate would love to be able to). But, I believe I can replace hardware and paint the ceiling. Also, there is a lot of wall space over the sink that needs to be treated with some special attention. Should I be thinking metallic?? What kind of light fixture needs to hang over my sink? I can get those real tall cabinet pulls from Ikea for a price that I like, and I know a boy that might be down for painting the cabs a nice GLOSSY clean white….

Perhaps you’ve asked yourself why the H you haven’t seen pictures of my new apartment yet? (If you’re Sarah). The new answer to that question is because I’m not staying there. I’m breaking the lease that I just signed. After the joking about Season Two of the LA Apartment hunt… haha…. we are actually going to have a Season Two of the LA Apartment hunt. This time our Renter (me) is zeroing in on a 2br in Santa Monica with a friend name Kate.

After cruising the blog - My Favorite and My Best for a bit AND upon fleshing out the details of breaking my lease with the Property Management company, I emailed Kate to say:

This is what I think we may be after in the new digs… (We’ll add a certain amount of pop of color in the furniture and whatnots..)

How do you feel about black & white striped rugs with grey walls and white trim…. ?
2 matching wingbacks and a big ole floating couch will make my heart zing… and chances are something antique and painted will scream I’m YELLOW…. or GREEN or PINK or whatever will scream the loudest… TBD….

So, it looks like it may be a Farewell to the apartment in Culver City by Feb 1. It’s a charming little apartment and I’ve loved the Jacuzzi baths that I’ve had there. However, I was a little out of touch with expectations of the new lifestyle and when Kate said that she was ready to get out of her place, it occurred to us that we could both save a ton of money, gas and time on the road if we did this.

Neither Kate nor I have furniture. We both want Hardwood Floors… so we’re thinking that our House Warming Party will have a Roller Skating theme. All details will unravel here as I continue the effort to make LA my home.

I can’t help myself. I’m a glutton for pain. I’m still searching through Craigslist Apartments so I can see what I missed out on. I thought this Venice bungalow was interesting.

because it reminded me of the Angela Adams Birds and the Bees collection photos

I’m sure you’re all at the edge of your seat wondering about my apartment hunt. My apologies for my spotty at best posting. There is news. I found one. The only reason I haven’t shared that with you, is because I was trying desperately to hold out for pictures I take myself of the charming elements of the chosen home. Here is a sneak peak - the image that prompted me to visit the place. (They had crap images on the ad).

I had mentioned before that the search was a practice in compromise. And so, in some ways this place isn’t my dream. However, I’m happy with my decision and very much looking forward to moving into my own spot and decorating the shit out of it. (I tried to get keys to the door this weekend, but sometimes bureaucracy slows things down a bit.) Details to come, believe me!!

On a personal note, my life has been moving at an alarming pace. Many fantastic things are happening and I’m trying to swallow it all, meanwhile I keep fighting the bitter aftertaste of the compromises I’ve made to get out here.

In the thick of college when Sarah and I were fully used to being in each other’s face 24/7, several of our close group of friends split up for a WHOLE summer. I was off to New Hampshire to teach art at a sleep-away camp, Joel was off to a fancy internship in Pittsburgh, Parker and Dan were going away to romp around Spain. Sarah was amazed at my ability to say goodbye so casually.

I learned something from her in that experience. Mostly that I suck at dealing with emotions rationally, or in the context of a present moment. I don’t know at the flash of goodbye how relationships will be affected, or what it will be like to miss people. I continue to learn from her that we love each other and are affected deeply by our friendship. I’m so glad that we have this blog together. She’s always supported me despite my fancies - no matter where I’ve run to or for what reason!

Thanks for bearing with me as I turned this Interior Design Blog post into a vomitous emo narrative - with topics that have certainly tread away from the LA Apartment Hunt. I have been asking a lot from a lot of people lately. So, I want this post to be a celebration. Not only that I’ve found an apartment finally! But also a thankful celebration for the tons of support I am receiving as I flip my reality upside down to take strides towards a full life!

My new job is with KCRW, Southern California’s leading NPR affiliate. Its so much more than just a radio station. (a quick FYI - I also write for a music blog, The AudioMuffin, which coupled with the success of TEOT helped me to land this new gig.) I’ve acquired this job with the radio station as an Interactive Producer. I am providing Music content for the site, as well as acting as a Social Networking host. Another big part of the job is supporting the DJs, Producers and PR teams as we transition their slew of blogs onto the Wordpress platform.  I’ve been at the station learning and doing my best to keep afloat and kick some ass. It’s fun and exciting and challenging to be the new girl. I have a lot to learn before I’m fully emersed in my new duties. But, I did just want to take a moment to explain where I’m at and why I’m here, and to give thanks for the friends that helped get me here!

Love,
Betsy

The heartbreak of the move happened. Pollock stayed behind. I guess then that really makes this Episode of the LA Apt Hunt the saddest. The bottom line is… even if I could afford to pay $1500+/month for an apartment I’m just not sure that my new lifestyle is going to work for such a huge man dog. That changes my list a little bit, so now if I HAVE to get a place that isn’t 125 lb dog friendly, then so be it.

Culver City/Mar Vista Studio $1050/mo.
This is a 450 sq. foot studio lined with windows. It also has this weird cutout into the kitchen, and what’s up with that tiny fridge? Actually the more I look at these pics… I don’t really like it. so nevermind.

I’m too sad to look at Pollock-less homes.

Okay, hopefully those last few posts got all the irrational options expunged. And since its time to get serious, this post is going to be about compromise. First I’ll start with the Wish List.

• Dogs Allowed
• Hard Wood Floor
• True 1 Bedroom (distinct private sleeping area)
• Full Kitchen with some aesthetic appeal (hopefully white cabinets)
• Character / Charm
• Close to Work
• Will re-consider proximity if the dog has an outdoor area that he can access without me!

The first time I moved to Los Angeles I was 24. My friend Joel lived there in a Studio Apartment in KoreaTown. He was working his way into the Television Industry. He allowed me and another girl friend to come live with him temporarily in the Studio. The 3 of us shared that tiny space for almost two months. It was pretty awesome (probably more in retrospect than in reality) Joel’s rent was like, $600/mo. So the moral of this story is that compromise can be fun, but more importantly its that KoreaTown is a really affordable place to live. Not only is it affordable, but its stacked with awesome Art Deco apartment buildings.

Here’s what you could get for the Money

The Historic Chateau Duval
$1250/mo.
Check out the soaring ceilings and dark wood floors in this place. The kitchen is also pretty rad with its Stainless Steel appliances. I love the 1920’s. The description says that the Dining Area includes a concrete wall, so clearly we are banging on charm and character here.

This place meets everything on the list, except for being close to work or having access to the outdoors for my monster dog. and again, we’re looking at a hefty drive during rush hour.

The search continues, I guess!

Okay. Hopefully this will be my last post with examples of what I CAN’T have. I’ve stumbled upon a couple more properties for rent that would be GREAT places to make into a home but are really only good for a bout with depression. I’m just throwing them up on TEOT so you can enjoy the little mini real estate fantasy.

Topanga Canyon Guest House
The fantastic elements here are pretty obvious in the pictures. But I have to admit, I also ReALLY enjoy the thought of being settled up in the mountains near the State Park, where there are views and trails and you are out of the bustle of the LA madness. The problem with this though - is that even though its located no more than 12 miles from my work - it’ll take about an hour or more to make that commute daily due to the traffic on the PCH. Imagine your Sunday mornings though, with this fireplace and that deck!
This is literally a dream as far as the home goes.
$1500/month and Pollock is Welcome there!

Santa Monica Cottage
This is a One Bedroom apartment that includes access to a 300 square foot finished attic (which seems like an opportunity for a second bedroom to me). If I had a roomate this would be a legitimate option, with rent coming in at $1695/month. However, it doesn’t say if Pollock is allowed or not. Look how stinking cute it is though with its Rose Bushes climbing the picket fence.

Final Fantasy - Venice Canals
This isn’t even remotely realistic cause the rent is almost $3000/mo., but I accidentally sat there with it open on my computer and envisioned morning coffee overlooking the canal - just for a hot second. Of course, the neighbors are probably a little bourge. But I’m a sucker for the idea of a fireplace like that. (sans carpet while we’re fantasizing!!)

The search continues! haha.

Perfect 1930’s Beach Cottage. Freestanding. Fenced Yard. Hard Wood Floors. Charm. Walking Distance to my job located in Santa Monica. Dogs Allowed.

I want this so bad it HURTS me. But, unfortunately it doesn’t come with a Live-In boyfriend to pay half the rent. It’s $1850/mo.

The search continues.