Apartment Decor for People Who Move Every Year (And Have Zero Budget)
By Sienna — Spontaneous, playful, a little chaotic. Life's an adventure and I'm dragging you along. ·
Look, if you’re living in Silver Lake or anywhere in LA, you know the drill. My apartment is less of a 'forever home' and more of a 'place I keep my clothes until the rent hike forces me to move to a slightly smaller place in a slightly louder neighborhood.'
I’ve lived in four different spots since I moved here at nineteen with nothing but eight hundred bucks and a dream—or, you know, a very desperate need to leave my hometown. Through every move, my Honda Civic, Gerald, has been packed to the ceiling with everything I own. Gerald has seen things. He’s seen me haul a thrifted velvet chair across the 101 at 2 AM. He’s seen me cry over a broken floor lamp. But through it all, I’ve learned one thing: you don’t need a Pinterest budget to make a place feel like you.
Stop Trying to Buy 'Sets'
Listen to me closely: if you buy a matching bedroom set from a big-box store, you are telling the world you have no imagination. Plus, when you inevitably move, those cheap particle-board pieces are going to crumble the second you touch them with a screwdriver.
Instead, treat your home like a collage. I have a mid-century modern side table I found on the curb in Echo Park, a neon sign I stole (okay, procured from a wrap party set last month), and a rug that I’m pretty sure was someone’s grandmother’s attic find. Mixing eras and styles makes your place look curated, like you’re a person who actually has stories, not someone who just flipped through a catalog. If it clashes? Good. Clashing is just personality with a louder voice.
Lighting is Your Best Friend (And Your Only Friend)
I don’t care how cute your furniture is; if you’re using the standard 'big light' that comes with your rental, you’re living in a hospital ward, not a home. Renters' lighting is always offensive. It’s too bright, it’s too yellow, and it makes everyone look like they’re auditioning for a documentary about burnout.
Go to the hardware store and buy a bunch of floor lamps. Plug them into smart bulbs so you can dim them from your phone when you’re too lazy to get off the couch. I have a string of fairy lights draped over a mirror—which, by the way, makes your room look twice as big—and it creates this moody, 'I’m a protagonist in an indie film' vibe. Bad lighting is the enemy of a good vibe. Banish the big light forever. Seriously, unscrew the bulb if you have to.
The 'Gallery Wall' Cheat Code
Walls in rentals are usually the color of sadness, and most landlords will throw a tantrum if you try to paint them. My solution? A gallery wall that hides the scuffs.
I don’t buy expensive art. I print out photos from my camera roll, rip pages out of vintage magazines, or frame tickets from concerts and film sets I’ve worked on. Use command strips—seriously, stock up on them like they’re gold—and just start taping things up. Don't worry about being perfect. Perfection is boring. If the frames aren’t straight, it just looks like you’re too busy living a chaotic, adventurous life to care about a level. And honestly? You probably are.
Plants You Can’t Kill (Because You Will Try)
I am a production assistant. My schedule is a nightmare. I’ve killed cactuses. I’ve killed succulents. I once forgot to water a plant for so long it turned into dust. If you’re like me, stop buying 'fussy' plants.
Get a Pothos or a Snake Plant. You can basically leave them in a dark corner, forget they exist for three weeks, give them a splash of water when you remember, and they’ll still thrive. They bring life into a room, they clean the air (which we definitely need in this city), and they look cool hanging from the ceiling. If a plant can survive my life, it can survive yours.
Textiles are Your Secret Weapon
When you’re constantly shifting apartments, you don't have the luxury of buying heavy, expensive pieces. My secret? I invest in blankets and pillows. You can take a depressing, stained rental sofa, throw a funky, oversized vintage quilt over it, add three pillows in different textures, and suddenly it’s a 'design choice.'
Textiles are easy to pack, they make everything cozy, and they hide the absolute disaster that is the landlord-provided flooring. I have a collection of rugs that I layer on top of each other. It’s chaotic, it’s bohemian, and it makes my feet happy.
Embrace the 'Chaotic Good' Aesthetic
At the end of the day, your apartment should be a reflection of your own beautiful, messy, spontaneous self. If you want a stack of books as a coffee table, do it. If you want to paint a mural on your door (check your lease, obviously), go for it.
Living in LA is hard enough without trying to keep up with the Joneses. My favorite nights are the ones where we’re sitting on the floor because I don’t have enough chairs yet, eating pizza, and laughing until our sides hurt. That’s home. Not the furniture, not the decor, but the chaos you invite in.
So, what’s the one piece in your apartment that makes no sense but you love anyway? Mine is definitely the oversized film clapperboard I use as a paperweight. Tell me yours in the comments—I need to know I’m not the only one living in a beautiful disaster zone.