Before & After: Student Housing Revamp

If you’ve checked out our lookbook, you may have seen some of Going Lovely’s event and storefront design work. Well, we also love getting our hands dirty in the interior decorating space. Today we’ve got a fun before-and-after to share with you!

Just a couple weeks ago I moved from a lovely loft in San Francisco (750 sq ft) to student housing in Palo Alto (550 sq ft) . I  LOVED LOVED LOVED our loft and it was a little bittersweet to leave San Francisco, but my husband was starting at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, so it was the right move for us.

I didn’t actually see our apartment till the day we got our keys, but I did do some internet searching, and based on the pictures I found, I knew I had a creative challenge ahead of me.

First step: planning what we would bring with us and what had to go in storage. I used Floorplanner.com to help with this process and let me tell you, it was amazingly helpful. We ended up with a furnished unit (it’s assigned based off a lottery) and knew right away that their stuff would not be staying with us. We’re only guaranteed a year in this place, but a year in my book is absolutely long enough to put some elbow grease in to making things feel like home. Especially when you enjoy the process!

Second step: get some new accessories to jazz up the place. First thing in order was a nice big rug to lighten up the living room and add a some extra style. This West Elm rug really did the trick and luckily I had a friend who offered up a little employee discount. With the help of  my handy husband, I also revamped a stale bar table and got some fun industrial stools to spruce it up.

Third step: put it all together, organize and style ASAP to transform the place and help it feel like home.

Before with included furniture

Before – view of the kitchen

After – gallery wall and patterned pillows

After – styled shelves (still needing some more treasures)

After -DIYed two toned bar table and industrial metal stools

Leftovers from this week’s flower class. Nothing feels homier than fresh flowers.

Soft and fluffy wool rug. Makes SUCH a difference.

Still have quite a few things I’m excited to update to make our place feel even more homey, including a balcony revamp and some bedroom updating. But, not too shabby for two weeks in, right?! Stay close to the blog as I’ll be sure to keep you posted along the way! Anyone else doing a little decorating and updating lately?

-Christie