Future House / Apt. Dreams.

     With all the unexpected extra time spent staying safer at home this year, I've found myself spending a lot more time dreaming about possible future homes. If I could be staying home this year in my absolute dream living space, what would that look like? It's always fun to dream big, especially in a year where dreams seem to help me cope better with the everyday. 

{Photo originally from this post}

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      First and foremost: writing this post makes me feel so "adult"! I feel like in past years I've never been that picky about apartments I've lived in (as long as they're safe and convenient to things I haven't had many preferences) but now that I am getting older and also spending more time at home this year I'm starting to realize I do have a list of preferences for a future place. I've shared before that I genuinely like apartment living and don't foresee myself investigating home ownership until my 30s... or maybe never! 😏 Haha - time will tell. Anyways, while some of the things on this list might be better suited for a house than an apartment, a lot of them could apply to both. I know it's probably impossible to have a home someday that has 100% of the things on your wishlist as no place is perfect, but it sure is fun to dream! I've broken up this list into two parts: realistic dreams and big dreams. Some of these I think are a lot more likely for my next place (like having a bathroom closet and kitchen pantry closet)... while some of these are pretty lofty dreams (like living waterfront!). Either way- enjoy!  

My (Realistic) Dream Future House/Apartment:

• TONS OF NATURAL LIGHT!
• White or blue cabinetry in the kitchen
• A mix of carpeting and hard flooring throughout the home
• Wallpaper in at least one room
• More bookshelves than the two I have currently
• A new couch in a new color 
• High ceilings in at least one room
• The biggest gallery wall I've ever had
• A closed floor plan (as a generality I'm finding I don't love open floor plans that have become common in more modern homes)
• Two bedrooms if I'm living alone, at least three if I have a roommate (I would finally want have a designated guest room/office room!)
• A generous walk-in closet in the bedroom
• A pantry closet in the kitchen 
• A bathroom closet (...do you see a theme here with wanting more storage? 😉)
• A bathroom window (gotta have that natural light everywhere)
• A large balcony or porch
• Access to a pool and hot tub - whether mine alone or one for community use

My (More Unrealistic) Dream Future House/Apartment:

• Two staircases in the house (for some reason it's been a dream of mine since I was a kid to have a house with a front and back staircase)
• A TV in the bathroom
• Walking distance to tennis courts
• Waterfront 
• A big front porch with hanging flowerpots and chairs and/or a swing
• A workout room (or part of the basement) with proper flooring and its own TV
• Wallpaper in lots of rooms

     Gosh- it sure is fun to dream! As much as I enjoy wondering about where I'll live someday, in the spirit of gratitude I wanted to share a few things that I do love about the apartment that I've lived in for almost a year. 

• Natural light in my bedroom - Probably my favorite thing about my current place. My bedroom is the brightest room in the apartment and I love my huge window so much! I also enjoy seeing Delilah sleep on the ledge in the sunshine some afternoons.
• Better location - This apartment is much more convenient to places I frequent in Charlottesville than my old apartment was, and it's also closer to several friends' places. 
• High ceilings - Our unit has cathedral ceilings in the living and dining room areas and we love it. I feel like the high ceilings make it feel larger. 
• The living room decor - This has been my favorite living room set-up that I've ever had in an apartment. I'm so glad I decided to design statement bookshelves here! The icing on the cake to the decor is the fun lights that my roommate bought to hang from our bookshelves onto the table holding the TV. 

    

     Speaking of home related things- I did want to let you know that I made a new Home Decor page for easy access on the blog! This page will serve as an easy hub for all of my past home related posts: here you'll find tours of all my apartments (and even old posts about my college dorm rooms!), as well as blog posts on entertaining, holiday decor and my top tips for decorating on a budget. I might not have my dream home just yet, but I know a lot of you who read here are like me and in more temporary living situations right now, so hopefully these posts will inspire you to still decorate and make the most of your current space in the meantime. Check out the new Home Decor page here!

     Linking a few of my favorite decor pieces in my current apartment below:

     God Bless,

     xoxo Annaliese