Post B0OrXYxDevB43VebVQ by futurebird@sauropods.win
(DIR) More posts by futurebird@sauropods.win
(DIR) Post #B0Or3hxZbyd3IaaFZg by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:00:34Z
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The Interior Design Odyssey Continues:The rental and housing markets shape a lot of the ideas and advice available about interior design. People who move often and rent aren't looking at making permanent changes to their spaces. People who own have houses not apartments. So, advice to make permanent changes to apartments is very rare. I hoping this is just a US thing and maybe by looking abroad I can find some more useful ideas.
(DIR) Post #B0OrEzbSM2rhChcTHk by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:02:37Z
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Should we have a conversation about how younger generations are never getting the chance to customize their homes because they can't buy, and it's not just because housing prices are high, it's also because the places younger people want to live generally are not for sale?Moving is fun, but it also sucks. It seems reasonable that if you don't like moving one ought to be able to just... stay somewhere forever.
(DIR) Post #B0OrWuTk95peWVYV0a by statsguy@mas.to
2025-11-19T10:05:50Z
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@futurebird You might get some tips from the UK. But you'd need to ask about flats rather than apartments. Probably flats are also more likely than houses to be rented over here, but plenty of people own their own flat.Although they are generally owned leasehold rather than outright. So there may be complications about asking the freeholder for permission before doing anything structural.
(DIR) Post #B0OrXYxDevB43VebVQ by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:05:51Z
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I guess this is a "downside" to condo/coop ownership. When you get ready to make big changes to your home no one knows what you are talking about and none of the advice makes any sense. "Consider adding X to your kitchen island" (ya'll have island and oceans in there what is going on?)"This furniture will look great in many different sized apartments when you move." (That's nice but I will never move.)"In your laundry room..." (What is that?)
(DIR) Post #B0OrjXJXa9uqRbnuJU by clarablackink@writing.exchange
2025-11-19T10:08:07Z
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@futurebird Re: Interior design for renters: https://youtube.com/@alexandragaterHer channel is the primary one I've seen that regularly shows how to customize your space as a renter.But, yes, not being able to customize your living space is deeply distressing and demoralizing. We are still animals and we need to feel a certain "ownership" of our nest. There is a cruelty to the renting experience that goes unacknowledged.
(DIR) Post #B0Orp2BWEX7DdTfoeW by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:09:08Z
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@clarablackink I find a lot of advice for renters. The problem is advice for apartments that are NOT rentals.
(DIR) Post #B0Orrjdzck7X09HPii by jollyorc@social.5f9.de
2025-11-19T10:09:36Z
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@futurebird Define "customizing" here? I've lived most of my life in rented flats, and even when I moved into the first flat with my then girlfriend at 22, I thought I had plenty of opportunity for making this my own place.. (But then, I'm living in Germany, habits and things are different here)
(DIR) Post #B0OrxRzABtOZyJuJrk by pettter@social.accum.se
2025-11-19T10:10:36Z
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@futurebird It's fairly common in Sweden to own (through a housing association) an apartment, actually. Among apartment households it's something like a 60/40 split (still more renters).
(DIR) Post #B0OrzEYl4xECuZPIcS by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:10:57Z
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@clarablackink I think it's reasonable to not expect to make deep changes to a space that you will not live in for more than 5 years. But at some point? The white walls, the inability to install a shelf or change things like tile is grating.
(DIR) Post #B0Os5ggNQozls2321o by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:12:09Z
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@jollyorc Customizing:Changing the floor, installing built in bookshelves, changing the tile, major kitchen appliances etc.Not really something that can be done in a rental.
(DIR) Post #B0OsDDgB9HJuEeXy3U by GustavinoBevilacqua@mastodon.cisti.org
2025-11-19T10:13:28Z
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@futurebird Here Ikea showrooms have life-size "apartment emulators", the same size of the most common apartments, so you can see how furniture fits and how you can live there.No need to buy, but you can steal a lot of ideas.
(DIR) Post #B0OsIcYe4vLSqIbBK4 by clarablackink@writing.exchange
2025-11-19T10:12:05Z
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@futurebird The studio fix series on Alexandra's channel covers smaller spaces and the types of furniture that can make them feel more functional.I keep hoping to see more folks tackle this kind of interior design because it expands on the technical work that happened with tiny houses (expanding small living spaces) but brings it to the renter space where you just can't do as many things with the structure itself.
(DIR) Post #B0OsIdcw6SN69tc7eK by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:14:27Z
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@clarablackink I should hit up the tiny house stuff again. There might be some usable tips in there... though they tend to get bogged down on things like electrical and heating ... And they don't care about accessibility much at all which annoys me a little. (though jungle gym housing is very fun)
(DIR) Post #B0OsZmVaKr6icvLlGy by jollyorc@social.5f9.de
2025-11-19T10:17:33Z
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@futurebird Again, german pecularities here: A lot of rented flats come without any kitchen furniture or appliances, or the ones that are there are often so tiny and basic that one can temporarily store them in the attic and replace with ones own. :)And not having Stud-and-drywall walls in general makes built-in-bookshelves generally a non-issue.And I've laid carpet, wood laminate flooring and PVC wood-imitate flooring (the stuff you get on a roll like carpet) in a lot of rented places too.But ripping out, restaining, or outright replacing hardwood floors where they exist is indeed out, and tiles are also a big no-go. (Although I've painted over bathroom tiles in the past!)
(DIR) Post #B0OtUYEc4r3OrcTuW8 by jollyorc@social.5f9.de
2025-11-19T10:27:49Z
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@futurebird @clarablackink btw: I find myself for the first time in my life in an apartment that I actually own, and am still figuring a lot of stuff out. INCLUDING dealing with the HOA equivalent. (In which I somehow ended up being a member of the board, so I can nip the most egregious things in the bud. So people are allowed to put solar panels on their balconies now without any undue hassle)
(DIR) Post #B0OthALkBzPOYBpeCW by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:30:07Z
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@jollyorc @clarablackink Being on the co-op board is important community service and the only way to keep busy bodies at bay. I used to be on mine and probably am due to show up and make everyone uncomfortable again. (We want solar too. And for the common spaces to stay open more. )I suppose I'm a type of busy body in a way. But if not me then who?
(DIR) Post #B0OvPsypibmtfJ0Hey by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T10:49:18Z
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@Andrew Thank you! This is a great lead.
(DIR) Post #B0OxKZ7QKqecWhc2b2 by YellowReadis@mathstodon.xyz
2025-11-19T11:10:48Z
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@futurebird Never Too Small is an Australian YT channel that focuses on apartment design. Simple Dwelling often has profiles on apartments too. Living Big in Tiny House focuses on Tiny Homes, but has great ideas for small space configurations. I used to read a lot of Apartment Therapy, but haven't for a while now, so I don't know what they are like post-AI. NB. Having recently gone through a kitchen/bathroom renovation in an apartment, agree that it was very hard to get advice, or even find a company willing to do it. (We did eventually find an amazing company that were pretty much flawless, and specialised in apartment renos - but unless you are in Australia, probably not terribly helpful.)
(DIR) Post #B0OzqFmxwGvvkbHVNg by gbargoud@masto.nyc
2025-11-19T11:38:57Z
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@futurebird My favorite thing about owning has been the ability to go hard with customizations. Here is the desk I made in a little unused nook next to the kitchen:https://pixelfed.social/p/gbargoud/787740691151563204
(DIR) Post #B0P0sMbNg8XfPlQsgy by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T11:50:32Z
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@gbargoud That's a nice quality of plywood. I love the build. You might try sanding it a bit and then doing layers of minwax wipe on poly. Wipe on poly can allow you to slowly make the surface more glossy and it will be easier to clean and less prone to staining. (right now some red kool-aid could ruin your day. )
(DIR) Post #B0P2AL1iNFYzhBsv56 by gbargoud@masto.nyc
2025-11-19T12:04:59Z
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@futurebird If you scroll through to the last picture you'll see that I painted it white to match the walls.I finished that like a week before my kid was born so I am very aware of what stains it could get
(DIR) Post #B0P2NWBCDdaw3BbWmu by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T12:07:25Z
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@gbargoud I can only see the first photo.
(DIR) Post #B0P2kzhmbrCGHb2b5M by gbargoud@masto.nyc
2025-11-19T12:11:36Z
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@futurebird There are 5 on the post but you need to scroll through to see the others if it opened on pixelfed's site instead of directly in your mastodon app
(DIR) Post #B0P2w7IohfDD1yfOy0 by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T12:13:40Z
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@gbargoud There is no way to scroll?
(DIR) Post #B0P37SXK61Wg4XrPg8 by gbargoud@masto.nyc
2025-11-19T12:15:42Z
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@futurebird I have it on a phone so it's swiping on the pictures, there might be arrows on the edge if you click thereIt's clearly a very Instagram coded UI and there's a reason I only really made 2 posts there before mostly abandoning the accountNote the 5 dots on the bottom of the picture that hint at the existence of more
(DIR) Post #B0P3FMlnQ6FiVKOtGa by futurebird@sauropods.win
2025-11-19T12:17:08Z
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@gbargoud Ah. I can swipe with my mouse. IDK if I'd figure that out even on a phone. I'm getting old. Damn.
(DIR) Post #B0P3iXViZ7GeDJn5rE by rlcw@ecoevo.social
2025-11-19T12:22:19Z
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@futurebirdCheck Germany - people here have long running rental contracts and do make long-term changes. And most people live in appartements.We also recently bought the apartment we live in and are looking into smart choices especially for the bedroom next, which is also my home office spot.Tiny homes offer a lot of inspiration there.
(DIR) Post #B0P4DVhpKDmfasDsIK by rlcw@ecoevo.social
2025-11-19T12:27:59Z
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@futurebirdSuper common stuff in German rentals.@jollyorc
(DIR) Post #B0P4OqBBXsNsHDMEW8 by gbargoud@masto.nyc
2025-11-19T12:30:02Z
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@futurebird I think it's one of those things where someone (Instagram in this case) starts a convention that would be otherwise unintuitive and then others use that convention now that it's more or less in the zeitgeist Anyone jumping past the first one gets hopelessly lost though since there is this assumption that they are familiar with it
(DIR) Post #B0PAm8ob1Y8MSYHlVg by babelcarp@social.tchncs.de
2025-11-19T13:41:26Z
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@futurebird Your laundry room is the common area downstairs that lets you hang out with neighbors for longer stretches than in the elevator.🧐
(DIR) Post #B0PEyMIX7X1jZFMyUi by sewblue@sfba.social
2025-11-19T14:28:30Z
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@futurebird I moved into a big, 1930's house (housing market crash deal) that literally trippled my floor space. 1100 sq ft to 3500 sq ft.I lived there for 5 years before I realized my furniture didn't have to be against the wall in the lining room. That it was awkward because I had zero clue on how to deal with large spaces.Now that I live in a too big house, design recommendations make sense. They are aimed at people with too much space and too much money. The one thing I've found with design is to repeat colors and motifs. Don't go crazy with picking the perfect thing, pick a theme and stick with it. I worked with a designer to flip my hoarder's aunt's condo for sale. Learned a lot, how to make stuff look great for cheap. Over thinking, overbuying are the death. Like your cabinets, we dressed up the underfloor on the carpeted stairs and made them pretty.The condo next door spent oodles and didn't sell.