I am moving to a new apartment in two weeks. This is not terrible exciting news – I have thus far lived in two dorm rooms, one townhouse, one house-house, and two apartments. Plus, you know… moving.

What is exciting? This new apartment is the first time I have had the prospect of living in the same place for more than a few years. This new apartment is also the first time I have had a full-time wage.

Enter: Jessica’s Inner Interior Design Nut.

I have been reading design magazines since childhood, love perusing catalogs, and if we are shopping together in a large department store and you can’t find me? Check the home goods section.

However, my aforementioned apartments have always looked a bit like this:

I would really rather prefer if my apartment looked like this:

Or this…

I finally have the time/space/money/longevity to make some of my interior dreams come true.

However, I still have the following challenges:

• I don’t want to paint right away.
• I have a LITTLE money, but not a LOT of money
• The Boy and all of the differing financial+aesthetic opinions that come along with cohabitation. Not to mention all the musical instruments.
• My apartment is… well… a kinda cheap Boston apartment. Think peeling linoleum, walls with 100 coats of paint, a bathroom that requires two shower curtains, strangely arranged kitchen appliances, grungy carpet, etc etc.

But, where there’s a will, there’s a way. I’m planning some small projects and gleaning ideas not only from the internet, but from… oh… you guessed it! Some books.

Right now on my reading list…

Apartment Therapy Presents: Real Homes Real People by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan

Apartment Therapy’s Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan

The Perfectly Imperfect Home by Deborah Needleman

and

The Domino Book of Decorating by Deborah Needleman, Sara Ruffin Costello and Dara Caponigro

Apparently, I currently have two patron saints of design. Needleman & Gillingham-Ryan, help me now in my time of need… I need to turn a tiny budget and a crappy apartment into something comfy and liveable and awesome while working full time and fufilling other “extracurricular” professional and non-professional activities, kthnx. If anyone has a good blog or book to throw my way, let me at it!