A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.

My Hayes Valley, San Francisco Apartment.

It just dawned on me that while I’ve been busy decorating the new space, I never officially showed you around my last apartment! You may have seen a few photos over on The Everygirl back in November but I wanted to share some other photos from the shoot and chat a bit about what I loved about that apartment, what came with me when I moved and how my decorating style has evolved over the years.

A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.

THE LIVING ROOM

One of the best/worst things about this space was the open floor plan with one space for a living room, dining area and office which required some creativity for the furniture layout to really make the most of the square footage (it wasn’t very big!). The floor to ceiling windows were a huge perk and floating the leather sofa from Article in the middle of the room really helped to create a designated “living room” area with CB2 shelving adding some much needed storage. The vintage credenza was one of my all time favorite CraigsList finds (more tips on how I hunt vintage here) but sadly had to be sold after moving into my new apartment because I didn’t have quite the right space for it.

Article Sofa // CB2 Marble Coffee Table // Vintage Rug (similar) // CB2 Bookshelves
// Vintage Credenza (similar) // Urban Outfitters Pillows

A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.

 

THE DINING AREA

This was the first apartment I’ve lived in since my very first apartment in 2010 that had room for an actual table and chairs vs. just barstools at a breakfast bar! While the dining space was definitely on the cozy side, CB2’s pedestal table did the trick after initially having a larger round table which took up too much space. A cowhide rug made the area feel distinct and having a bar cart in the corner ensured the apartment was always ready for entertaining!

CB2 Dining Table // Joss & Main Chairs c/o // Rugs USA Cowhide Rug c/o // Vintage Bar Cart (similar)
// Letterboard // Framebridge Instagram Mini Prints // Instax Mini Frame //
Minted Tree Rings Print c/o // Minted Black Abstract Print c/o // Horse Portrait Print
// Minted Golden Gate Bridge Print c/o // Minted Navy Abstract Print c/o

A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.

THE OFFICE NOOK

I’ve learned that having space for a desk is a must for me in any apartment and I almost passed on this apartment building after seeing several other 1-bedroom options that couldn’t accommodate a working area. Having my desk in front of the windows was amazing and helped make blogging before and after work a little more bearable thanks to ample sunlight ;)

Hairpin Leg Desk // CB2 Filing Cabinet // Wayfair Woven Baskets c/o // West Elm Chair
// Moroccan Pouf // CB2 Sheepskin Pillow // West Elm Lamp // BoConcept Desk Chair c/o // Nailhead Pin Board // 

A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.

THE BEDROOM

Ah, my least favorite part of this apartment! The bedroom was tiny and was just off of the main living space which made it difficult to sleep or relax when anyone was in the living room, plus the lack of natural light (no windows!) made it tough to get up in the morning. Basically this space was only used for sleeping and we made the best of it, but it was far from the bedroom of my dreams ;)

CB2 Bed // Vintage Brass Trunk // Vintage Campaign Nightstand // Target Sea Urchins // Octopus Tryptch
// West Elm Duvet // CB2 Body Pillow // West Elm Striped Sheets // West Elm Lamps

A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options. A Colorful San Francisco apartment in Hayes Valley featuring budget friendly decorating options.

THE KITCHEN & ENTRY

The galley style kitchen in this apartment was a huge space saver and I think they did a really nice job with the finishes and layout to make a functional kitchen with a ton of storage and ample counter-space work in a relatively small apartment. The open shelving made it really easy to access everyday items and gave me an excuse to upgrade my storage containers for cooking and baking items ;) The Chasing Paper removable wallpaper added a lot of character to an otherwise boring entryway while the IKEA shoe cabinet added some much needed storage (it holds a ton of shoes!) and created a landing spot for keys and mail.

Chasing Paper Wallpaper // IKEA Shoe Cabinet // CB2 Dishes // KitchenAid Mixer 

And in case you’d like to take a little walk down memory lane with me, you can get a peek into my first studio apartment in Chicago (I was such a baby!) + my South Loop loft from past home tours!

Photos by Andrea Posadas