We’ve lived in our Philadelphia apartment for over four years now. I remember walking into the space and thinking – this is it. It just had a good vibe to it. I think Eric thought I was a little crazy, but I whipped out my checkbook on the spot. We’d seen too many other places fall through at the last second, and there were people waiting outside to tour it after us. Sorry, people outside – this place was going to be ours.
In many ways, it isn’t an ideal space, but it checked off three major requirements that we had: 1) it allowed pets, 2) there was a yard for Zoey, and 3) IN-UNIT WASHER-DRYER. Something I hadn’t had at all in my adult life. I was happy to overlook the odd layout, the crooked floors, and the minuscule amount of closet space. We’d make it work.
And we have! We went from a childless married couple and creatures to parents of a newborn (plus creatures). Then parents of a baby. And now, parents of a toddler, plus a dog and two cats. With each of these transitions, our little apartment has seemed smaller. We’ve added stuff. We’ve purged. We’ve added more stuff. We’ve discussed moving a million times, but by now – this apartment is our home. It’s going to take a lot to get me to move out of it. But even I have to admit that these days, life in 1000 square feet is feeling a little claustrophobic. It’s a constant struggle between always editing our belongings and living in a culture that wants you to buy more. And more. And MORE.
So the question is, how much space does a toddler really need? How much stuff do they need? How can we handle the steady stream of gifts from generous and well-intentioned friends and family who love us but who don’t take into consideration how we will actually fit an item into our tiny house?
I don’t have any answers today. But I’d love to hear your ideas – especially if you’ve tackled apartment and city living with littles. Here are a few ideas I’ve come up with to make our space work for the time being:
- Purge AGAIN. Especially clothes and shoes.
- Rethink our spaces and our furniture. What needs to be in the main living spaces, and what needs to be in the bedrooms? What can we do without?
- Freshen up. I’m dreaming of repainting our living room (maybe Sea Salt or Yarmouth Blue or Lavender Heather – what do you think?). I’m hoping a refresh will help us look at the space in a new light.
We’re in an apartment too – probably about 80sqm (slightly less than yours).
Simply not owning THINGS (purging!) is the best thing. We don’t have many toys because we are members of a local toy library – we get to swap out four toys as often as we want, meaning that we don’t have to keep buying toys for different stages of development.
You might be able to join local sharing groups for similar things – I know there’s one local to me for sharing kitchen equipment. $100 annual fee and unlimited rental of specialist kitchen gadgets you might only use once or twice a year, so it saves you having to buy and store them at home.
We also buy smaller furniture – three seater couch is enough, we don’t need a full lounge suite, four seater dining table etc. We also bought smarter furniture – bed frames with inbuilt under bed storage, change table with in built storage, a writing/computer desk that folds up when not in use etc.
Smarter storage too – we ripped out the existing wardrobe systems (hanging rails) and replaced with a DIY shelving and hanging system. 50% less hanging space, but stores heaps more because shelving is more efficient. Having it inside the wardrobe also saves us from another piece of furniture (dresser) taking up floorspace.
And boring option – keeping up with chores! Doing a load of laundry as soon as the basket is full rather than waiting to do four loads at once, folding and ironing clothes as soon as they’re dry, means that you need LESS clothes. Matilda really only has two – three weeks worth of seasonally-appropriate outfits (less storage) because we keep up with laundry enough that she doesn’t need more.
Don’t know if this helps! We own rather than rent, so have some more flexibility in doing things like changing wardrobe configuration!
I totally agree about the not owning THINGS. I’m working on my pack-rat tendencies, but it’s definitely not in my nature. I’m gearing up for another purge now and have to remind myself that I just don’t need all of these things!
I LOVE the idea of the toy library. I know they have one in a neighborhood near us–I’ve been intrigued, but haven’t gotten around to checking it out yet. Thanks or the reminder!
Toy library is honestly the best! Matilda loves it because you actually get to test and play with the toys first before you borrow them for the week/fortnight, rather than just looking at them in a box at the toy store.
Our whole house is just under 1200 sq.. ft. – and that’s actually huge for a semi-detached in Ireland. Make as much furniture do double duty as you can (e.g., our coffee table is also the toy box, our couch has storage in it and the living room bench has shelves). Ask family for experience gifts rather than ‘stuff’. Don’t bring anything into the house without already knowing what you’re getting rid of to make room for it.
And I vote yarmouth blue!
Yeah the furniture is the big thing. I’m dreaming of a couch with storage! We have the Kallax under the TV for toy storage, and her dresser has a bookshelf on top. I think I just need to get better about getting rid of stuff!
Oh yeah, love the idea of experience gifts. We’ve asked for things like annual memberships to our local zoo, museum, etc. Once E is old enough to sit through movies, you could ask for movie vouchers. (I recommend at least three years old – we tried sitting through Frozen 2 with a two year old because she loves Elsa, but she was just too squirmy throughout!)