An Attic Apartment in Far Rockaway Mixes Mid-Century & Moroccan Styles

Shaya has been renting this three-bedroom apartment for two years: I’m the sole inhabitant. A born and raised Queensite, I’ve never lived in another borough! (Though I have lived outside NY). I work from home a lot so it was important to me to have an office space that was separate from other areas and which I could completely step out of at the end of the day. Second, I wanted a space that could be designated as a guest room only. Third, I don’t cook much but do eat much, so a kitchen that fit that lifestyle was a plus! I enjoy having over small groups of friends, and the kitchen (and living room) support that. Finally, I enjoy a space that gets lots of light and having exposure on three sides of the space is great. (east, west, and south).

I enjoy a space that comes with its challenges but which also comes with rewards to offset the challenges. I think I found that in my apartment. It is the attic of a very old house 15 minutes by foot to the beach. It is not in the best condition, but is large for one person and had the features that were important to me. It gets good light and is not too close to any other structures. Also, it has these really weird nooks and crannies that were cool to try and work around and make the best use of. It had a bunch of old junk in it that I needed to get rid of before making the space mine, and traffic flow/space planning were tricky, but I think I did a good job!

Storage-wise, the space has four good-sized closets and I added some dressers and shelves, as well as ottomans with stowing space. I have the luxury of not needing to use under-bed storage (something I’ve relied on in previous apartments), which allowed me more freedom design-wise.

As a half-American half-Egyptian, my idea of cozy was influenced by my grandparents’ homes and personal vibes, one side of which was mid-century American, the other, North African. I enjoy spatial challenges and restrictions, and I allowed those to dictate the layout of the space, but as for style, I went with what felt homey. I love geometrics and incorporated them wherever I could. A love of animals is reflected in the apartment as well, and I especially wanted to incorporate animals that are featured in adages from my upbringing, reminding me to be my best self.

A bunch of stuff around the apartment belonged to my grandparents, a bunch of other stuff is thrifted, and still more stuff is made by me. (And some stuff is new). I care for 23 plants. I enjoy the uncurated junk store experience; digging for treasure is way better than being told what is treasure. Plus it’s cheaper. In previous apartments my collection of tchotchkes was perhaps too cluttered, so in this space I wanted to give pieces that I love more room to shine. A lot of stuff was bought during the height of the pandemic on Letgo and the like, so that was a great way to run around NY to parts I’ve never been before, and interact with cool people. The building (house) is where I met some new lifelong friends, which makes the space itself that much more special.

Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Grandpa-core with Moroccan and mid-century.

What is your favorite room and why? I don’t know that I can pick my altogether favorite room, but my favorite spot to pretend to read in but just fall asleep is the easy chair in the living room, because it’s really cozy and even more so at night. Otherwise, my favorite spot is wherever the sun is filtering in around sunrise at any given point in the year. That time of day is peaceful and warm, and sitting in those rays is.

What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? The latest addition to my home is a puffin-Viking bobblehead that my friend brought back from his trip to Iceland!

Any advice for creating a home you love? My advice to someone in a new space is:

• Of course: Measure three times, buy/cut/whatever else once.
• Plan space first, think of style second.
• Let the individual things that make you happy lead your style choices.

Thanks Shaya!

This submission’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.

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