This Renter’s DIY, No-Paint Mural Is Also a Brilliant, Small-Space Friendly Storage Idea

published Oct 4, 2022
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smart solutions to their storage woes. Whether the priority is maximizing space or finding stylish furniture pieces that take up little to no square footage, the struggle is real. When all else fails, you might just have to be down to do a DIY, and that’s exactly what one creative New York renter did in her petite apartment.

A content creator that lives in a 400-square-foot studio in Brooklyn, Lauren struggled to find her design style in the beginning, but you wouldn’t know it from the looks of her bright, personality-filled space now. “My apartment is just about the perfect square, which made the idea of decorating for me quite a challenge,” she says in her house tour. “When I first saw the space, I instantly saw a 500-piece-puzzle that I was excited to put together.”

Over the past year-and-a-half, Lauren has documented her design journey of solving that puzzle on TikTok, where she’s gained over 74,000 followers that live for the bright, funky vibe in what Lauren calls her “groovy” NYC apartment. “Channeling the ’70s is an interesting feat for modern decor because there’s a lot of digging that you have to do to find items that feel on theme and also relevant to the space,” she says. Like any true creative, when Lauren can’t find exactly what she’s looking for, she isn’t afraid to roll up her sleeves and get crafty with a simple DIY. In fact, one of Lauren’s favorite elements in her place — and proudest DIY — happens to be the no-paint, ’70s mural locker she uses as an entertainment center to anchor her living room TV.

“I’ve always dreamed of having one of those curvy ’70s murals around my apartment, but I’m not much of a painter and a little afraid of ruining the walls,” Lauren says. “So I decided to design my own mural with vinyl and adhere it to a storage unit that lives under my TV.”

Lauren bought a pink, two-door storage locker from Walmart and placed it underneath her TV. Sure, she didn’t need a piece of furniture here, since the television is hanging on the wall and didn’t require a stand. The locker not only grounds the flatscreen visually, but it also serves as a great opportunity for hidden storage of electronics (or otherwise). As if the locker wasn’t cute enough on its own, Lauren designed a vinyl peel-and-stick mural with the perfect combination of oranges and yellows to compliment the rest of her space.

This project truly offers the best of both worlds: A pop of personality with its fool-the-eye “painted” mural design and a place to hide unsightly things in a small space. Now that’s a win-win in my book!