A 220-Square-Foot Boston Apartment Is Compact But Quirky, with a Beautiful Tile Fireplace

Name: Monica Carroll
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Type of home: Apartment
Size: 220 square feet
Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting

Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: It’s just me — thank goodness, sharing 220 square feet with someone else during the pandemic would have been… tough. I work in marketing, but at night I am a stand-up comedian in Boston, and I peruse design on the internet every chance I get!

As a comedian I often find myself tempering what I wear on stage in order to not seem too outlandish, so I get to have a little more fun with the design of my home space. I try to have fun with the decor; I really don’t feel the need to be too serious.

What is your favorite room and why? Wellllll it is only one room, so I guess my favorite part is the fireplace. Those tiles were painted over with white paint when I moved in, and I spent a whole day scraping paint off to reveal the pattern underneath.

So happy my gut was right. I ended up using those colors to help pick the color I ended up with on the walls (which were also painted the same renter special off-white).

Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Colorful, quirky, compact, maximal, vintage

Any advice for creating a home you love? Follow your gut! Don’t worry too much about “matching” or worrying if it “goes together.” If you love everything you have, it is easy to find a way to make it all work together.

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

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