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Apartment City: How Small is Too Small?

14 Dec, 2009  |  Apartment City
Wow.
Ok…when I read this article on nypost.com early this morning, I could not BELIEVE the things peeps would sacrifice in order to live in Manhattan. It’s unreal.

And I have to tell you dahlings, that even though I am still a renter, I must come home to a place that makes me feel comfortable & relaxed. AND, it must be aesthetically pleasing to me.

Otherwise – coming back to my apt would be absolutely effing miserable.

Last year I spent a lot of energy re-decorating my apartment to suit my taste and it has made my life so much more positive & bright. It has turned my apt into an environment that is conducive to developing new project ideas, completing current work projects & overall a great place to live.

Of course, if I had an absurd amount of dispensable income, I would love to live in a penthouse in a lux high-rise (one day dammit!) . But for now, my apt suits me just fine and is actually one of my fav places to be – in Midtown of course!

There are however, a few things I cannot sacrifice:

  • separate kitchen (mine is tiny as hell but it’s still separate);
  • separate bedroom (unless your apt is a large studio, who wants to live & sleep in the same room?); and
  • enough space so I don’t feel claustrophobic (of which, I actually am!).

The folks in this article seem to be just fine without these things and even less….

By ANGELA MONTEFINISE
SOURCE: nypost.com

They do their dishes in the shower, sit sideways on the toilet and need to watch their weight just to fit into their bathrooms.

But these cramped New Yorkers wouldn’t have it any other way.

A week after The Post told the story of Zaarath and Christopher Prokop and their 175-square-foot micro-studio on Sunday, other New Yorkers lined up to share their tales of living small, including a 55-square-foot apartment in Hell’s Kitchen and a 90-square-foot home on the Upper West Side.

“To me, it’s all about location,” said Eddie Rabon, 24, who lives in a microscopic Hell’s Kitchen abode. “I’m in an amazing neighborhood, and the money I save on rent alone lets me really enjoy New York for what it is. My apartment is a place to hang my hat and catch a few hours of sleep. That’s it.”

55 sq. ft., Hell’s Kitchen
source

When freelance event planner Eddie Rabon talks about his itty-bitty pad — just one square foot larger than a Rikers Island jail cell — the excitement is clear in his voice.

“It’s fantastic,” he said. “It’s a great neighborhood in the greatest city. It’s about $800 a month. You won’t find that price anywhere else in this area. I feel like the money I save not having to get on the train to get around because I’m in the center of everything is worth it.”

Rabon said the longest wall in his apartment is 121/2 feet, and that includes the apartment door. At its narrowest spot, he can spread his arms and almost touch both opposing walls. He said he has trouble turning around in his little shower, and said taller friends have been unable to close the bathroom door if they need to sit.

“The bathroom has an airplane sink turned lengthwise,” he said. “So I can’t actually fit in over the sink.

90 sq. ft., UWS

The first night Felice Cohen, 39, slept in her tiny apartment — with a full-size loft bed only 23 inches from the ceiling — she had a “panic attack.”

“But now I love it. It’s cozy,” she said of the 12-by-7-foot place, which rents for just over $700 a month.

Her tiny bathroom is a challenge, though: “I had to learn to sit sideways on the toilet so I don’t bang my leg on the tub.”

105 sq. ft., Greenwich Village

Genevieve Shuler, 31, always knew she wanted to live near Washington Square Park, the neighborhood her parents once called home. “When I first walked in, I thought, ‘This is really incredibly tiny,’” she said of the $780-a-month pad. “There were no closets, no real kitchen. But I knew I could do more with it . Once I knew my loft bed could fit, I took it.” When it comes time to do the dishes, because the kitchen sink is so small, “I do them in the shower.”

Q: Would you dahlings sacrifice comfort for location?

kissies,

p.s. – The winner of MG’s Daffy’s Giveaway is – Very Married! Congrats darling, send me your email!! AND

p.p.s – I have a new giveaway that I will be posting about later today – so please look out for it! AND

p.p.p.s – Since Wed is SIMC, I will be sure to write up my date from this weekend, on this Thursday’s post…just so you know my sched, dolls – LOL! XOXO

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Solo Living in the City…

4 Nov, 2009  |  Apartment City
I recently read this NY Post article & wanted to share it with you dahlings…

Poll: Half of Manhattan residents live alone

By CHUCK BENNETT - Last Updated: 10:31 AM, October 30, 2009

New Yorkers have no excuse for dateless Friday nights.

More than half of all Manhattan residents are living alone — and the number of singles in the city is continuing to rise to historic levels, new Census Bureau data show.

That means you’ve got a 50-50 shot that the cute neighbor down the hall is looking for love.

The borough now resembles some kind of “Sex and the City” fantasyland with a majority of households, 50.3 percent, with just one resident — no roommate, no spouse, no family, no kids…

There are numerous forces turning Manhattan into an isle of singletons, explained William Helmreich, deputy chairman of City College’s sociology department. The factors include high-paying jobs, the expense of raising a family, longer-living widows and widowers, and, of course, a celebrated culture of singledom.

“Singles attract more singles,” he said. “They participate in a lifestyle that is mutually reinforcing. The more single people engage in that lifestyle, the more acceptable it is, and the more acceptable it is, the more people are going to do it.”

source

Sociologists now call the time people in their 20s and 30s spend solo “early adulthood” to differentiate it from the period before they marry and have children — which is happening later and later…
Ladies, however, are at a disadvantage.
There are 212,000 single female households compared with 165,000 male single.

Many of those women are lonely hearts, but they aren’t all Carrie Bradshaws….

~Huh. Interesting read & stats, right?~
Well CHECK OUT some comments posted under the article – DAMN
From Comment Section:
( sourced but I refuse to list the commenter’s name – aww hellz naw)
From ‘C’- “The women of NYC are complete slobs or golddiggers! Who wants to date some fat, sloppy cow with no class. Hip Hop Culture, Activism and Liberalism.I say stick to Latin American women and Slavic women, but never a NYC born hag.”

‘C’ again - “Most women in NYC dress and look like crap. When you women start dressing like Russians: straight hair, high heels, pretty face, make up and thong, then perhaps I will consider going after you. As for Latinas, you girls need to a get over your self-important independent mindset. Having a job and making 50k does not make you a catch. And no, I do not want to be bother with any drama from that for real, we is, we was? ghetto ex boyfriend of yours. In conclusion, most of you women need to grade yourself on a global scale to know your true value. Meaning: dress hot (straight hair, thong, fit), speak proper and have class and style. There are many good guys there in Wall St, who do honest work and dress sharp and are good people….why should we settle for anything less than a 9.5?”

Response to that last ‘C’ comment: “You don’t need to worry about women not living up to your standards. Guess what? We have no interest in your type. You could look like a GQ cover model or make millions, you are still an egotistical bore. Women love men who love women, not men who put them down. Period. And guess what? According to this article (and many of my single friends) lots of women love living alone, meaning without an idiot like you who requires “straight hair” and a “thong” I suggest you simply pay for it, jerk.”

Whoa. Okaaay…Thoughts???

kissies,

p.s. Don’t forget to Enter the Midtown Girl & Perricone MD Cold Plasma Giveaway ($150 value) HERE!!!

And SPEAKING of Giveaways…
The beautiful Savvy Gal from Savvy Mode
informed me that I won her
Oversize Watch Giveaway!
HOW AWESOME IS THAT?!?!?!

So freakin’ excited – thank you tons Savvy Gal &
dahlings, please go check out her fab blog!

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