The Art of Living Beautifully in a Smaller Space
Tammy Renée | Creating the Beautiful Life
5 min read
With a website named Creating the Beautiful Life, you might expect to see my sun-drenched kitchen, my rose garden in the backyard, or a charming fireplace mantel that changes with the seasons.
However, currently, I live in an 860-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment. It's a far cry from the family home I once had, with its flower garden and space for larger gatherings. But I've discovered that a smaller home can be every bit as warm, welcoming, and beautiful as a larger one. What matters most isn't the amount of space we have, but the life we create within it.
I've been thinking about the word creating that I chose for my website. Creating suggests something ongoing — a life that is still unfolding through the choices we make each day. It's in the little things: the beauty we bring into our surroundings, the traditions we keep, and the ordinary moments we make meaningful.
And that brings me to the home I'm living in today. Because if I'm going to write about creating a beautiful life, I want to show you what that looks like in my own home — even when that home happens to be a small apartment.
My Current Home
My downsizing began after my 24-year marriage ended and our family home was sold. Over time, as my four children grew up, married, and created homes of their own, I continued letting things go.
Now, in my late 50s, I live in a very different kind of home than I once did. Some belongings went to my children. Some were donated. Others — the pieces I couldn't part with but don't currently have room for — went into storage.
Today, I live in a recently built apartment with high ceilings, lots of natural light, pale floors, new appliances, and more storage than you might expect from a one-bedroom. It's comfortable, easy to care for, and in many ways exactly what I've needed for this season of my life.
But the apartment itself is fairly modern, and I'm really not. So little by little, I've softened it, and now it feels much more like me.
What Beautiful Looks Like in This Season
Because my home is small, I've kept the larger pieces fairly light and neutral. White slipcovers, soft linens, simple curtains, and pale upholstery give me a backdrop I can easily change with the seasons.
So, in this home, beautiful elements have meant...
Fresh flowers that I purchase from Trader Joe’s.
An embroidered pillow on the chair where I sit and read.
Stacks of my favorite books always within reach.
Soft throw blankets in my sitting area.
Candles burning in the evenings.
My favorite music piped in through my vintage-inspired Marshall speaker.
A small gallery wall I created in the kitchen simply because I enjoy looking at it while I'm making dinner.
My living room is large enough for a few friends or family members to sit comfortably, and I've found ways to make the apartment work when someone comes to stay. There's a queen-sized air mattress tucked inside the trunk I use as a coffee table. Most of the time, though, I travel to see my children and grandchildren since they're scattered among different cities.
Don't Wait to Make It Beautiful
There are so many ways we postpone things without realizing we're doing it.
We'll entertain when we have a bigger dining room.
We'll hang the art when we own the house.
We'll use the beautiful dishes someday.
We'll make the bedroom lovely when we finally have the bedroom we really want.
I understand that impulse because I've caught myself doing the very same thing.
But I don't want to treat the home I'm living in today as a waiting room for some imagined ideal. Although this home may be temporary, the life I'm living inside it isn’t.
So I put fresh flowers on the table.
I hang art on the walls.
I light the candles.
I keep books out where I can see them.
And perhaps that's one of the things this little apartment has taught me: we don't need ideal circumstances to begin creating a home that feels like ours.
A Home for the Life We're Living
Some of us find ourselves in smaller homes because circumstances change. Others choose to downsize because they're ready for less upkeep, fewer possessions, and a simpler way of living.
Whatever brings us to a particular home, I think there's something wonderful about making it truly our own.
A home doesn't have to be large, permanent, or perfect to reflect the people we are and the things we love.
For me, that will always mean old paintings, displayed family photographs and heirlooms, layered elements that tell my story, cozy conversations in the living room, and music playing in the background. These are things that make a place feel like home to me, and they've followed me through different houses and different seasons of life.
And I've discovered that 860 square feet is all I need right now to create the kind of beauty, comfort, and belonging that makes a house — or an apartment — a home.
Making a Place Your Own
I'll share more of this apartment with you as I continue making it my own — the little decorating projects, the seasonal shifts, and the ordinary ways I keep these rooms feeling like home.
Because here's what I believe: a beautiful life isn't determined by the size of our home, whether we own or rent, or how long we plan to stay. It's created in the way we live within a space, the things we surround ourselves with, and the love and care we bring to our everyday lives.
And I think that's reason enough to make it lovely.
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If you enjoyed this post, you might also like "Does Your Home Support the Life You’re Living Now?" It’s about looking at your home as it is today and asking whether it still serves the life you’re actually living.
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