We’ve just returned from spending Christmas in West Virginia, and right on schedule we’re sharing the third and final installment of our “Places We Used to Live” video series. This episode covers a new city—Richmond, VA—and marks our first experience living together. It was an exciting and slightly nerve-wracking step: cohabitation, finally.
Our first apartment together in Richmond was a very ordinary one-bedroom inside a suburban complex, but ordinary didn’t matter. We were thrilled to finally share a home and to enjoy significantly more space for far less than what we were paying separately in New York City. Moving from the fast-paced, cramped city to a calmer suburban building felt like a luxury.
Highlights to notice in the video:
- Sherry’s cheerful voice — you can hear her excitement as she points out small features around the apartment.
- Our mismatched collection of free or donated furniture — a true patchwork of pieces. We were moving out of NYC and drove a minivan, so we made do with what we could carry.
- The high ceilings — they were the reason we chose a third-floor unit; the extra vertical space made the apartment feel open.
- A better stocked kitchen — compared with Sherry’s tiny NYC kitchen, the Richmond apartment had cabinets and counter space that made cooking much more enjoyable.
- More album art on the walls, including pieces from OK Go — music-related decor helped personalize the space.
- Our DIY bird wall decals — inspired by a popular brand, we cut bird shapes from blue manila folders and taped them to the wall for a playful, homemade touch.
Watching the video now brings back the enthusiasm of that chapter—simple pleasures and small victories mattered a lot. We were learning how to share space, settle into routines, and make the apartment ours on a modest budget. The place wasn’t perfect, but it felt like the beginning of a new life together.
Back in the present, we promise to focus on current projects and posts. In the coming weeks we’ll share a few fun topics: the gifts we gave each other that year, the thoughtful presents we received from friends and family, and the bargains we found during post-holiday sales. Those posts will include photos and practical notes about how we used, wrapped, or repurposed items—useful ideas if you’re looking for inspiration for gift-giving or home updates.
If you watched the video and want specifics about any part of the apartment—storage solutions, how we arranged furniture, the DIY decal technique, or what we kept from our New York life—ask and we’ll dig into those details. We often get questions about where we found certain pieces and how we managed moving logistics on a tight budget, so we’ll gladly share helpful tips and what we learned the hard way.
For now, enjoy the final episode of the series. It captures a moment of genuine excitement and optimism as we stepped into a shared home for the first time. Thanks for following along with our little moving adventure.