I’m always giving renter-friendlydecor hacks a go

PRETTY PASTEL APARTMENT

My story

‘My boyfriend and I are both from Oxfordshire, but moved to London for work. I studied digital marketing then came to work for homeware brand Sass & Belle and got more and more interested in interiors. I started off in a flatshare, but after a while we found this unfurnished new-build property to rent together. It’s part of the government Rent to Buy scheme and is a lovely light flat with big windows, a cute balcony and great views over London.

After two years of renting, under the scheme we were given the opportunity to buy, and we could choose a percentage rather than pay the full price. We thought a lot about it, and we weren’t sure because it only has one bedroom, but we decided to go ahead in December 2022 and buy a large chunk.

My Instagram, @ohsorented, has always been about making the most of rental properties, and renter-friendly hacks – but now we’ve bought, I’m going to stick with it, rather than change the name.

When we moved in, we had the basic neutral kitchen, bathroom and flooring, but that was it. It looks very different now. We weren’t allowed to paint the walls before, and everything was bright white, but I’m thinking of adding some soft pinks and greens, particularly to the bathroom and bedroom, but leaving the open-plan living area white. We love our apartment and we’re in no hurry to move.’

Welcome to my home

A BIT ABOUT ME

I’m Steph Kaluza, 24, a social media content creator, @ohsorented, and I live with my boyfriend, Jason, also 24, a Twitch streamer.

WHERE I LIVE

My home is a one-bedroom new-build apartment in a 13-storey block in northwest London, which we moved into in November 2020.

WHAT I WANTED TO CHANGE

It was a typical new-build, with a lot of white everywhere – white kitchen units, white walls, white tiles – teamed with laminate flooring. It needed a big injection of character.

HOW I MADE IT MY OWN

Buying statement pieces such as my pink sofa, covering up tiles with stick