As an avid collector of vintage decor, Catie Brown feels lucky she doesn’t have to cope with one of Los Angeles’ most common rental dilemmas: limited space.

“I wanted a two-bedroom apartment but didn’t think it was financially feasible,” Brown says of moving out on her own for the first time after graduating from Stanford.

Out of all the apartments she looked at while searching for a place to live in 2022, Brown, now 27, fell in love with the one she initially dismissed — a nondescript ground-floor apartment in a two-story, 15-unit complex built around a swimming pool.

“It was much more appealing in person than in the Zillow photos,” Brown says. Other pluses: It was rent-controlled ($1,700 a month at that time and now $1,762) and had been vacant for months. “The property manager docked the rent a bit because it had been sitting for a while,” she says.

Brown in her dining room, where she installed peel-and-stick wallpaper to make a statement. When she moves, she can remove it.

Located in Mid-City, bordering Culver City, Brown was impressed with its multiple bedrooms and hardwood floors, unlike the gray vinyl floors popular with L.A. landlords and scorned by renters. It was also a relatively easy commute to her job in downtown Los Angeles as a marketing coordinator and within walking distance of her gym, making it a practical and convenient choice.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Brown had to leave campus and move back in with her parents in Thousand Oaks, where she was once again living in her teenage bedroom. Like many people during the pandemic, she became obsessed with cottagecore design — a romantic trend that celebrates an idealized version of country living and evokes a simpler time. “I was very crafty as a kid, and the pandemic just emphasized that,” she says.

Brown’s apartment, which she likes to call her “Culver City cottage,” is filled with vintage finds and cherished treasures that are inspired, in part, by her love of historical novels and classic literature like “The Secret Garden,” “Anne of Green Gables” and “Little Women.”

Cottagecore appeals to her, she says, because it reminds her of her childhood dreams. “I’m an aspiring novelist, and it made me feel like a book character,” Brown says while offering a scone in her cozy living room. “I was ready to embrace this side of myself I’d always been a bit embarrassed of in the past.”

An Egyptian-themed souvenir Brown’s grandmother purchased at the King Tut exhibit serves as a side table in the living room.

As a “history nerd,” Brown likes to showcase things that illustrate the human experience, such as a thrifted recreation of a clock from the Titanic. Her personal connection? “The movie was released the year I was born,” she says.

Brown has found that adhering to her vintage and cottagecore aesthetic allows her flexibility “as long as the treasures and art I choose to display stay within that,” she says. “The content itself can change, such as a movie poster being swapped out, so long as I choose a vintage style movie poster.”

It’s an aesthetic she has worked to bring into every room.

Stacks of books, movies, dolls and whimsical knicknacks are displayed on the bookshelves in Brown’s office.

“I’ve found a way to strike a balance so it feels cozy and welcoming but not overwhelmingly full,” she says. Brown also utilizes temporary ways of adding personality to her rental, such as the peel-and-stick floral wallpaper in the kitchen and dining room and installing shelves to display her vintage treasures.

In the living room, a gold Egyptian side table her grandmother purchased in the gift shop of the King Tut exhibit rests next to a cozy tufted couch. “My grandmother was passionate about history and museums, so my family passed down a few things of hers that were in storage,” she says. The walls display personal touches like an artwork she purchased in Provence, France, at her cousin’s wedding, hand-embroidered necklaces by Brown, botanical prints bought from vintage stores and a Venetian mask brought home from a trip to Italy.

Traditional elements, like a faux fireplace and a tiny trove of potted plants outside her front door, add to her cottagecore aesthetic. “It’s not a cottage without a garden,” Brown says, smiling.

Assorted artworks in the entrance to the apartment hide a heating vent on the wall.

The second bedroom serves as an office where Brown is finishing her novel, which she describes as a “retelling of an Irish myth.” When asked if the story influenced her decor, she mentioned some subtle touches, such as artwork from Ireland, a sign she made in the Irish language and Belleek pottery.

Above her desk, she has installed film on the window to block the view of another apartment a few feet away. In addition to a reading corner and a craft table, she hopes to add a sewing area. “I love painting and crafting knickknacks,” she says, “it reminds me of my childhood, of the carefree joy of making things.”

Floral peel and stick floral wallpaper in the kitchen and dining room can be removed when Brown moves out.

Advertisement

There is also a puzzle board, which Brown notes can help reduce stress and calm an anxious mind. “Sometimes I put it away, but I’m happier having it accessible,” she says.

Brown has several whimsical items in the primary bedroom, including crystals and treasures from her thrifting, like the Ladurée macaroon box she purchased in France for $15 and a tea tin that holds her curlers. She enjoys swapping out the botanical prints based on the season and uses a personal checklist when looking for antiques. “EBay, Facebook Marketplace, Etsy, Poshmark and Instagram,” she says. “I go down the list. The hunt is so much fun.”

Brown tries not to purchase new things, except for some knickknacks from Joann’s and Michaels (always on sale) and an Ikea pendant and shelving. She inherited many of her larger furnishings from her aunt, including her farmhouse-style dining room set, and enjoys looking for treasures at the Melrose Trading Post at Fairfax High School. Once, she drove an hour to Claremont to pick up a marble sculpture and has met people in parking lots to pick up her purchases. Some pieces have moved on: “I used to have a smaller cabinet for my record collection,” Brown says of the piece she purchased and later resold on Facebook Marketplace.

While Brown admits that living in a 1963 apartment contributes to its affordability — “No one can believe how much my rent is,” she says — it also adds charm. Yet even with the luxury of two bedrooms, space can become limited for such a passionate collector.

“I can’t have any more cabinets,” she says firmly. “If I get more things, I’ll have to start releasing some books.”

Rooted in the present, Brown has made her apartment a home inspired by the past.

“I don’t want it to feel like I’m totally stepping back in time,” Brown says, “but it still has the coziness of a home from another era. When a friend of mine slept on the couch recently after the Palisades fire, he said this was the homiest apartment he could have evacuated to.”