Happy July everyone! I’m writing to you from my new pink velvet sofa by Society Social. I’m wearing the same 7 For All Mankind jeans I wore earlier this week. My hair is thrown up into a messy bun. I’m makeup free and there’s tons of warm afternoon light filling my living room while classical music plays in the background. It’s been nearly a year since I’ve had real furniture in my apartment – although I’m nowhere near being done with this place, it feels good to see some progress and kick up my feet on something other than a flimsy IKEA coffee table from college. So far, I have three large paintings waiting to be installed, a new sisal rug (worth every dollar) and a few pieces of furniture like a bench, coffee table and dresser. Next week, The Shade Store is installing custom curtains and shades (more on this later!). Then, Joss and Main is shipping out a few key pieces and my friend Gaby Viteri’s husband is building a custom banquette for my kitchen nook. We still have painting left to do, doorknobs to install, lighting fixtures, shelving and more to complete before I can share this space with you. One part of me cannot wait for everything to be done already so I can easily work/shoot out of here; another part of me is ready to buy a new house! If I had a dollar every time someone asks, “Stephanie, when are you moving to Miami?” I’d easily have a new house by now. Last year, we looked into buying a house but it didn’t feel right. It felt rushed so we both agreed to stay put in our apartments until we’re 100% ready to buy. With so much uncertainty in both of our lives, it’s hard to pick a city – Miami or West Palm Beach. Plus, I work from West Palm Beach – he works from Miami. One of us will have to inevitably make a sacrifice but until then, we’re perfectly comfortable saving for a new house (the house we want; not the house we rush into or the sub-par apartment we rent), planning our wedding, reinvesting money back into our businesses and making the best out of circumstances. As he confidently tells me anytime I question whether we are making the right decision (because we’re not taking the “traditional route”) he says, “what’s meant for us is not meant for everyone else.” Besides, there are worse scenarios out there. We’re only one hour from each other and though I can’t snuggle up to him every night, it makes seeing each other that much sweeter and the thought of finally being together in a future home that much better. I would be lying to you if I said I didn’t check Trulia once a day or, long for the same things that cute Instagram couples have together. Trust me, we definitely want a place to call home. But I also know that if you want the things people don’t have, you have to do the things other people will not do… I promise to expand on this, once things are finished and I reveal my apartment. There’s so much more to the story. Things like spending wisely (I work in social media, a very hostile work environment where things can change overnight and how it never sleeps) to being a business owner (and having overhead expenses) certainly impact our reasons for staying put right now. In the meantime, we’re off to Mexico to scout locations for our wedding. I will admit that we’re not 100% fully committed to the idea of getting married in another country, but it doesn’t hurt to look. And, it’s a great excuse to get out of town and spend time in the city we first traveled to as a couple, a place where we ate tacos in hole-in-the-wall restaurants, where we danced so many nights away… Xo, Stephanie [This photo was taken by Chelsae Anne, Feb. 2018]