During my last six years as an American living in France, I’ve experienced my fair share of moving. I’ve lived in a tiny newlywed apartment, in the most charming French village (where Belle from Beauty and the Beast most definitely lived!), along the glittering turquoise seas (my dream apartment that I manifested in 48 hours!), in a surf town near Biarritz and even in the middle of the rural mountains in Corsica – and in a house where it cost a fortune just to keep it warm which I’ve written about that journey on my blog here.

I’ve lived all over France. And in a variety of landscapes.

So far, in my 29 years of life, I have not once wished I lived life any differently. I love this life of variety. It feels so rich, so full. I live knowing that if I died tomorrow, I lived this life with gusto and gumption. I loved fully, and I lived well. And I go into this new year ready to do it some more, as I prepare to travel endlessly around the world to my astrocartography lines.

One of the things I am going to miss most about 2024 is having a home.

I’ve written on my blog and shared at length on my youtube channel about my relationship to home. It’s certainly unconventional. I don’t believe home is in any one place. Nor do I believe that home is where family is.

But home is something I am on a learning journey with during this Saturn Return in Pisces. And as my French visa has been denied this year, I thought it’d be a nice memory to have some photos documented on my blog of my favorite apartment I’ve lived in so far. The first time I shared an apartment tour here on my blog was years ago, when my husband and I first moved in together. Here’s our current apartment tour, and the little items and t’ings that bring me everyday joy 🙂

Our Apartment Tour as Americans Living in France

Location: 📍Metz, France

While my husband and I both don’t care for the neighborhood as much (or even the city of Metz for that matter), the one thing we love most about this experience living here is our home. Our rental apartment, which also happens to be fully furnished.

Thanks to life in France, most apartment rentals are fully furnished, which makes living as expats in France so much easier. You can read more about moving to France on my husband’s blog here!

Our apartment is minimal, peaceful and modern – but still with enough character that makes it look anything but cookie cutter! One of my favorite rooms in the apartment is our bedroom, which is small but has the prettiest wooden beams to soften your gaze on.

And don’t get me started on the wooden floorboards! Unlike our derelict home in the mountains of Venaco, Corsica, this apartment has old, wooden floorboards (gimme all the character!) that are polished, smooth with no nails sticking out. Woohoo!!

Our bedroom is a peaceful, calm, minimalist oasis. Silk pillowcases, silk sheets, a white fluffy duvet I’ve had with me since 2015. When it comes to bedding, I appreciate enduring quality that stands the test of time. Sleep is important. It’s one of those few things that I believe one should spend more money on quality for.

The bedroom is lit by candlelight every evening, huge closet space with sliding glass doors and my favorite books on my bedside table. I also included one of my favorite photographs from a local photographer in our last home we lived in – Guethary, France (near biaritz!) No clutter. Just spaciousness and clarity.

 

In my everyday life, I live with a lot of vibrant color. I’m not a neutrals girl. But when it comes to the bedroom, I love a minimalist look with very little to look at. The bedroom is more for meditation, peace, and connection. Simple. Organic. Calm.

My Dream Creative Space

Aside from the bedroom, I also am obsessed with the dining room-turned-office. It’s my creative space in the house. Here is where I do all editing work, writing, course creation, astrocartography client readings and where I film my videos for Youtube and Instagram!

I also got a bookshelf to house all my beloved books. It’s so nice to have a bookshelf for the first time in a few years! The last time I had a bookshelf I was obsessed with (I swear I manifested this exact one) was when I was living on the island of Corsica in Ile Rousse. The stone-wall also adds so much vibrancy and warmth to the room!

In my sweet lil creative room, I have my yoga mat always laid out with a meditation pillow (I got this one in coral pink and yellow – my favorite colors!) I have my darling wooden stool from Ikea here, at the foot of the yoga mat. I set it up as a little altar with my plants, candles, tarot cards, sage and palo santo. Here I light my candles, meditate and pray every morning after drinking my big glass of water. Then, I begin journaling and planning the day.

You can read more about my magical morning routine here!

In Metz France, the skies are dark and grey from October – April. Candles are always lit in the house, with the constant gloom my constant companion here it Metz. Lighting candles and keeping all the lights on in the house during the day help me get through my low mood. I also have paintings hung up that bring me joy – like the simple pleasures of coffee and cake. One of my favorite things about the office is my desk and chair as well (I’ve tried so many desks over the years and there’s something about glass desks that really help me focus more!) plus this rounded chair keeps me comfortable during my long work days consulting with clients.

My beloved Daily Page planner is also one of the joys I look forward to everyday. I’ve been a fan for years. I track my schedule, energy, mood, water intake and healthy habits in here. And there’s something about the crispy paper that makes it such a joy to sit with it each day. They are sustainably made by a woman in Minnesota!

You can find my favorite planner here!

Living Room

The living room is where the entertainment happens! Here Alex and I play card games like this one, watch movies and we love to play on the Nintendo Switch (it’s the easiest console to take with us as we travel and move around often). Often you can find us playing the Siberia games or Hogwarts Legacy! A record player placed in the corner, we play music often as I having been an avid collector of vinyls for years. This is also my favorite couch we’ve ever had, and it came with the apartment – fully furnished! We’ve also added several lamps to this room to keep the grey gloom at bay.

A vintage NASA poster hangs near the couch. Holding special meaning for us, it was the first item we purchased when we first moved to France after getting married in 2018. In it, an astronaut couple sit embraced as they look over the lush greenery of planet earth. It’s one of our favorite possessions we own and we’ve hung it up in all of our apartments. You may remember it from our first apartment tour blog post here!

link to our favorite vintage poster here

Kitchen

Alex is the chef of the house, so he is often found here cooking and working at the table in the kitchen. I love the openness of this kitchen and how it looks over the living room – which is such a rare find for most apartments in France.

One of the items on my “dream apartment” list includes a porcelain white sink. Even more specifically, two deep basins. When Alex first found this apartment listing, the sink ended up being the first thing he excitedly exclaimed to me LOL! As I do most of the the cleaning and dishwashing, it’s important to have a sink that brings you joy. This is my favorite sink and kitchen we’ve ever had. I also bought us a cappuccino machine on Black Friday, as romanticizing my morning coffee is one of my favorite rituals of the day. 

Bathroom

In traditional French fashion, the shower room is separate from the toilet room. Which is fabulous! And I really appreciate our bathroom here in this apartment with the generous wooden shelving, quality baskets, and drawer space. We also have a laundry room (WUT.Yes, you heard that right)! Most apartments in France have the washer machine in the kitchen next to the dishwasher, so this is a true luxury to have a side room off of the bathroom, with counterspace! Alex and I really treasure this simple joy.

I’m also a Taurean woman and I appreciate quality. No cheap flooring here, like we’ve had in bathrooms past. I love all of the tiling throughout the bathroom and toilet room; it really is the small attention to detail that truly makes a beautiful home. I’ve also placed all my shower affirmations on the tiling in the bathroom and it brings so much magic and joy to the space!

Link to shower affirmation cards here.

One of my favorite everyday simple joys – washing my hands with my favorite lavender soap and then drying them on a waffle towel. I got my first waffle hand-towel from a little boutique a few years ago and I’m now obsessed. Once you try a quality waffle towel, you’ll never go back! I have several in white, cream and olive green.

Link to my beloved waffle towels.

Everything is relative. So, while our home may be small compared to most large American homes in suburbia, it is much larger than most of the apartments we’ve lived in in France. With long hallways, large walk-in closets and quality furniture pieces, I feel like we lucked out and were very fortunate with this home.

Some tips for how we got this apartment as Americans living in France

1. Look for rentals after the summer months. Most people rush into finding an apartment during the summer instead of patiently waiting until after the school year begins. The best apartments we have had were because we waited until October or November to move in.
2. Opt for a year-long lease instead of a seasonal stint. The quality is usually better.
3. Browse Leboncoin. The Craigslist of France. This is what Alex and I have used our first five years living in France. You can read more about how to find housing in France here!
4. Get a real estate agent. This was the first time that I urged my husband to use a real estate agent instead of solely relying on websites like Leboncoin, and I’m so glad he did! The best apartments (larger spaces, long-term leases, from owners who invest in renovation and quality furniture pieces for their home) are often found through real estate agents.

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While this apartment isn’t as “magical” as our island apartment overlooking the beaches of Ile Rousse in Corsica (I mean – that was insane!), this is still my #1 favorite apartment I’ve lived in thus far. It feels cozy, comfortable, the most home-ish.

I’m sad to leave it as I begin my adventure solo traveling the world, until my French visa is renewed. Hopefully I’ll be back to enjoy it again soon.

I’ll be dreaming about the wooden floorboards and cozy bedroom until I return.

One thing I won’t miss is the constant gloom! I’ll be in Southern California, enjoying the blue skies and sunshine…

Follow My Adventures on Youtube here!

 

American Living in France Youtube Channel