5 Stages of Organizing Your Apartment With Your Girlfriend

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So you’ve finally pulled the trigger and decided to move in with your girlfriend. It’s an exciting experience. One that is filled with packing up boxes, cleaning things, moving furniture, and unpacking. You’re going to have so much fun.

As the Boy Scouts of America tout, it’s best to always be prepared. That means not going into your new place without consulting with one another on how you want to decorate the space.

Stage 1: Inventory both of your stuff.

Talk about things you are okay with losing. Discuss things you both agree you like. Having a good inventory of the stuff you plan to move and the stuff you plan to sell/donate/trash. 

Stage 2: Familiarize yourselves with Pinterest.

Pinterest is an amazing tool for making visual “mood boards," since the website allows you to pin pictures (which are links connected to photos) onto boards that you name (like home decor, bedrooms, kitchens, jeans, stuff I want to buy, etc.) and allows you to search millions of pictures. Both of you should create accounts, start some decor boards, pin a few pictures of decor and reconvene.

Stage 3: Write out word maps.

Sit down with a pen and paper and create word maps of the decor colors, looks, feels, you each like. Each take 5-10 minutes, and then convene on what you've written. Circle words you both wrote down and talk through words/concepts you’re struggling with. Doing this will give you both a better feel of what the other person likes, and make it easier to go into your space with similar expectations.

Stage 4: Plan the space.

Get artistic and start planning your space. If you have a bunch of rooms and a bunch of furniture, start mapping out where everything will go. Discuss if you want color themes for certain rooms, and plan where you’re going to want to hang certain pieces of art. Not only is it fun to dream about what your room will be like, it’ll give you both a chance to talk through creative ideas that may soon come to life.

Stage 5: Prepare for speed bumps.

Confrontation and conflicts are going to happen no matter how much preparation you put into this process, but if you plan for these hiccups, getting through them will be a lot easier. Have a conversation about how you plan to tell the other one when you aren’t feeling a design decision, about not taking any decision personally, and what to do if someone starts to get frustrated.