An interiors YouTuber made over her rental apartment into the millennial dream home on a budget

Rachel HosieJul 28, 2020, 16:15 IST

Alexandra Gater's living room before she moved in, and after.Alexandra Gater/Lauren Kolyn

Alexandra Gater is an interiors YouTuber with 315,000 subscribers.
She specializes in making over millennials' rental apartments (AKA small homes) on a budget, and one of her best projects is the Toronto home she's lived in for the past 18 months.
Gater talked Insider through her apartment renovation, sharing helpful tips along the way, and the before and after photos are drastically different.
When she moved in, the apartment looked like a typical uninspiring rental, and Gater has turned it into a stylish millennial dream home.

This is Alexandra Gater, a 28-year-old interiors YouTuber who makes over millennials' small, mostly rental, properties on a budget.

Lauren Kolyn

When she moved into the apartment, it looked like a typical rental.

Lauren Kolyn

Now, her living room is feminine but sophisticated, full of cozy furnishings and style.

Lauren Kolyn

A cozy rug is also essential — make sure it's big enough for your main furniture though, rather than just floating in the middle of the room.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater created a gallery wall and invested in a wall-mounted TV that, when it's not on, can display artwork of your choice.

Lauren Kolyn

In the entry area to her apartment, Gater hacked an Ikea cabinet into a sanitary, discreet place to store her cat's litter box, while also providing a surface to keep her keys.

Lauren Kolyn

In the entry area to her apartment, Gater hacked an Ikea cabinet into a sanitary, discreet place to store her cat's litter box, while also providing a surface to keep her keys.

One of Gater's most creative ideas was to turn a closet into an office.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater's bedroom has undergone a "drastic" change.

Lauren Kolyn

She got rid of the heavy blinds and added light curtains on a pretty gold curtain rod, hung higher than the window frame to create the impression of higher ceilings.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater wanted her bedroom to be a calming sanctuary where she could retreat at the end of the day, so kept her color scheme light and neutral.

Lauren Kolyn

On one wall, Gater painted her own design to create a wallpaper effect with a rustic feel.

Lauren Kolyn

She had a custom set of shelves built by a friend, which aren't screwed to the wall so can be removed when she leaves.

Lauren Kolyn

The books are organized by color, both horizontally and vertically, and styled with cute trinkets to make the shelves aesthetically pleasing.

Lauren Kolyn

When she moved in, Gater's bathroom was an off-yellow color with impractical narrow shelves.

Lauren Kolyn

First things first, Gater had the bathroom freshly painted.

Lauren Kolyn

Bringing in a new light and a "visually interesting" mirror added instant style, and Gater made the most of the horizontal space with a long shelf.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater's kitchen was very plain when she first moved in.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater's kitchen transformation is huge, and it now looks straight out of Pinterest.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater had new countertops installed and created the look of tiles with a peel and stick backsplash.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater's apartment has a mini loft area that's useful for storage, but it's exposed and was hard to reach.

Lauren Kolyn

Gater believes investing in your rental apartment is worth it because you can take everything with you when you go.

Lauren Kolyn

How the White House's decor has changed over the years

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An interiors YouTuber made over her rental apartment into the millennial dream home on a budget

This is Alexandra Gater, a 28-year-old interiors YouTuber who makes over millennials' small, mostly rental, properties on a budget.

When she moved into the apartment, it looked like a typical rental.

Now, her living room is feminine but sophisticated, full of cozy furnishings and style.

A cozy rug is also essential — make sure it's big enough for your main furniture though, rather than just floating in the middle of the room.

Gater created a gallery wall and invested in a wall-mounted TV that, when it's not on, can display artwork of your choice.

In the entry area to her apartment, Gater hacked an Ikea cabinet into a sanitary, discreet place to store her cat's litter box, while also providing a surface to keep her keys.

One of Gater's most creative ideas was to turn a closet into an office.

Gater's bedroom has undergone a "drastic" change.

She got rid of the heavy blinds and added light curtains on a pretty gold curtain rod, hung higher than the window frame to create the impression of higher ceilings.

Gater wanted her bedroom to be a calming sanctuary where she could retreat at the end of the day, so kept her color scheme light and neutral.

On one wall, Gater painted her own design to create a wallpaper effect with a rustic feel.

She had a custom set of shelves built by a friend, which aren't screwed to the wall so can be removed when she leaves.

The books are organized by color, both horizontally and vertically, and styled with cute trinkets to make the shelves aesthetically pleasing.

When she moved in, Gater's bathroom was an off-yellow color with impractical narrow shelves.

First things first, Gater had the bathroom freshly painted.

Bringing in a new light and a "visually interesting" mirror added instant style, and Gater made the most of the horizontal space with a long shelf.

Gater's kitchen was very plain when she first moved in.

Gater's kitchen transformation is huge, and it now looks straight out of Pinterest.

Gater had new countertops installed and created the look of tiles with a peel and stick backsplash.

Gater's apartment has a mini loft area that's useful for storage, but it's exposed and was hard to reach.

Gater believes investing in your rental apartment is worth it because you can take everything with you when you go.