Ode to a Great Apartment

Written by Suzanne

Monday, 22 March 2010 15:06

I LOVED my apartment in Chicago! I was on the 9th floor in a 30 story high rise on Lake Shore Drive & Montrose. I used to joke that I had a double lake view... "One on each side of the obstruction." The only building that broke my view was an historic building with a fire escape running down the back. The photos here conveniently exclude that portion of things, however, that building made for dramatic photo opps when the sun set and the shadows were just right!
I FINALLY broke free of my "neutral Nellie" comfort zone regarding paint. This studio apartment was one big room, plus kitchen, bath and great closet space. A total of 450 sq ft I think. In the end I had TEN paint colors on the walls and it rocked! Viva la color! I remember when I first looked at this space. Sunny, the owner of the condo, (she was an absolute peach by the way and gave me freedom to enjoy the space and paint to my heart's content!) was in the throes of rehabbing the unit after a 17yr tennant vacated the space. I remember her being VERY reluctant to even let me see it. I pushed her really hard and told her I could see past any anything. When I walked into the mess that was the demolition I took one look out the window... another look at the ample closet space and told her I'd take it! As it turned out, the timing was freaky. I signed the lease on the morning of April 1st, 2001, and around 5pm, that same day, a 100lb propane tank exploded just 30ft away from our office suite in a workshop down the hall. I was there when it happened and watched the floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall fireball as it blew within 15ft of our glass, front door. For the next six months my world was upended. (There will be a blog post in the near future in the Words section of this blog that recounts the story... stay tuned.) Let's just say, while this condo had white walls when I moved in, it was a sancutuary for me and from April - Sep 2001 I was especially gratfeul to come home to an aparment I loved! I continued living in Sunny's condo for seven years until I moved to San Jose. I loved EVERY minute and treasured each morning as I woke up smiling. I could cry I was so happy living there. Thank you Sunny & Tom!

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Jewelry Designer
Author and Speaker

Born and raised just outside Philadelphia, I moved to Chicago after college and San Jose in 2008. I now have two decades of experience in jewelry design including countless hours of mentoring by expert artisans and ten “hands on” years in fine jewelry manufacturing. As a result I bring a wealth of knowledge about materials, craftsmanship and style to the table. Beyond jewelry, I have a passion for words and the intentional use of language. I believe we create our experience in life and am writing a book on the topic because I am curious… What else is possible? ~ Suzanne Bayles

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