Aurelia St Clair is a comedian, writer, and podcaster perhaps best known for her witty observations of Melbourne life.
Since moving to the city in 2014, she’s lived in share houses across 12 different suburbs (hence her in-depth knowledge of Melbourne stereotypes!) before settling into this Richmond apartment late last year. ‘Richmond is the Switzerland of Melbourne suburbs; you can get a northside or southside vibe depending on which pocket of Richmond you’re in,’ says Aurelia. ‘It’s easily accessible by public transport, has famous sandwiches, good coffee, and authentic Vietnamese food. In short, I love it here and feel like I’m getting the best of both sides.’
When furnishing her home, Aurelia was inspired by the compact, lived-in spaces of Rob (played by Zoe Kravitz) in the 2020 TV remake of High Fidelity, as well as Issa’s apartment in Insecure.
Aurelia’s own apartment conjures a similar feel, facilitated by artworks by friends, colourful books, and floors layered with printed rugs. ‘The apartment has this ugly grey carpet throughout so I spent a lot of time looking for rugs to hide it under, and ways to inject my personality by hanging up prints and displaying my vinyl collection,’ she says.
Aurelia’s favourite pieces are the all-important storage solutions, particularly the living room shelf made locally by Like Butter. ‘It’s modular, so I know it’s going to fit any place I move to next,’ she says. ‘I also love my yellow locker by Mustard Made. I was on a waitlist to get it, and it just brightens up the space.’
These new pieces are paired with vintage and secondhand finds including a Tessa chair gifted by a previous housemate, who found it in hard rubbish. Aurelia has documented her more recent online furniture discoveries on Instagram – from the $50 sofa to the green velvet-style couch covers ($150); foldable dining table ($40); and glass coffee table ($30) all bought off Facebook Marketplace.
The two-bedroom apartment has everything Aurelia needs to comfortably sleep, work, entertain and relax. ‘I love working from home because I get to spend more time in my favourite space’ she says!
