Young couple decorate L.A. rental with thrifted…
After transferring to Los Angeles from Palo Alto in 2023 with only a standing desk and a mattress body, Tess van Hulsen and Andrew Chait discovered shortly how to furnish an empty rental without shopping for something new.
Because they love thrifting, adorning together was really enjoyable for them.
Two years later, their love of thrifting, antiquing, bargaining and restoring has turned their Westwood rental into a showcase of “secondhand treasures,” says Van Hulsen, 28, who works as a industrial contract specialist.
“I have always liked things that have history and character and a story behind them,” she says. “Each piece represents a store we love, a lucky find or a successful haggle that ended with us carrying home something with history.”
Andrew Chait and Tess van Hulsen calm down on their apartment rooftop, sitting on patio furnishings they purchased in Venice through Facebook Marketplace.
Chait, meanwhile, enjoys the joys of looking and bargaining. He likes making offers, and even if he walks away, he still appears like he’s received.
“I’m good at finding value, and Tess has the eye for style,” says Chait, 32, who works as a development director. “It’s something we really enjoy doing together.”
At a time when many millennials and Gen Z customers take pleasure in looking for offers on secondhand objects, Van Hulsen and Chait also needed to keep away from “fast furniture, poorly built materials and disposable design,” according to Van Hulsen. For them, gently used items make their rental really feel particular.
“People my age are taking an interest in having heirlooms and traditional items,” Van Hulsen says as she factors to a silver-plated trinket tray that holds her jewellery. “I think it’s really fun to entertain and bring stuff out when guests come over. It makes the table look nice, and the platters are great for bringing food upstairs when we entertain on our rooftop patio.”
1. An assortment of classic objects on show in a hutch the couple bought at the Santa Monica Flea Market. 2. Brass angel candlesticks scored for $2 apiece at a Palo Alto storage sale flank a silver-plated punch bowl. The couple bought the lithograph in Beverly Hills through Facebook Marketplace.
Except for a few household heirlooms and some small dressers from IKEA and West Elm, practically all the things in their apartment is thrifted.
In the lounge, an elegant cream-colored linen couch from the Home Consignment Center is the main piece. On either facet are striped linen armchairs, and a wood espresso desk from Facebook Marketplace completes the look, giving the room a relaxed coastal really feel.
A classic ashtray Van Hulsen discovered on Etsy rests on top of a Cezanne guide scored at a Palm Springs property sale.
Dutch ceramic collectible figurines and Asian ginger jars from varied property gross sales and thrift shops.
Next to the 2-year-old couch is an vintage Tiger Oak hutch from the Santa Monica Antique and Vintage Market. It’s crammed with their thrifted finds including silver champagne buckets, candlesticks, colourful Mexican ceramics and a tall rotating server from the Council Shop, a thrift store chain that helps low-income ladies and households in Los Angeles.
“It’s dangerous living so close to the Council Shop,” Chait says of the nonprofit, which is within strolling distance of the couple’s rental. “We probably walk down there every two weeks or so.”
As the couple walks through their home, they reminisce about how each merchandise has its own story.
In the toilet, a mint julep cup that was given as a trophy at the 1964 Peacock Hill National Horse show holds toothpaste and toothbrushes.
“I knew we wanted a neutral couch,” Van Hulsen says of the couch that was initially on maintain when they first noticed it. “Luckily, it is modular, so my mother-in-law and I took it home in pieces in two cars.”
The china cupboard was discounted to $60 at the Santa Monica Antique and Vintage Market because it was lacking some glass items. “We purchased it from a father and son who were so nice,” says Chait. “Tess and I couldn’t fit it in our car, so they delivered it to us for $40.”
Adds Van Hulsen: “It’s narrow and the perfect size.”
In the eating room nook next to a desk and eight chairs from the UCLA Thrift Shop that they’d to choose up in two journeys sits a charming oak dresser with carved floral particulars. “I found it on the street during bulky item pickup day in Palo Alto and brought it down during a holiday car ride back,” van Hulsen says.
1. A matted body with illustrations of St. Martin’s Church and St. James’ Palace in London. 2. Chait’s assortment of classic mechanical banks. 3. A bronze duck paperweight.
She also discovered a classic print of Windsor Castle, now hanging in the entryway, on the road in Palo Alto. “That was the furthest thing we have thrifted,” she says.
Many of the equipment in their penthouse such as a shiny blue Kitchen Aid mixer (which might value up to $699 new), coffee-table books and a ornamental clam shell remind the couple of their favourite place: Palm Springs.
“Palm Springs is our happy place,” Van Hulsen says. “We often go there for a night or a long weekend, and there’s a reliable string of antique stores there that we love: Sunny Dunes Antique Mall and the Antique Galleries. We keep extending our thrifting to Rancho Mirage — we love Victoria’s Attic Antiques and Collectibles — and La Quinta, and we also go to estate sales.”
The couple play Phase 10 on the eating room desk they bought from the UCLA Thrift Shop.
Now that they’re settled, it’s simple to overlook how robust it was to discover a rental close to Chait’s new job in Santa Monica. “It was hard,” Van Hulsen says. “It was around Christmas, and there wasn’t a lot available.”
“People were making deals and offering to pay more than the listed rent,” says Chait.
Eventually, they discovered a shiny two-bedroom, two-bath unit in Westwood with high ceilings, a loft and a rooftop patio. “We applied to two other places before we saw this one. It was worth waiting for,” van Hulsen says.
Chait grew up in L.A. and spent 10 years in the Bay Area. He believes shopping for secondhand from strangers is a great approach to get to know the town. “When I went to buy a wine fridge from someone yesterday, we ended up talking about surfing for half an hour,” Chait says. “It’s fun to meet new people and hear the stories behind what they’re selling. Plus, exploring new parts of L.A. is always interesting.”
A ceramic beagle rests next to two silver toothpick holders.
For them, sticking to a funds is a approach to get inventive. Whether it’s silver platters or issues unnoticed on the road during cumbersome merchandise pickup day, the couple is always looking for fashionable, reasonably priced finds.
The result’s a surprisingly cohesive look with jute rugs, mild woods and striped linens creating a relaxed California coastal vibe with touches of Palm Springs and France. “My mom has always been a thrifter,” says Van Hulsen. “When we lived in London for four years, we collected all sorts of bits and baubles.”
“From the beginning, Tess and Andrew’s relationship was stitched together through a shared love for the hunt,” her mom Dana McCue said in an e mail. “Their weekends away were never just about the destination, but about the ‘treasures’ hidden in dusty corners and the thrill of the ‘find.’ Today, their beautiful Westwood Penthouse serves as a living gallery of their love story. Each curated piece is more than just decor; it is a physical milestone that captures their journey from that first shared discovery to the life they have built together.”
The couple’s mattress and facet tables are among the new objects in their apartment.
Though some {couples} who are making a home together for the first time want to buy new furnishings, Van Hulsen and Chait have caught with secondhand items besides for their upholstered panel mattress, which they bought at Living Spaces. “That is our only big furniture purchase,” Chait says. “Things are so expensive, and so many things fall apart. And besides, we like the stories. That’s what we get excited about: the story, talking to people, imagining the life it had before.”
They have a dresser from the Venice Canals that Tess squeezed into her Jeep Cherokee, etchings from an property sale in Carmel, a lamp from the Guy on Motor at Venice in Palms and a classic mirror from San Diego. “We have thrifted all over California,” says Van Hulsen.
Silver platters are all over the place: on facet tables, under cupboards and also under the mattress. “Stubbing my toe on silver is not that bad of a life,” she provides, laughing.
1. A vintage soldier decanter. 2. A vintage case of Navy Cut cigarettes from Palm Springs. 3. Legos, a Nintendo Game Boy and figurine sit on top of a Sony Playstation 4 console. 4. A bronze woman purchased in Laurel Canyon rests to other thrifted items in the dining room. 5. Leather-bound books are sandwiched in between brass duck bookends the couple found at an estate sale in Northern California.
Sometimes things don’t go as planned. For example, Chait recently bought a Frigidaire wine refrigerator for $100 on Facebook Marketplace, but when he got it home, he saw it was too big for their space. (They’re still trying to make it work.) Van Hulsen adds: “I’ve gotten some coffee tables that I ended up flipping because they didn’t work in our space.”
Making a cheap mistake isn’t a big deal when you can just resell the item online.
Now that their condo is furnished, do they have a rule about not bringing in too much stuff?
A photograph of the couple rests next to a painting of Manhattan Beach the couple found on Facebook Marketplace.
“You’re looking at him,” Van Hulsen says, grinning at her fiancé.
“You’re making me sound like the bad guy!” Chait says, laughing.
“That’s part of the fun,” Van Hulsen says as she brings over a sterling silver ice cream scoop engraved with “There’s nothing wrong with me that ice cream can’t fix” in barely perceptible cursive.
“We’re never really done,” Van Hulsen says. “It’s exciting to find new things and imagine how they’ll fit in our home.”
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