One Year in NYC

As of today, I’ve been in New York for a year.

I’m proud to report that it’s been the most difficult and challenging move that I’ve made, and totally worth it. I don’t think the Minnesotan me would recognize the one standing here today.

I’ve been through months of trials with finances, emotions, relationships—then adding layers on top of the stress, and I haven’t sunk yet. It’s been raw, but I’m awake and alive, and I couldn’t be more grateful for this city and the people in it constantly stretching and molding me, all while I’ve held onto my kindness, empathy, and ridiculous sense of humor.

A few learnings…

You don’t have to make conversation if you’re not in the mood. It’s not rude, it’s self care.

Give as much as you get. Don’t be a resource for emotional vampires. Gauge the situation and remove yourself if it becomes twisted. Constantly reevaluate people in your life, including your close friends. They should bring you joy when you hang out. If they don’t, figure out why and address it.

Treat your body well. Good food, lots of water, sex with a person that you love. Don’t let yourself slip freely into someone else’s emotional baggage: that’s theirs to deal with. Give yourself permission to keep yourself safe emotionally.

Lastly, and most importantly:

“Love yourself, flaws and all. You’re valuable and there’s no one else on Earth like you.”

My Sanctuary

I moved within Crown Heights this spring to a new place with twice the space, a cool new roomie, and the ability to wallpaper.

I couldn’t be happier with the setup. I rented most of my furniture from Feather, so I was able to pay a monthly fee instead of buying 6K worth of furniture off the bat. I can’t express to you how important it is to fall in love with your living space. I’m a freelance graphic designer, so aesthetic is quite important, however, you would be shocked how much even adding a plant to your room will change your mood!

Wallpaper

I highly recommend getting some assistance from a friend if you put up even a single accent wall. This paper turned out beautifully, but it was a six-hour process for a single wall due to wetting/rewetting the paste, and matching the pattern up from top to bottom.

I’d also highly recommend purchasing high quality paper that matches from side to side. (Mine did not, so there was a lot of reapplying involved!) 🤯

Colors + Accents

Interior decoration has always been an interest of mine, but I’ve never dove this deep into the process. Keep in mind the color of metals, wood, textiles, and knick-knacks can make all the difference.

Life

And of course… smother every possible surface with plants! 🌿 Adding a little bit of greenery adds a level of comfort to any space.

Storage

Make sure you have plenty of room for storage, open surfaces for placing daily items, and in smaller spaces, some sort of wall storage device is crucial to keeping things organized.

Experiment + Play

Have fun with the process. Figure out what you love, what you haven’t tried before, what colors you want to paint—and go to town with it. You’re living in this space on a daily basis, it should inspire you to want to return to it at the end of the day.

Celebrations!

Lastly, remember to invite friends over to share the experience. Seeing how people react to my space has been my favorite part of the entire process. 🤗

New swag & Kickstarter!

As I've put some mockups together, I'm starting to seriously think about next steps for my design career. An online store, for sure... but putting all of this together, getting prints printed, buttons stamped, bags inked, tee shirts screen printed all costs a lot of money. Not to mention I'm not yet an LLC, my legal name is still Stephen Grant Johnson, and I've got monthly bills to pay.

I've hit a point where if I create a captivating enough video, document my progress, show all the cool thing I'm doing in New York, and provide sweet enough rewards, I think I can earn 5-10k (even 20k?!) by devoting myself to this! Seeing the energy that surrounds Kickstarter, and realizing that all my dreams could come true by just putting my story out there is SO EXCITING.

What do you think? Do I have the chops to pull it off? Also, what do you think of all my new swag? Let me know in the comments. Lastly, subscribe to my email list. You'll get inside info about all my plans lightyears before everyone else.