12 Women on Living Alone

“If I asked me ten years ago to imagine myself at this age, I would have said I had a husband, children and a house in the suburbs,” says Catie. Catie’s Manhattan apartment (above) has gallery walls, favorite books, and flower wallpapers. Below, Catie and 11 others share what it’s like to live alone…

A house filled with Katie’s patterns

Leaning on your personality:

“Relaxing peacefully in an empty house to witness me is the balm of my introverted soul.” – Katie, 34, has lived alone for 13 years and is in the California countryside.

“Living alone is so fun! – Natalie, 34, has lived alone for four years, Chicago

“After a devastating marriage and even more devastating divorce, the process of rebuilding myself from scratch was so daunting. I had no idea who I was or how I wanted to live in the world. When do you want to sleep? Do I like fragrance? What do you want to see? The free weekend was horrible. I was nervous just going to the target myself. So it was very important to live in your space, decorate, cook, and learn to be alone. It’s the strictest way I’ve found to understand what I really want. ” – Kaitlin, 44, has lived alone for eight years, LA.

“I love peeling off my clothes on hot days and walking around the house naked.” – Claire, 25, lives alone for 1. Chicago

About inspiration:

Katie’s Farmer

“We rent a 1870s farmhouse off the grid and two miles from the nearest paved road. Wildlife is day and night, and what’s special is that it’s the same house my mother moved as a young woman before we met her dad. – Katie, 34, has lived alone for 13 years and is now living in the California countryside.

“I grew up watching the ‘Mary Tyler Moore Show’. “The women who live in themselves always find it exciting.” Cheryl69 years old, Little Compton, Rhode Island, has lived alone for 13 years.

“I’m thinking about Diana Ross’ song.”That’s my home“When I Explain Solo Living.” – Catie, 40, has lived alone for 11 years, Manhattan

About the issue:

“It’s difficult to cover rent on your own, especially in big cities, so I’m not saving as much as I want.” – Catie, 40, has lived alone for 11 years, Manhattan,

“I complained that cooking for one person was tough. Recently I’ve been saying, ‘I’m good at feeding myself.’ This means satisfying the most random ones already in my pantry. – Ally, 40, has lived alone for eight years, Mill Valley, California

“When I’m sick, I don’t like living alone. It’s Pitt who feels pain alone in the middle of the night.” – Clara, 37, has lived alone for four years, Cornwall, Ontario.

Ally and Toby

About maintaining social:

“Living with a pet feels like you have an eyewitness when you go through life. My dog, Toby, lets me out of the house four times a day. – 40-year-old Ally has lived alone for eight years, Mill Valley, California

“Living alone actually keeps me very social because I need to actively plan on meeting people. I invite friends to dinner once or twice a week. I stay at least once a month on the weekend. After the final relationship ended, I approached my family. – Clara, 37, has lived alone for four years, Cornwall, Ontario

Clara lives alone… in the house next to her sister.

About migrating from shared spaces:

“After the divorce, I stayed in the house where my ex-husband and I lived for 12 years, so the transition was bittersweet. To make the house my own, I switched art and replaced the bedroom furniture. – Kara, 41, lives alone for two years, Boulder, Colorado

“I lived solo since my husband passed away in 2008. It was tough at first. When I got home from work, it felt like a huge hole in my life. But now I’m quietly cherishing it. – Margarita, 57, has lived alone for 16 years, Minneapolis

“Reason for #1 I Live alone: ​​I will never ever come home again and find myself trimming her boyfriend’s toenails on the sofa in our living room.” – January 45, Portland, lived alone for 23 years.

About design decisions:

Sarah’s Living Area

“Eight years ago I bought a fixer upper apartment. I had to check the ‘single, unmarried, unmarried’ box over and over again on paper! Renovating was a lot of work, but now my apartment has designed my home and design my days from the paint colors I chose. – Sarah, 38, has lived alone for 8 years, Manhattan

“I just remodeled my bathroom and didn’t try to make a girly pink bathroom, but somehow it turned out to be a girly pink bathroom. I love it.” – January 45, Portland, lived alone for 23 years.

Cheryl at home

On valuable lessons:

“My husband, Kenny and I have lived together for 30 years and I have lived alone since his death. My home is where I raised my kids. But the regular maintenance of the house is never finished. I liked making those decisions as a team, but I am incredibly confident in managing it myself. – Cheryl, 69, has lived alone for 13 years and is a Little Compton, Rhode Island.

“Whenever someone asks me, ‘Do you know how to do that?’ I always laugh and say, ‘Who else is going to go?’ Recently I had to change the shower handle and thanks to Google’s power and trial and error, I did it and felt like a bad thing. ” – Catie, 40, has lived alone for 11 years, Manhattan

“The house I lived in after college was a shoebox-sized cabin in the woods. On the first night I climbed from the loft where mice were sleeping, looked at the eyes, and dared to actually do something about it. The next day, I built a way to fill the floors and learn how to fill the floors while I was living there. – Katie, 34, has lived alone for 13 years, and was in the California countryside.

Do you live alone or have you been in the past? What were the advantages/disadvantages?

PS 12 readers will share photos of their solo trips, while vintage enthusiasts will share her solo living dream home.

(Photos provided by the interview subject. However, except for the portrait of Cheryl, Sarah Petralka. )

260 comment