On My Mind: eBay Rugs and a Dog Wedding Dress

Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Photos: Retailers, Joe McKendry

Someone told me recently that moving is one of the top five most stressful life events, which feels hard to fact-check but has the ring of emotional truth. I moved last month from a one-bedroom in Queens to a larger space with my partner in Prospect Heights, and it’s been amazing, humbling, and frustrating in equal parts. The apartment is big for New York but doesn’t have a ton of closets or kitchen storage. We’re both decent woodworkers, so we’ve been building our way out of these problems — a pantry cabinet a few weeks ago, bookshelves this week. I love DIY projects like this because you end up with a perfectly sized piece for a fraction of what it would cost from a retailer. I know we’ll thank ourselves later for doing it the right way now, even though it’s slower. That said, the next time I have to eat dinner next to piles of screws and sandpaper, my soul will astral project out of my body.

When you’ve just moved in, you buy a lot of stuff hoping it will be the magical missing piece that makes a sparse, half-finished space feel like home. This rug did that! It’s a wool-and-silk Tibetan rug we bought on eBay for $325 (less than the listed sale price; always make an offer). It’s in the bedroom, which gets the least natural light, and has made the space feel a million times cozier. Most of the rug is wool, but the flowers and whorls are silk, which has a subtle golden sheen that catches the light. The one I bought is here, and I’m linking a similar style from the same vendor above.

The Tibetan wool-and-silk rug from eBay in its nonfinal place in the living room.
Photo: Erin Schwartz

I’ve gotten into arty throw pillows recently — why should pillows be limited to squares or circles? — and I was thrilled when I saw this patchwork T-shirt pillow from fashion brand Puer Parasitus go on sale for 80 percent off. It’s such a fun piece, and I’m imagining adding my own T-shirt patches to it over time.

[Editor’s note: Prices for this item are an estimated conversion of euros to USD.]

I’ve bought John Sterling shelf hardware from Menard’s twice to build wall-mounted bookshelves and haven’t regretted it. It’s made of sturdy powder-coated steel, easy to install (buy the matching screws), and, best of all, very cheap. The price of wood is up, so you have to save where you can.

In my quest to get the sickest possible apartment on the smallest budget, I’ve been looking at cheap building materials that have a lot of texture and complexity. I love the way recycled-denim insulation looks; it’s soft and minimally treated enough that I’m thinking of using it as a cushion for a shoe bench. I bought a $25 sample pack from Jelinek Cork, and I love the patterns, especially a black-and-white style meant to imitate marble — I’m hoping to use that to line plastic coasters. I’m also thinking of making something out of oriented strand board, a cheap composite wood that reminds me of terrazzo.

This would be the perfect skin-care shelf, but it’s slightly too wide for our space. I’m thinking about using floating metal picture ledges instead.

Photo: Retailer

I’m a Baserange stan, and I was thrilled to see the brand launch men’s underwear this summer. It’s too expensive for my budget at full price, but Baserange does a big archive sale a few times a year so I’m keeping an eye out.

Photo: Retailer

Sweater season is almost here, and I’ve got my eye on Lilies of the Valley, a brand I first discovered via Retail Pharmacy. It makes vintage athleticwear-inspired knits, including some cute tank tops and skirts.

I love art books and reference books, and I have an eBay alert for Eadweard Muybridge’s Complete Animal and Human Locomotion, which is a little of both — it’s one of the earliest photography projects, published in 1887, cataloguing human and animal bodies in a series of movements (flight, running, rest, climbing).

My partner and I are shopping for a big comfy chair for the living room, which has led to some flights of fancy about what we would do with an unlimited budget. I’d be remiss if I didn’t put something completely delusional on this list, and the Aeo by Archizoom is my dream chair. Literally — I had a dream about it last night. I love its stupid little feet.

My favorite place to browse for vintage home goods and clothing is Etsy. (If you’re looking for a specific make and model, though, you’ll usually find the best price on Facebook Marketplace or eBay.) I want to cover everything in vintage cotton fringe, and I will never stop thinking about this (masterfully!) hand-painted dog wedding dress.

The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.