The element of living
Imagine relocating to a new city and downsizing from a 5,200 square foot luxury home to a 600 square foot high-rise Elements apartment complex in Downtown Bellevue.
It’s not so easy but that’s exactly what Melissa Potera did when she moved to Bellevue in 2008. Potera’s two-story home in the gated Las Vegas community of Southern Highlands, consisted of five bedrooms, three and a half baths, gourmet kitchen, spiral staircases, four fireplaces, an outdoor entertainment area and a swimming pool. Potera said her home coupled old world charm and new age chic by juxtaposing tuscan inspired decor, earth tones and Grecian columns throughout the home against modern stainless steel appliances, dark cherry wood furniture and eclectic decorations.
“Because the home was moderate size I was able to really experiment with decorating. You have to have a common theme to make a decorating cohesive. In my case it was color. I took that same idea and shrunk it to a smaller space when I moved,” she said.
Moving was no easy task. Potera and her husband decided to bring everything and put what they couldn’t fit in storage.
“I was bound to make such a huge decrease in size work without making the place look cluttered. Bookshelves became my most valuable item. They come in all shapes and sizes and are so versatile. I have one long one in my living room where I put my television on and use the shelves for storage and one in the bathroom where I put all my accessories and bathroom items in decorative baskets in the cubbies,” she said.
Potera brought two large mirrors which she said make a room look much bigger, clean and add a sleek design. She recommends not over accessorizing or over decorating and making sure that everything has a place.
“Things on counter tops make the kitchen look smaller, so I hide everything even my small appliances and try to have as much open spaces possible.” Her number one rule is not to buy anything unless you know exactly where it will go.
Living at Elements with all of the modern amenities a high rise offers Potera said, makes her apartment feel bigger.
“I know moving from such a big place to such a small one isn’t easy but it is possible. You have to reorganize your living style a bit. I know when I have guests over, I’m not going to entertain a party in 600 square feet. The entrainment space in the building is great for that, and I don’t keep gym equipment in my apartment because there’s a gym two floors down. Downsizing is really all about truly understanding what you need every single day and getting rid of everything else. You’d be surprised at how much you can live without,” she said.
