Cribz: 1021 High St. wants to buy your furniture

Upon walking through the front door of 1021 High St., visitors come face-to-face with sepia-toned, duck-printed wallpaper that overtakes the entryway. From the outside, the most eye-catching feature of the house is a robust collection of small houseplants and cacti — or, perhaps, the striking multi-pane window that allows pedestrians to see the spots of green through the glass.

“Mia says I’m too attached to them [the plants],” Samantha Morrison `23.5 said, pointing out which plants were hers and which plants had been propagated from one original.

In the living room, Morrison, Mia Overvoorde `23 and Zoe Robinson `23 sit on two squishy plaid couches, coordinating, but not matching. The windowsill plants are complemented by a small potted tree and a blue stuffed moose sits on the cushions — a birthday gift from Overvoorde to Morrison. Above their heads float two green dinosaur party balloons; looking up a bit farther at the ceiling reveals even more dino-themed decor. When Morrison moved in, there was only one dinosaur in the living room from a birthday party in June.

“But then the first weekend here, we ended up hosting a little friends birthday party. It was a surprise late birthday party for Mia and our other friend … so we went and bought a second dinosaur,” Morrison said.

“You can tell one of them is a little more depleted than the other,” Overvoorde said. “But they’re cute.”

To characterize their home, all three talked about creating a comfortable, cozy space. One of the things that the residents of 1021 agree contributes to the eclectic charm of their home is the furniture, the vast majority of which is the result of many successful Facebook Marketplace purchases.

When asked about the item that most encapsulated the energy of their house, Overvoorde and Morrison both pointed, looked at each other and burst into laughter.

“The trampoline chair,” they said simultaneously.

In the corner, innocuously folded, the trampoline chair leans against the living-room wall. The two bought it in 2020 when they were living in Michigan.

“I found this chair and it was like $5 on Facebook Marketplace,” Overvoorde said. “It was advertised as a kid’s gaming chair, but I was like, ‘We need this trampoline chair.’ But it was like a 25-minute drive.”

“I was kind of against it at first,” Morrison added.

“I was like, ‘Whatever, I’m going to message the person,’” Overvoorde said. “‘Can we come pick it up when you’re available?’ and they’re like, ‘You can come get it in the next hour.’ I had class starting on Zoom right then so I was like, ‘Samantha, please go.’”

“I drove out there; I went and picked it up,” Morrison said. “I brought it back to our house, and it instantly became everyone’s favorite chair.”

Amanda Ramirez `23, the fourth resident of 1021, joined Morrison, Overvoorde and Robinson in the living room after coming home from softball practice. For Ramirez, her goal for living at and furnishing 1021 is all about creating good energy. She said her favorite piece in the home is the dining room table, which is flanked by a set of matching chairs — a particularly good Facebook Marketplace find of Robinson’s. The table also holds fond memories.

“Zoe had homework due at 10:59 and she was really worried about finishing it,” Morrison said. “And I said, ‘Zoe, if you get your homework done by 10:59, we’ll all have a glass of wine and go to bed.” With new motivation, Robinson did indeed get her homework done, and everyone did successfully enjoy their wine together.

“Now sometimes if all or some of us have work we really can’t get done, we set timelines: 10:59, glass of wine time, go to bed.”

Robinson hosts a club called Brownie Thursdays, which happens on Wednesdays.

“This year we’re having it in our house,” Robinson said, “and it’s a nice gathering to see everybody and debrief the week. Eat some brownies.”

Morrison, who is one of the Ultimate Frisbee team captains this year, said she also looks forward to hosting something called Slammers, which is where the team sits in a circle and gives anonymous compliments, until everyone has been ‘Slammed.’

“So we’re going to have Slammers in this room, and we’ll have everybody sitting in a nice big circle. Yeah, that’s what I was looking forward to using this space for,” said Morrison.

The front door closes with a little bit of a smack on the way out, and at dusk, a warm lamp-light shines through the front window. Through the glass, plaid couches, fairy lights and a flash of bright green dinosaur balloon. With a mismatched collection of furnishings and décor, 1021 High St. reflects the personalities of the people who have put time, work and love into making it their own.