CREATING AN ENTERTAINER'S PARADISE ONE ROOM AT A TIME

JULIO MIRANDA-MARTIN GIVES HIS STRIKING WEST HOLLYWOOD SPACE A MAJOR GLOW-UP

- BY MARISSA GLUCK

JULIO MirandaMartin, right, calls his 950-square-foot onebedroom apartment in West Hollywood his "living canvas."

WHEN JULIO MIRANDA-MARTIN began his apartment search, he had one nonnegotiable: He wanted a dedicated dining room to entertain his friends. He was scouring Zillow in 2025 when a listing for a railroad-style, one-bedroom on the edge of West Hollywood came up that included the requisite dining room. It was also walking distance to his part-time job as a marketing coordinator at furniture store Lawson-Fenning. More important, at $2,500 a month it was within his budget. Miranda-Martin met with his landlord, who told him he looked like his son, the same day he found the listing. Feeling like finding this 950-square-foot apartment was kismet, MirandaMartin signed the lease and set about creating a sophisticated and color-saturated sanctuary. Miranda-Martin decided he needed to make two major investments before moving in: painting the walls and changing the lighting. "I was finally able to move into a place that I actually like, not just out of necessity. I was like, let's make it feel like my own," says Miranda-Martin, who refers to the space as his "living canvas."

The apartment is on the second floor of a fourplex, up a windowless staircase. MirandaMartin embraced the lack of light and painted it a high-gloss crimson. Without natural light, he hard-wired sconces found on Facebook Marketplace that recall ornamental 18th century candlesticks. They cast a dim but moody light throughout the staircase, ending with an ornate mirror at the top. The mirror shows a glimpse of the apartment's interior in its reflection when Miranda-Martin opens the door. "Every time people walk in, especially at night, it's such a dramatic entry," he says.