Inside Zhidkovsky's 60M Ruble Hotel-Style Apartment

Alexey Zhidkovsky has long been synonymous with the word “shock”. The blogger never hid his love of luxury, most often expressed in flashy outfits with sequined jackets and leopard-print fur coats. But, as it turned out, the author of the catchphrase “You paid for it, so swallow it” wants simplicity and comfort when he comes home. In his home, he tried to get rid of everything flashy, though he didn’t quite succeed.

For a long time, Zhidkovsky lived in a rented 200-square-meter apartment, but by age 30 he wanted his own. It is smaller, at 90 square meters, but here he was able to furnish everything to his own taste.

As the blogger admits, when the designer asked him how he envisioned his apartment, he sent photos of hotels as examples.

“My entire apartment is in a modern English classic style. I get enough burlesque and bright colors at events in Moscow. I want to come home and enter my best psychological state. My reference is the Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental hotels in Paris,” the blogger said on the channel “Olga Manukyan on Real Estate.”

The craftsmen took all wishes into account and indeed made the home minimalist and visually neutral. The only thing Alexey used to decorate the snow-white monochrome walls was stucco. But even that is very scarce in the interior: a small decoration in the guest toilet, on the kitchen cabinet doors, and under the ceiling in the bathroom.

“I’ve always lived with stucco. We from St. Petersburg are used to having stucco, old housing stock. It’s so familiar to me that I incorporated it all. Here I have a little St. Petersburg in big Moscow,” Zhidkovsky said with a smile, pointing to the decorations.

When decorating his apartment, two things were important to Alexey: light and mirrors. He wanted to be able to see himself and take a good photo in any part of the apartment.

“I have mirrors everywhere. I think psychologists who see this will perfectly understand that I have a narcissistic disposition,” Alexey admits.

As soon as you step through the door, there is a huge mirror in the hallway, and in the guest toilet there are two of them facing each other. According to Zhidkovsky, many advised him against creating such a “mirror maze” because, according to superstition, negative energy can pass through it. The blogger listened, nodded, thought for a second, but left everything as is. After all, it is a toilet that he himself hardly ever uses.

The most expensive part of the house is the kitchen. It is in the same space as the living room. To the right is a huge plasma TV that the blogger got for free by paying with reward points, and to the left is a huge white kitchen set. Alexey had it custom-made and waited three months. Each cabinet is made of oak coated with enamel. There are no buttons or handles on the doors, only soft-close dampers.

“It cost about $70,000–80,000. About the same as a Li Auto L8 SUV. It’s expensive, but it will last a lifetime,” Alexey explains.

A small stone island separates the kitchen and living room, where the blogger cooks. While Zhidkovsky chops a salad or marinates meat, he likes to watch something at the same time, so this small table is indispensable. To save space, his oven and microwave are combined into one. And to save space in the fridge, he has a separate one for drinks.

Alexey does not hide that he had urges to make the home “rich and luxurious,” but he stopped himself and added only touches of brass and gold to the interior. For example, on floor lamps, candlesticks, and dishes. And also on the kitchen sink.

“I want to wash in gold. So that when I wash, it’s a celebration in my head. The sink is Japanese. It can’t be washed with any cleaning products,” the blogger boasted about his sink.

From all rooms, the blogger has access to a small terrace. Initially, he needed it to walk his dogs without leaving the house. But over time, Zhidkovsky realized how pleasant it is to sit in the evenings, sipping his favorite drink, and watch the Moscow River with its rushing river trams.

“I wanted a house with its own street in Moscow territory. When I moved, I didn«t leave here for five days at all. I sat here and can»t say I felt separate from the world and life,” the blogger said, admiring the view.

The holy of holies of Zhidkovsky«s apartment is the dressing room. Clothes, handbags, and shoes are arranged along the walls. It all looks like an expensive boutique: pleasant lighting, identical hangers, each item in a specific place — jackets in one spot, sweaters in another.

To achieve complete harmony, Alexey had to hire a special person, a “order manager,” whom he paid about 100,000 rubles ($1,100 at current rates) to organize the space.

Another room in the house is the bedroom. It also has several closets with loungewear, a table with a large mirror, and a double bed. The only decoration here is a small vintage brass lamp.

In addition to the guest toilet, Zhidkovsky has his own bathroom, which no one else enters. The style of the house is fully maintained there, with no visual noise or clutter. The blogger opted for a transparent partition instead of curtains in the shower, again as is common in hotels.

Zhidkovsky also revealed how to achieve a Pinterest-worthy apartment with minimal visual clutter: there are almost no beauty jars, kitchen utensils, extra clothes, shoes, or accessories. It turns out that everything the blogger is not currently using is hidden in a storage room on the basement floor.

“I go here like it’s a store,” the blogger jokes.

According to Zhidkovsky, the apartment cost him about 60 million rubles ($666,700 at current rates). Another 30 million ($333,300 at current rates) went on renovations.

“I always say, in some strange way, renovations always come out to 50% of the apartment’s cost,” the blogger stated.