Kristen Doute: I'm Living Alone and It's 'Liberating'

Talk about a period of transition. First, Kristen Doute splits from longtime boyfriend and costar Tom Sandoval, moves on to new boyfriend and costar James Kennedy and then, in a move everyone saw coming, she's fired from her serving job at SUR. And now, in a new interview, the Vanderpump Rules star is talking about her new home and what it's like living alone for the very first time.

"It was overwhelming moving in by myself, but also so liberating," Kristen told Us Weekly magazine.

Although she briefly lived with James since leaving the apartment she shared with Tom over a year ago, Kristen believes it's best for both of them to live separately. "He stays over a lot," she told the magazine of her busboy/ DJ boyfriend, "but I'm not ready to live with anyone. I think it's important for me to really work on me. It's proven to be healthy for our relationship."

Could the experience of living with Tom have turned her off from the idea of co-habitating? She seemed to take a dig at her ex when she told the mag, "I wake up every morning with a smile on my face knowing that I no longer live in a total dump cleaning up after someone else!"

To keep things affordable, Kristen decorated her space with personal photographs and flea market gems like this trunk table she posted on Instagram.

Kristen also got crafty with a little help from her friends, like co-star Jax Taylor's fling Carmen Dickman. "Pinterest guided me through decorating," Kristen said. "The mixed media painting above my couch, Carmen and I painted. The canvases in my dining room I did with scrapbook paper and Mod Podge."

But the best thing about Kristen's apartment isn't what she did with the space, it's that she had the freedom to do whatever she wanted with the space.

"It was a blank canvas in more ways than one," she told the magazine. "It was also a chance to start over with new memories and new, positive energy.

[Source: US Weekly]