Someone not afraid to show _stuff_!!!! I love it =D
All the beautiful colors work so well. You have many cool elements in there- most of which you built yourself!? I'm so insanely jealous of your talent.

really nice...i love--the built-in bookcase, your beautiful wide-plank floors, and the doors you have used as dividers (the antique doors is how i hope to create a bedroom someday). you are right, it is very cozy, great job!

can you tell me what color that yellowish wall is painted in? it's nice.

I like the astroturf loft bed and the framed cleaver.

Cool place, but I'm not sure that I'm into the green turf carpet bed. Love the floors, and love the wall colors. Beautiful job in the kitchen, too. This is a winner (but really, the bed is out there).

Great floors, awesome bookshelf, nice kitchen. I'd like to hear more about the coffee table. The bathroom looks a little scary to me. I'm not so sure about the bedroom, office.

This is a great use of space. It seems much larger than 400sf. It is warm, lived-in, organized. I have some reservations about the bathroom, but after all, it's just a bathroom- new towels, rug and shower curtain would spiff it up.

This is absolutely adorable, and it's nice to see someone with some taste in furniture. Please make the bathroom just as adorable.

I'm groovin on the Hoosier cabinet!

Interesting, I'm not sure how I feel about the mixture of different colors of stains on the wood (from black to painted moulding to light under the bed) Can anyone comment on a good rule of thumb for integrating heirlooms of different colors into a cohesive style?

this space seems terribly cluttered! granted i tend to the minimalist, but i think while you have some nice pieces(kudos on the doing it yourself side!)i think there is a great lack of cohesiveness in the space. i love the yellow as well tho.

There is a lot to love here. . . I wanted to vote more highly but not all of the rooms are done to the same standard. A lot more could be done with the bathroom and with hiding clutter in general (not that I'm any expert on that front either).

I love those chairs. The way they're each assymetrical but, together, look like one beautiful thing is great, and the color of the walls is very nice.

I think your bed rocks. And the walls are painted such a gorgeous warm color -- nice job!

Sorry, this eclectic just doesn't click. Clutter still looks like clutter. Unique quirky elements and spacesaving solutions are cool in their own ways, just doesn't create a whole.

The cleaver over the futon...

I am guessing you break glass in case of emergencies?

The story the story...must know the story.

I'm imagining a million wonderful and horrible things at once.

Lovely color in the living room and gorgeous floors, great Hoosier. The bathroom could be bumped up a notch, as well as the office and bedroom. But cozy and nice mojo.

Great cozy space. Have to admit the cleaver freaks me out a bit but I love the photo of the two little girls on the handmade bookshelf! People find this cluttered? It's like a breath of fresh air compared to the labyrinth of stuff I call my apartment.

I would first like to comment that I think this contest should be divided between owners and renters. Renters have much fewer options and control over their apartment than owners. It is not fair for the two types to compete against eachother.

That said, this apartment is fantastic (even against the owned apartments). What separates it from the pack are the many hand-made/installed items, its lack of Ikea or "Ikea-like" furnishings, and its overall personality. She hasn't just headed out to a container store and purchased space-saving devises, she has made them herself-- amazing (and beautiful)!

This apartment is amazing. I've stayed in it and even though it's crazy small, it still has a feeling of having enough room for a guest, or three! Leslie's great sense of spatial relations is really put to the test in this space but she comes out on top. The additions that she's made including that great built-in bookcase that she added make this apartment so much nicer than it was when she moved in, not to mention her great taste in furniture - both the furniture she's made herself (that awesome coffee table in the living room and the windowed doors under her loft bed) and the furniture she's collected for the space (those great chairs in front of the fireplace and the "hutch" in the kitchen).
Not only is this apartment laid-out differently than most others in NYC, it has great natural light, which is more than I can say for a few of the others in this contest.

leslie - you're apartment is rocking out! but if you don't win, i'm gonna blame the lack of facing trim on the closets ;) oh, to be a construction geek

I second the greatness of the Hoosier cabinet. Great place!

umm another over clutered bland space..oh well feel sure I will be back to this site for furthur laughs at how little understanding of designs you americans have.. to the point that you think you can enter these uninspiring living spaces as inspiring ideas for others to praise!!

good job Leslie. it's nice to see a real space where a real person lives. looking at pictures of places that could grace magazine covers is nice, but looking at spaces where people actually live and work is better.

sy, I'm sorry you are so unhappy.

all love, Heather

VERY cool looking place. I love the chairs and the coffee table rocks. I can't believe you've done so much with only 400 s. feet and yourself. Congrats

A dark horse!!! No way. I am impressed with how Leslie creates space when there really is none. Given the square footage of the apartment, I find it quite compelling that she is still able to provide serenity - with all that large furniture! A common mistake with small apartments is to furnish it with small pieces, in fear of overcrowding. That plan usually backfires and that's when a place feels cluttered. Clutter occurs when people have no sense of spatial relations and end up over or under compensating. It is obvious that "Butt Kicker" is not afraid and knows the value of color, space, and composition. Fearless...bravo!

I find Leslie's apartment to be the most warm and inviting of the bunch. Also, it looks as if she actually lives there, contrary to many of the ultra slick apartments listed in this contest. I think this space is a winner, i say sock her into the finalist's pool, pronto!