- Name:
- Beth
- Location:
- Glendale, CA
- Square Feet:
- 554
- Division:
- Tiny
- What I Love About My Small Home:
- When we decided to save money and downsize from our longtime rental in Silver Lake, we knew we would be sacrificing major square footage. But, as we explored our charming little back house for the first time, we became so excited by the possibilities that the size didn't really register. All we could think about was how bright and happy it felt inside. Is it too hippie to say it? The vibe was right. As were the details that we could build on.The plentitude of paned windows and the light they let in, the fenced yard with a big tree begging to be hammock-ed, our cute kitchen, the coziest bedroom ever (maybe because it's literally a bed-room with our eastern king), and (thank god) the garage. We also love that, with the addition of a semi-built-in bookcase, we finally have a little library nook in our office. And we are just a short stroll from of our favorite farmers market, restaurants, and shops on the Atwater Village strip and dangerously close to Eagle Rock Brewery.
- Biggest Challenge of Living in a Small Space
- Hands down -- limited space and storage (followed closely by taking pictures of said small space). My 6'x2' closet is the only one in the whole house, and our kitchen has an eighth of the cupboards of our last place. But tricky things like this force you to get creative. So, we got my husband an IKEA wardrobe that somehow fits (along with our king bed) in the tiny bedroom, a barrister bookcase for dish storage, a small vintage hutch for the bathroom, all our spices and knives are magnetic, and I stash the vacuum behind one of the living room drapes. Small homes require you only keep around things that you love and that feed the space you're constantly recreating. This is another challenging, but fun, element -- a compact casa is never finished. You're always moving things around, thinning stuff out, looking for a better place to put one thing or another, always seeking balance and the best possible design for every nook, because every corner counts all the more when the whole is tiny.
Categories:
Style,
Main,
2012,
Los Angeles,
Small Cool,
Small Spaces
Like this Small Cool 2012 contest entry? Favorite it below!
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Love it!
I've got the same typewriter out on display in my home. :)
Love the prints on your wall. Can you tell us any more about the big one with the woman's face in your kitchen?
It's beautiful! I want that shower curtain. And the cute dog.
i really like this one... and PLEASE tell me what kind of dog that is :)
Lovely.
That poster is of Billie Holiday.
"I stash the vacuum behind one of the living room drapes" -you are a genius.
I seriously can't believe you got that bed into that room. Nice work!
I love it.... but how do you make the bed?!
Love, love, love that red chair and your reading nook! Such a wonderful + cozy place.
Oh yes, this is my favorite so far! It's the perfect mix of modern and antique. It's not too MCM, not too shabby chic. It's just perfect. I sincerely hope you win!
Very cozy and warm. I'd like to live there!
Oooh, the bright yellow side table in the living room is fantastic...where did you find it? A beautifully crafted home, where every inch is cared for...I am inspired, thank you!
Love the idea of the vacuum behind the drapes. Gotta try that in my 576 sq. foot house!
love it - thank you so much for the inspiration! my apartment is around the same size as yours :) can i ask where you got that grey rug? i absolutely love it!
xoamy
www.cupcakesncouture.com
Very cozy!
love this! the 'ich liebe dich' pillow is a gem. so good. may I ask where you found it?
What a pretty space! Where is your sofa from?
Gorgeous!!
Wow, it looks huge! Great work!
garnethill.com carries that rug
i love the sconces over the bed. very lovely home.
Full house tour please! I want to see more.
Beautiful and bright!
Where did you get the coffee circular table? LOVE!
Cute and cozy, not a misstep anywhere. Very nice.
I love how homey your space is. I love the tiny bathroom with the little storage cabinets by the shower. So unique. Can you share where you got the shower curtain? Love it!
I love this! Definitely my favorite so far.
This is BEAUTIFUL.
I don't think I would ever get out of that red lounger chair near the books!
Yeah Glendale! That's where I first lived when I moved out to L.A. Although my apartment was nowhere near this cute! It was 900 sq ft, but only 1 bedroom, and just a boring, plain, white box. I wish I had discovered Apartment Therapy before I moved out!!
This entry is my first to favorite. For me, it's a perfect balance of eclectic
color and warmth.
Love the look of your home Beth. It is so quaint and comfy. Love the doggie too, we have one that looks just like yours, crazy ball of energy. ;o)
@FELTIPJR I had to go back and look for their dog..HE IS SOOOO SCAMPY! Ha! I love the materials you have used! The perhaps, closet door, curtain is gorgeous..............very happy and relaxed home..
I absolutely need a full tour. Impressive!!!
This is the first time that I am posting on AT and I just wanted to say that I LOVE LOVE LOVE your home. It's perfectly decorated! And I can't get over how you hide the vacuum behind one of the curtains. I just moved into my own small space...620sqft...and have ONE SMALL closet. I was wondering where or where was I going to hide my vacuum. Thanks for the answer to my question. I hope to see a house tour on this one! Good luck!!!!!!
Wow -- you've really ticked all the current boxes - cute vintage typewriter, wallpaper, bird accessories, map art, neon, globe, dog. Don't know if AT's done a post on saddles, but if it has then that as well. Your home is inspiration -- looking forward to a house tour please!
Love the use of prints in this place. And now that I think of it, I used to hide the vacuum that way too, once upon a time.
Lovely!
Your home is nice and warm! Love it!!!
Love it love it love it!!!
This home is so lovely!! Especially love what you've done with the bathroom and the bookcase. Are they magazines on the bottom shelf? Love seeing full bookshelves :) Good luck
Oh my God, I want to pick that dog up and scruffle it so bad!! Also, your bedroom is a tiny slice of heaven.
LOVE. 100%.
Would love to see the rest of this one!
I would want to be friends with the folks who live here: so stylish AND inviting.
I've been obsessed with AT for awhile, but I only just now registered so I could comment and vote on this entry. This is PERFECT. As a California dreamer, there's nothing more inspiring that a perfectly designed California home. Such a sweet space!
Cute place, cute dog, and shows acute possibilities.
The scampy dog looks like my daughter's dog, part min pin, part poodle!
Nice decorating and use of smaller apartment space, love the red/white chair for reading in and looks like a bright room. Karen IA
Wow! Thanks for all the sweet comments! This is so exciting. I wanted to answer all the questions I've seen on here about our place (it should actually be Beth & Tony's). First - the SCAMPY (love it!) dog. Cricket! She is strait out of the LA pound and she is 9 pounds of cute and scrappy - looks part puppy, part grandma dog. She most definitely terrier, possibly mixed with Italian Greyhound? Has long skinny legs, VERY fast. We need to get one of those doggie DNA tests. She is a great dog - mutts are the best!
The woman in our kitchen is Billie Holiday, it is our only non-flea/thift, non-me, non-friend art piece. It is I think screen printed on a piece of wood with some brush work over that. We bought it at a little place in Echo Park 6 years ago and the woman did not know the artists name, but I think they were local (it's signed TK at the bottom).
How do we make the bed? You basically have to be in the bed to make it - at the top, tugging everything towards the headboard and then inch out and smooth. We do have about 3.5 feet between the bed and the wardrobe, so not that bad. Finding where to store my book/reading glasses (I'm on the inside) is tricker.
The chartreuse barrel side tables in the living room (there's actually two) are something my mom was storing for me from one of my grandparents places. I kept telling her to hold on to them b/c I love them and they are so unique. When we moved in here, I had her send them out because they are small, but open up to storage inside. They where cream and I painted them.
The circular coffee table is actually an antique folding wire laundry basket. I had a piece of glass cut for the top and bottom to make a second shelf. It, and the woven grass stool are easy to move around the room and the stool is great for an extra seat when needed.
The rest - Shower curtain, Target! Ich Liebe Dich pillow, IReckon on Etsy. Sofa from SofaULove, custom-sized. Got the rug at shadesoflight.com. And yes, those are magazines along the bottom of our bookshelf...many my old Dominos (sigh).
Thanks for the comments and votes everyone! Glad you all like it as much as we do. :)
It is so cute I bet you did a great job on the yard and looks just as great as the inside.
Betty! I freaking LOVE it. Bravo. I love this contest and seeing your & Tony's pad here has made my day! Hugs to you, Caroline
gorgeous, inventive, and homey all in one!! well done!!!
Thanks for sharing your home! Since no one else commented on it, I must say I love that you still have your saddle :)
amazing job with this! Did you build the bookcase? I love it!
You're hired! I'll even throw in a trip to Chicago for cooking lessons with the best Italian cook this side of the Atlantic. (wait... which side am I on today?!?) I need you to work your magic on my US pitstop (pun intended)
Impressive design work! but im not surprised. Your eye for design that is beautiful, comforting and pragmatic is matched only by your gift for conveying it photographically.
great job
Yay for rescue dogs!
Hi Jane, Yes a carpenter friend of ours built the bookcase as well as a smaller one behind the door that you can't see in this pic. The extra storage and character it provides has made a huge difference. He was able to do it in a semi-built-in way and the shelves are adjustable which I love. :)
Love your place Beth!
Wow! What a delightful place to come home to! LOVE the red and white chair and how everything about the place is simply perfect together. Thanks for sharing!
You have always had such great taste Beth!! Love the apartment... wish we could have you decorate our house!
Very Nice Anthony.
Beth is super crafty and has impeccable taste!
hi! I hope you're still answering questions about your place. I'm curious about the paint color for your circular side tables and where you got your curtains--these colors are fabulous!
I just want to give your apartment a hug! Even the bathroom is inspired.
i love how they utilized their space, it looks amazing!!!
Great-looking small place!
Hi bagelsmom. The color is called "poached pear" and I think it's glidden. The drapes are IKEA. :)
i love paint colors that are named after food.
thank you!
Beautiful, restful and feels bigger than the square footage would have you believe. Great job!
Charming! Just wondering what you use the other bedroom for - the one that seems to have a door in it? Is that where the bookshelf it? I'm assuming the 'bed-room' is the smaller of the two bedrooms indicated on the floorplan?
Hi Emewen, Yes, the bedroom is in the smaller of the two rooms. The pic with the door in it and the bird curtain is the bathroom. The other bedroom is the pic with the bookshelf reading area (which is in half), the other side of that room is an office space which isn't seen in the here. :)
Ahh! I grew up with Beth and her brother. I LOVE her place!! I haven't seen her in years but I can totally tell she would live here. Plus the saddle...so many memories. Great place Beth!
Love it Beth!
Love what you all have done with your "compact casa"! Such a great feel and flow and a major accomplishment to have made a rather standard tiled bathroom so appealing. House tour? ;}
My saddle is stored in my house too.My dinning room.lol.
Beautiful place.
love the billie piece
Beth and Tony, how adorable and tres chic! You have been very creative-what a lovely home!
Hi Beth, Absolutely LOVE your home :) Wondering where you bought the red-patterned reading chair in the office? It's fabulous! Thanks
Look at your bathroom~ how nice! oooh la la!
I cannot believe your scruffy dog- he is a clone of our pound mutt! We have been trying to figure out what he is - maybe a mix of patterdale terrier, jack russell, who knows?
this person managed to accommodate 2 bedrooms in just over 554 sq. ft without fancy contractors custom building stuff. This is beyond impressive. She managed to have a comfortable living room, a queen sized bed, a kitchen and cute dining area. She even has a washer! No murphy beds, no eating in a kitchen island, no futons. A comfortable, happy, and well designed home can be accomplished even with minimal budget. This shows the rest of the world that there is no excuse for ugly homes. This is what I think apartment therapy is all about. This home warrants a full tour to inspire the rest of us.
Hi Lucy, I bought the red patterned chair from a great vintage shop in LA called Finster. All the wood was originally black lacquered. I stripped it and treated the wood underneath with danish oil. The patterned fabric was in great shape when I bought it, so I left it as is. :)
... and I just realized that you have a king bed not a queen bed! WOW....
I love how the bathroom doesn't feel like a bathroom. This is very cozy and I can just imagine how awesome it is at night, too.
Warm and inviting! Very homie, I really enjoyed looking at what you did with your space, you can feel the love that was put into it, and the angles in which you took the photos. You get my vote!