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Name:

Mark

Location:

Shanghai China

Square Feet:

350

Division:

International

What I Love About My Small Home:

The apartment is in the oldest art deco building in Shanghai. It was very modern for its time, and build with great attention to detail. It's also my first rental without a roommate so everything in it is very personal. I wanted a mix of East and West and this was the perfect choice. Scouring Shanghai's antique markets have been a joy, trying to find the perfect pieces to fit in a small place. In addition, all of my neighbors are in their 70s and have been living there since the 1960s. They still dry their clothing on bamboo racks on their window sills and check in on each other. It feels like I'm living a time bubble, secluded from the rest of the rapidly changing city.

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Name:

Jacqueline

Location:

New York, NY

Square Feet:

420

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

What I love most about my apartment is that it meets all my personal requirements. It's relatively modern, it has no unnecessarily fussy details, it has a dishwasher, it's safe and it's clean. This rental apartment was a necessary downsize choice that I had to make a couple of years ago, and although I'm still struggling with divestment of my excess "stuff", I know that once I'm finished with the process it will feel even more spacious than it already does. My last apartment was a one bedroom, which was almost three times the size of this studio. And even though I loved it, with the dramatic reduction in my monthly rent, I love my current home even more.

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Name:

Lowell

Location:

Chicago, IL

Square Feet:

650

Division:

Little

What I Love About My Small Home:

I live in a former factory building built in 1906 where industrial engines were made. The original brick and wood beams are still present; I love this about my space. I also love my cork bedroom wall, 11 foot ceilings, and the general sense of intimacy that almost inherently comes with a small space.

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Name:

Max Winkler

Location:

Denver, CO

Square Feet:

600

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

This is an apartment that has allowed us to truly explore our ability to think creatively within a budget and the restraints of being a renter. To maintain our mutual eclectic aesthetic while considering storage, utility, and impermanence has been an extremely gratifying experience that we look forward to developing and expanding.

Name: Beth, Jeff, Ruby, and Fiona
Location: Bixby Knolls, Long Beach, California
Size: 1,000 square feet
Years lived in: 6 years; Owned

Set back off of a quiet street in Bixby Knolls is Beth and Jeff’s lovingly crafted one-story 1920s home, shared with daughters Ruby, 4, and Fiona, 9 months. But it wasn’t always so quaint. When they purchased the home six years ago, it was dilapidated and in desperate need of TLC. With Beth’s artistic vision and Jeff’s DIY skills, they redid everything inside and outside the home themselves, as a team. 

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Name:

Kristopher

Location:

New York, NY

Square Feet:

186

Division:

Teeny-Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

I'm very proud of my apartment. It's the smallest one I've personally ever seen at just 186 square feet, but the view of the city is spectacular and makes up for the limited space. When I moved into this studio it was not in very good shape, but in my spare time, little by little, it's come a very long way. It's also very cozy and extremely quiet.

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Name:

Alice and Ed

Location:

Bath England

Square Feet:

950

Division:

International

What I Love About My Small Home:

It's really cozy and our first home together. It's perfect for us.

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Name:

Laura

Location:

Brooklyn, NY

Square Feet:

335

Division:

Teeny-Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

I really love this apartment with its amazing natural light and lovely trees filling the windows. I like the open plan, and the alcove is great. Since it's only as big as my queen size bed I decided to make it a home office/dressing area/work-out space/movie watching area. It's just the right amount of space for my needs.

Some of you may remember my post about how to talk to kids about moving, and how to ease their transition into a new home. As a child who was moved every two to three years, this post was taken directly from my own experiences, and I was so happy to hear all of your personal stories and tips as well. Moving a lot and being able to pack up your life on short notice goes hand-in-hand with living minimally, or living "small." 

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Name:

Kimberly

Location:

Hoboken, NJ

Square Feet:

990

Division:

Small

What I Love About My Small Home:

It's very calm and quiet. I live on the second floor of an old (pre 1850) building. The building was renovated in approx 1997 to the floor plan I submitted. I purchased and moved to the property in 2005.