Chicago

Adam and Alexa focused on “maximizing storage with smart layouts and full-height cabinetry rather than expensive finishes,” and were able to keep Chicago apartment renovation “practical and budget-conscious.”

This art-filled apartment is bursting with a colorful, creative spark, thanks to an eclectic collection of paintings, textiles, and photography.

Designer Johnny Coleman loves color drenching and period mixing, and he designed his Chicago rental apartment “as a modern take on the east wing of a country house.” He's also been collecting antiques since he was 14 years old!

There’s eerie and magical wallpaper and candlelight makes the home glow at night. This house is a little bit spooky and very cozy.

"When I first toured this apartment it was absolutely disgusting. A hoarder was living here. Every inch of the unit was covered in furniture and clutter. It smelled bad. But at 23 it was the only apartment I could afford to rent in the city that was in my price range," writes Joyce Caldwell.

The home is extremely bright and colorful, and there is so much South Asian influence everywhere.

Alex Hinand moved into this “basic in a good way” Chicago rental apartment “with nothing but a coffee table” and “a promise to myself that I wouldn’t go into credit card debt to furnish this home.”

Katherine and Jess’s rental is like the “apartment of your favorite lesbian aunts who always give you books for your birthday.”

Lexy instantly fell in love with this rental’s vintage charm.” When I first toured this apartment, the sun was streaming through all the windows, reflecting off the mirror doors in my living room.”

Bumpy and Aubrey try to “avoid buying retail furniture,” instead furnishing their Chicago loft with vintage originals and a couple of famous pieces, too: The sofa was featured in American Hustle!

This McKinley Park apartment is full of art by BIPOC artists, plants, and lots of earthy and grounded colors.

This Chicago apartment went from “dusty humid roly-poly graveyard” to “dreamy plant-filled bohemian artist’s sanctuary.”

This historic loft came with restrictions on paint and remodeling, so this renter “embraced creative, nonpermanent solutions, like playing with textures, statement pieces, and utilizing the built-in shelving to craft a homey atmosphere without altering the architecture.”

It’s taken Hollie just over a year to design her colorful and maximalist rental home.

There's both historic charm and a surplus of color.

It’s small but has a mid-century modern fireplace, hardwood floors, and retro bathroom tiles.

This $2250-a-month, open-play rental loft was the first and only apartment the couple toured before moving in.

The sofas aren't the only incredible free find in this home either!

Steven Russell describes his Chicago studio apartment's decor style as "Frasier, but a studio."

Art and color anchor Curtis Taylor, Jr. and Danielle Taylor’s Chicago rental apartment.

When Sarah bought this home, the charm was undeniable, but “some work was needed to bring it back to life.” She freshly painted, updated window treatments, added plants, and more to make the space her home.

See inside this one-bedroom Chicago apartment that has a stunning sunroom, purple dining room, and colorful style.

“The city's vibrancy outside my window mirrored my personal journey of reinvention,” Tarah Trammel says.

Bridgette and Steven Haulenbeek have filled their chicago rental apartment with cool art and furniture, some made by Steven.

A former reno lacked personality, but this family has added furniture, art, paint, color & more over the last two years.

"I love organic textures because they feel warm and cozy, which is how I want to feel when I’m at home," renter Nadia Sedgley says.

Rodney Perez decorated their 600-square-foot apartment to be a reflection of themselves.

Courtney and Colin have totally transformed their Chicago home with lots and lots of color.

See inside this 600-square-foot Chicago rental of a Pakistani American woman who mixed both U.S. and Southeast Asian decor styles.

Designer Michelle Sturgis’ cottage needed love when she and her husband purchased it, but they made sure to keep all the charming details like the original brick wall, railings, doors, and more.

Maddie Hilbrant and her fiancé both value a warm, welcoming home to come back to at the end of the day.

See inside interior designer Jessica Blue’s colorful, maximalist Chicago home with smart storage and decor ideas.

One day Olivia Huffman was driving to work and saw something out of the corner of her eye in an alley: the "dreamiest, curved clamshell sofas" just sitting there, ready for the taking!

Kate makes an effort to avoid buying new things for her Chicago rental apartment, instead sourcing "items from thrift stores, antique shops, and second-hand marketplaces. About 80% of the things I buy come from these places, and I love incorporating historic designs into a very modern building."

After Shelby toured this 700-square-foot Chicago condo, she loved it so much she wrote the previous owner a handwritten letter. “I was like, ‘I’m ... begging you to let me live here.’” The letter worked. Now she and Collin reside in their small-but-mighty space, curating a sort of maximalist museum dedicated to the relationships that keep them afloat.

The incredible custom wallpaper in this colorful Chicago condo was designed before the owner ever moved in.

Abby and her husband, Christian, have been living in their Chicago home for two years, and they have one piece of advice for you: Treat your home like a museum. With rotating pieces of art, they never tire of their rental apartment.

The kitchen used to have fluorescent lights, Formica countertops, and a wall separating it from the living room area, but Bridget and Sean took down the wall and put in six slabs of black quartz.

Ainsley's small rental apartment's size and atypical angles offered quite the design challenge: to fit in useful, cohesive items without feeling too cramped or cluttered. But she tackled the challenge beautifully and cleverly.

Along with incredible art, Alex uses "warm, neutral colors (off-white, ochre, amber, wood tones) as a foundation to play with shapes, textures, and patterns. Jute rugs, boucle, ornate frames, and varying wood tones help tie together the design and blend old and new."

Christy lives with her two cats in Chicago. Her walls are covered in art and objects that remind her of the people and places she loves. She's transformed a 750-square-foot apartment into a cozy home.

Jamie and Mike moved to Chicago for grad school and never left. Now their home has given them a place to make the most of their small space while adding in items that bring them happiness.

Becky Bloom's historic 1924 Chicago bungalow has a purple living room, orange fireplace, green kitchen, floral bedroom, and a lot more color and DIY pattern!

Johnny Coleman is an interior architecture BFA candidate at Columbia College Chicago and a bargain hunter. He was able to furnish and decorate this rental apartment with mostly upcycled and revamped furniture.

Tim and Ravi's condo is located on the top floor of a building built in 1897, so it needed a lot of work. The remodel lasted two months and was completed in January 2020.

Coach and facilitator Erinne Brown has been renting this light-filled 451-square-foot studio apartment in Chicago's Printers Row neighborhood for two years now.

Sekile Nzinga is the Chief Equity Officer for the State of Illinois and the founder of The Nzinga Collective, and rents this 1200-square-foot condo in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood.

Kevin Coleman shares this 642-square-foot, "Geometric Minimalism" style studio apartment with his dog, Langston.

...including an IKEA bookshelf built into a wall!

When Annabell Ren and Steven Karvelius moved in to this unit in a 120-year-old historic four-flat in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood, the interior was dated and there was very limited storage space. But it had potential.

Johanna's rental came with tall ceilings and windows and a spacious floorplan for one person. But the space needed a lot of work!

It also has loads of natural light, a custom-made bay window seat, and a private deck space transformed into a relaxing oasis.

Sara and Garrett own this house, but it serves as inspiration for renters, too; it's full of incredible colors against a backdrop of crisp white walls!

Vintage fashion and home decor seller Barbie Roadkill says her Chicago condo's style is: "Golden Girls' meets Lydia’s house in 'Beetlejuice' meets a box of crayons."

Gizelle was raised on PBS period dramas, but until she gets to live in a traditional English manor home, she's furnished her industrial modern Chicago loft with antiques to blend in British colonial design inspiration.