I can't wait to see more....especially those stair cabinets.

If this is not small and cool, I don't know what else is. Using boat design books as a resource....brilliant!

This is beautiful...I love the spacious feel that the high ceilings give the kitchen!

Love the acrylic panels with greenish blue dots. Resource please!

Umm...this is pretty much rockstar design. Congrats!

I too can't wait to see more and I'm sure we will. I don't know, I think I would've counted just the original 540 sf, rather than the 640 sf resulting from the loft you put in. It's so impressive that you started with 540 and you have 4 humans and a dog in there!

Designing stairs as fabulous storage, as well as a way up to the loft, is so smart.

Now here's the upside of increasing the s.f. requirements--we get to see a family of 4 shoehorned into 160 s.f. per capita. Those understairs cabinets are clever, as is the catty-cornered kitchen sink. I also really appreciate the well-reasoned explanations of the thought process behind the design considerations--that had a lot to do with swaying my vote. Insta-finalist, I say.

Do the panels under the stairs open up to reveal storage? The look like great hidey places.

In the first photo in the slideshow, is that plexi on the back of the shelving? DIY? Love plexi.

Wow!

I love the blue in the kitchen.

Super cool! And super unique. I think you are going to get huge points for really clever ideas.

(for the love of God please get rid of that Ikea video!)

Love it, and extra bonus points for not being a professional designer. You did the homework yourself!

I'm also really excited to see a space with kids. This apartment is so intelligent -- it truly is the kind of thing I love to see on AT. Would love to check back with this family when the kids get bigger and see what it's like then.

I think one of the things this apartment does particularly well is make "seperate spaces" out of one space. Having different areas that feel "away" but yet aren't really. You can spend lots of money on great stuff, but achieving this effect can only happen with excellent design.

Bravo! Absoutlely stunning! I am very impressed! This is what space planning is all about, and finding a way to incorporate all the needs of a family into such a small space with this much creativity is definately award winning.

This is what A.T. is all about! Proof that you don't need 3,000 sq ft to raise a family. If only the rest of America could "get it' and learn to live in smaller spaces.

Just beautiful. The staircase storage is brilliant, and I love that the kids have their own space in such a small apartment.

Super cool.

Where can I get the blue color on the Kitchen walls? love it!

the panels look like 3form ecoresin... http://www.3-form.com/materials-varia-play.php

Um ... hello... yes, please! Although I'd like to see more "soft" touches (rug in the living room...) especially for kids, this is totally fab nonetheless. What's with the panels above the kitchen (connecting to the loft), though? Do they pop out? It looks like two hang down or something. Or do they slide for viewing?

Also ... if you read this, can you tell me how you like your corner sink? I've been eyeing that at ikea for my quick kitchen redo, but I'm wondering if its a pain not having a sink large enough to put cookie sheets, etc. in.

This is truly inspirational!! Great job - I bet you're an awesome family to hang out with.

Love this place!I have one question though, it looks like 2 of the dot panels are longer than the rest. Is there a reason for this or was that just a design choice? It stood out to me.

Wow! What a lot of clever ideas! I really like it overall, with the primary exception of the bed alcove. I'd be miserable having to climb over another adult, a baby, and (in my case) a dog to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Other than that, I love the space--I'm a sucker for houseboat-inspired design.

From Katie (part of the "& Family" in this entry)
The orange on the shelving is indeed Plexi from Canal Plastics. The loft wall that is white with blue dots is eco resin from 3 form. The dots are made from sea shells. The squares that hang down are on a sliding track so they open for ventilation and children shouting down "look at me!" Patrick will have to let you know the paint color, that's all his doing!

This is great. Funny thing... the books on the shelves look so neat and orderly and appealing. Why is it that sometimes, books look so visually heavy, but theirs don't? Is it just that they have enough space? I'm glad they didn't sort by color, even though that does help in a lot of cases.

Well-done and efficient! But I'm curious about the lack of closets - I see only one smallish closet and a wardrobe. Is all of the family's clothing in folded storage under the stairs? There doesn't seem to be nearly enough hanging space for two adults and the older child.

Love the blue... if the blues look anywhere near as good in person as they look in photos - then wow. Love it.

Beautiful and efficient and homey and and and - I love it!

awesome. great inspiration for parents who think they need tons of space for the kids. love the smart organization and un-clutter!

love.

great space...clean, modern, simple-it speaks Apartment Therapy and what we are all working towards in our own spaces. Thank you for sharing!

Ditto- get rid of that streaming lady from Ikea.
(oh- this apartment is amazing)

Now that's what I'm talking about, baby!

simply beautiful and effective. thnx for showing us around.

I would really love to see those under-stairs storage areas open. Please?

now this is what living small and cool is all about. real people making practical use of good space.

It's a great space for a young couple. It looks very compact and sleek. I like the fact that there isn't a lot of "stuff" all over the place.

It's not so great for a young couple with kids. It looks TOO compact.

I'm not a big fan of kids but I think kids deserve more space than this.

Hey, that's my 2 cents.

Superb. Beautiful use of space, beautiful color harmonies, quality not quanity.

To weasel dearest: "kids deserve more space than this"...
I have to think you comment is really elitist. It looks too compact to you, but it seems that the people who live here are comfortable, and it's their call anyway. Hundreds of millions of children and adults would be lucky to live in such luxury.

Really gorgeous... but I too wonder where they keep their clothes.

I think this is a great use of space and it is very creative. I love it.

Kids have plenty of space in the great outdoors. I've only been to New York City once but I do recall there being some wonderful outdoor spaces and parks. If anything I think this use of space really helps children to be more interactive, creative and know how to value family over material things.

Thanks for sharing and best of luck.

Great use of space! But not groovin' on the blue -- too harsh for me. Other colors are nice.

Great place! Are there a few different tones of blue on the walls or is that just shadows?

I love your Kitchen

Is this unit on the top floor and how high is the ceiling?

You guys must spend a lot of quality time together since I can't see any traces of a T.V set. :-D

Wonderful! Great plan, easily understood design scheme, smart storage and space saving ideas. This is what the contest is all about; Bravo!

Brilliant.
I wish we had seen a picture of your living room--but that can wait! I particularily love how the floor plan shows it is a space for all of you--with the kids table and craft supplies. Well done.

J'adore!

Hi all, Patrick here, thanks for the overwhelming support! We really thought long and hard (with some help from an architect friend on the structure) on how to make this space work (we lived here for a few years pre-kids). If we make it farther, we'll be sure to show the spaces under the stairs.

A few answers:
- Siddhu: The blue is Benjamin Moore Tranquil Blue. It does change with the light.
- Ridge: I love the twin corner sink - you can pile a few dishes and still have a usable sink free. It's the only place we could really put it without totally screwing with the plumbing too much. The thing that makes it doable for larger items is the pull-out faucet sprayer. I do kinda wish we had gone under-mount.
- As for the general ?s about clothes: we each have our own spot and only keep out seasonal clothes. The walk-in closet by the front door has mine (the lines there are the hanging stuff with deep storage behind), Katie has the wardrobe in the hall, and the kids have dressers upstairs (one with hanging space), noted in the floorplan.
- Phase2phase: It's the 7th floor - top of the original built structure. Ceilings are about 13' IIRC. And we have a TV on the wall in the downstairs BR.

The stairs and kitchen ceiling make the space look a lot bigger, that's great. Don't care for the storage up against the bed, seems train-ish, but overall, a great spot for the square footage.

Wow - beautiful home! Truly feels like an oasis. Love the blue, the lighting on the stairs, and the smart idea to look to boats for inspiration.

I appreciate the efficiency, but aesthetically it leaves me kind of cold...

Fantastic! Not only do I love to see a space with kids, but you did it in under 650 sf. I simply can't wait to see more.

AT staff, take notice. No need to raise the square footage limit.

i'm not a fan of the colour blue but yours is breathtaking - the first blue walls i've seen that i actually really, really like.
thanks for sharing.

No words... should have sent a poet.

This is incredible!
I love how being in a small space made you so thoughtful about your choices--it's definitely a way to exercise intelligence.
Bravo!

that kitchen is gorgeous! and looks so spacious!

Just great!

The kitchen, the stairs, love it!

OMG! KT and PAT!!! Folks, I have had the honor of seeing this place before and now after. The last time I saw this apartment was (sadly) 6 years ago. (has it been the long?) I am speechless. Wonderful work!! The STAIRS! Bless you.

SF Gail- Intelligent is definitely the word these guys are both geniuses.

Phase2Phase-And I knew there had to be a TV... they love their John Stewart too much.

Miss you guys... Hope ya win!

As someone who has lived on a boat and in other small spaces, I'm very impressed by your choices.

To the people who think it's cold: The smaller the space, the more spare it has to be to not wear on your nerves. Imagine how warm it would be with four people and a dog as "decorations."

wow!

I also really love this apartment. Excellent use of space. As a family of four we are now facing a dilemna about what to do next. Our kids are a little older than yours 5 and 2, and as you will no doubt discover they just keep on acquiring stuff not matter how much you give away! I hope you manage to keep working out your space as the children get older!- Liz

Are you kidding me? The plastic shows in your kitchen -is ghetto, like a house that belongs in the fabellas

Sorry guys, that was a stupid friend of mine who grabbed my laptop.

now this is great. really well thought out and complete use of space. interesting controlled use of material. great color sense. fun. love the stair level lights, the wall instead of another banister, and all of the nooks.

drool!!!!

Truly an inspiration to a young couple hoping to afford room for kids. Sadly we don't have your ceilings but this makes me realise we could do with even less space than I anticipated.

I was already a firm beliver that sleeping spaces should be compact and serene to encourage all other activities to take place elsewhere.

My theroretical kid's rooms will likely look like dorm rooms at best.

Wow! This is the winner IMHO. Super stylish, creative and inspiring.

love.
love.
love.

It's great to hear other parents and parents-to-be considering smaller space! It is indeed a constant battle to stem the tide of stuff that comes in with/for kids, but one that needs to be fought regardless of size. At some point the little ones will surely outgrow it, but we hope to have a few more years.

Dahlia, I couldn't agree with you more - bedrooms are for bed activities. Even when we had bigger bedrooms, we didn't hang out there at all, so we really don't miss much there.

And the high ceilings are indeed what keep it from feeling cramped, and a big part of what drew us to the space initially. It's a great value since no one charges by the cubic foot!

My absolute favorite is the office. Love the way the shelves with all the books are on the wall with the cabinets below. The acrylic orange panel on the back of the bookcase is a great way to add a pop of color. The nursery could be a bit more homey. Need some curtains for those windows in the living room (didn't see any photos of the living area.) And for some reason, I think the kitchen could use 1-2 more cabinets. It makes me think that a cabinet was forgotten. Love the green dotted panels up top to close of the shelves.

Karen

Patrick & Katie-

Is the entire loft wall eco-resin (specifically the solid white part)? We are adding a loft in our renovation and I still hadn't decided what materials to use to keep the kids from falling off of it, and I love what you did! Is the eco-resin strong enough to support a crazy kid who loves to climb walls? :)

Keri--
The wall is entirely resin, with 3-form's metal framework system and sliding tracks. I will say, they were a little hard to work with although its great in the end; it was the wrong size framework originally, parts had to be remade; and then Patrick had to help put it up because it's more intricate than you might imagine and the sliding track had to go up first, and other unforseen issues (for example-"measure twice, then make sure the length will fit in your building's elevator so you don't have to cut and weld" would make a good NY construction slogan).

However, I feel very secure with the end product, as the resin is pretty much unbreakable and the framework is heavy duty; the resin is screwed into it. We also have resin in the stair guard around the top of the stairs. Both have held up very well to a paranoid mom banging on it to test it and many playdates of rambunctious 4 year olds! Patrick can chime in more on how it was to put up.

... this is one of the *coolest* things (not just spaces or places. include all nouns in general) that i have ever seen! i have one question; right now, it's crib and bed in the children's room. will there be space later to grow into a bedroom for two kids (two beds, multiple sets of toys)?

umm... i know it's not my job to be comment police. but, this nasty comment about patrick and katie's kitchen "looking ghetto" made by fellow contestant, luca...

shouldn't there be some kind of yellow or red flag penalty for that?

Hi aptsr4kids, thanks for the compliment! As for the kids' space, we got the crib type where it converts to a toddler bed (frame drops, sides come off) so he could sleep there as he gets older, and not take up any more floorspace. When he outgrows that, we'll need to readdress the layout; though there is length there to extend to a twin bed. As for toys, we don't keep many up there - to encourage playing in the communal space.

sorry i missed my opportunity to vote.... the stair is completely worth a "super cool" all on its own!

Wow wow wow.

I'm amazed. So inventive. So inspiring. This is what it's all about.

Makes me feel like my 1000 square feet is a mansion. And to think there are people who suggested we move before we have kids!

Those sliding lighted nooks in the bedroom!

Can't wait to see more pics.

wait, I'm callin bulls*%$t on the folks who own (can do whatever they want to their space) AND have a baby (cute factor - hello!) ! competing against those who rent!

Brilliant use of space. If this isn't an insta-finalist, I don't know what is.

The East is sure representing....

This place is fantastic! Really inspiring. I'm in NY and am making plans for some renovations in our apartment. I would really love to get the name of your architect and contractor, if you can share them. I'd also love to see photos of the stairs w/the drawers/cabinets open, and of your bathroom, if it's been reno'ed too, and more of your kitchen. Do I spy stainless steel cabinets?

Great, great job!

Greer, thanks for the compliment! Since we're in the finals, more pics are on the way. And I am happy to pass along the contact info - drop me an email to patrick at ultravirgo dot com. Best of luck with your renovation!

Super Cool, esp. the office. I love the high ceilings!

Why you did not win I cannot figure out. use of space, great color, warm feeling...you have it all. Very well done.

Wonderful home! Sad I got here so late. For the commentor who stated children need more space, I can personally tell you that is not true. I grew up in approx. the same amount of space in a brownstone in Brooklyn until I was 7 years old. (There were 4 of us, but no dog). My sister and I always had plenty of space to run around in, plus we were always outside and down the street at the park anyway. When we moved, we "upgraded" to a house that was still smaller than 1000 sf! I lived there until I was 21 :)
Beautiful home!