apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Wow, great space. Those tall ceilings are awesome. I love the lighting in the living area.

Love your color blocked curtains and chandelier duo. Shows off the ceiling height nicely.

I would love to see a photo of the shoe cabinet you described. Where is the IKEA storage closet...by the bed?

Love that sectional seating? Where did you buy it? I've been looking for something similar.

I like that this is industrial without being harsh. I love the industrial look but could never sustain an ultra severe industrial look. Nice!

Yay Seattle! Financial district? not sure if that comment is referring to another city cuz Seattle doesn't have a financial district. Anyways, I am madly going back and forth between a large loveseat w/ chairs and a sectional for my new living room set-up. I thought I had decided on the loveseat until I see this! It looks great. What to do, what to do?

I am interested in how the units in your building fit together. What is underneath your raised living room? Is it the unit below you? Is your ceiling level lower over your bed than in the living room to raise the living room floor up in the unit above? This is a stunning arrangement for a 1 bedroom.

the only thing holding you back is your kitchen. it just isn't tied together yet. otherwise, you've done a really great job. (though i would like to see photos of the cool space saving things you mentioned)

Hello! Fellow Seattlite! Your space is great. Nice job! I love the whole layout of the place. The lighting is great. Glad to see another person from Seattle on the list!

I'm in love with the physical layout (structure) of this apartment. I am super jealous. While the apartment does not look entirely done you've certainly got a great start.

You had me at "horizontally banded drapes."

I would have been inclined to "cheat" how they were hung (!!) though, in order to create teh impression that the window is actually centered. Minor, minor point though.

And 100 bonus points for your "everything on a dimmer" tip.

If I could, I'd put the light in my refrigerator on a dimmer.

This kind of "big volume space" is really hard to get right... a frequent candidate on TV design shows.

Lynne is off to a great start.

Keep thinking big with all your furnishings, even if only 560 sq ft.

I love how she uses those spiffy lamps above the sofa. It really adds to the space, instead of being an open expanse of nothing.

The curtains are fantastic - they add such warmth to the space. I have been disappointed by the lack of inspiring window treatments in the contest.
Am I the only person who needs curtains so the neighbors are not peeking in because they are so close?

Lovely space! Lynn, please share source for the open shelving in the kitchen, which my favorite feature!

Rita--
Maybe we LIKE the neighbors peeking in. ;)

You're definitely not the only one Rita! I finally gave in and figured to hell with it - let the neighbors see what they want to see. The only thing I hide with curtains is my bed.

Are the curtains in this entry Nautica? They do a lot of that bold striped stuff, and it looks huge when done right. Lynne sure did it right!!! Those curtains really pull the eyes upward. I love it!

I disagree with the comment about cheating with the curtains to make the window look centered. That would hide the brick wall. Those bricks are gorgeous!

I wish there were a rule in the contest that said to include a picture of the person along with the apartment. I know the contest is about the apartment, but our homes are such reflections of ourselves. Looking at this entry makes me curious to see what Lynne looks like. I bet she's pretty cool. I almost always find myself curious about the people who enter their apartments in the contest. SOOO many great entries - and this suuuuure is one of them.

Maggie's comment about the lamps is soooo right!

Patrick! Fridge light on a dimmer! HA!!!!!

Uh, where's the bathroom?

No one else wondered?

i take that back - can't read!!

Where in Seattle is that? Its definitely not in the "financial district," whatever that is. Looks like somewhere more neighborhood-y rather than downtown-y -- Fremont, Ballard, Queen Anne, Capitol Hill?

Patrick - I bet your neighbors are better looking than mine!
Rob - Actually I also need the curtains to prevent scarring my corneas - one of my neighbors likes to sport a wife beater with tighty whities. One look at that was almost enough to make me consider bricking up the kitchen window.

Although this place is beatiful and functional, it was not my pick because the architect did the real work: creating spaces that can be used for the different funtions.

A very nice place. Do you think painting the open shelving in the kitchen would make the look more cohesive? Maybe white, or the colour similar to that of the cabinets (off-white? greenish?)? Just a thought...

I don't think a picture of the apartment owner would be appropriate. It could skew results by voters who are unable to be make the separation between the owners' appearance and the apartment. Maybe we could see after? Like a match-the-baby-picture-with-the-adult game.

pbphoenix - good point! I stand corrected.

rita!!! OUCH!!!! And, uhm, I can't believe I have to ask this, but... what's a wife beater?

Rob--
A white tank top-style undershirt.
On SOME, a good thing.
On others, not so much.

I agree that the kitchen is the one sore spot in the apartment although I do like the open cabinets .

a wifebeater is a mens undershirt, a white tank

Good LORD, I love all these minimalist spaces! You all have me considering throwing away almost everything in my townhouse!



Patrick I continued to be impressed with your advice...I didn't even pick up on the window thing but after reading your comment I scrolled back up and you are genius! I wish you could help me decorate MY place!


(ps- my boyfriend looks TOTALLY HAWT in a wifebeater!)

Wife Beater = Guinea Tee

its sad that you dont have a better view out of your only window! that sectional couch would be a perfect setting to lounge and watch a sunset! maybe you're a new neighbor to my slo friends who just moved to Seattle this week?!

Thanks for the nice comments, everyone! Here are answers to a few of your questions:

1. The couch is from Macy's furniture gallery in Seattle.

2. My unit was on the first floor, so the building's parking garage is directly underneath it.

3. I custom-designed the curtains and a friend of mine sewed them. They are velvet and fully lined. I too thought of centering them, but wanted to leave as much brick exposed as possible and the brick section is not flush with the rest of that wall.

4. The Ikea shoe closet is behind the missing bathroom (missing due to limited number of photos allowed) and the custom closet is by the bed. Highly recommend Ikea's closet planner on their website...that's how I designed mine.

5. The kitchen does need work..the open cabinets came that way.

5. The building is in the Belltown neighborhood (by Pike Place Market) and was the site of an old laundry company (built in 1913). Much of the original details (exposed beams, brick) remained intact when it was converted to condos in 2000. All floors & cabinets were built using a number of different recyclable materials- the cabinet fronts in the bathroom and kitchen are actually corrugated.

Thanks again for the questions/comments!

Lynne

(p.s.- the financial district comment was AT's, not mine. You're right- one would be hard pressed to find one in Seattle!)

Hippiechick--
Send me a pic of your b.f. in said wifebeater and we'll talk.

;)

FWIW, "central business district" and "financial district" are synonyms for "downtown." ("City centre" has a very similiar usage.)

BTW, I like the chandeliers.

This is very nice; I like the little fence in the loft; light shines through it, yet it seems secure.

LOVE the chandelier! Love the apartment in general. Hate the view. Maybe close the drapes and have a large piece of art work on the wall above the TV instead?
I looked at an apartment with a similar view on cap. hill, and just couldn't stomach the lack of natural light. But then, I'm the type of person who never shuts the blinds in my ground floor apartment other than between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. And no, I don't really care what my neighbors see, and I'm not subjected to their wife beaters because they all keep their blinds closed 24 hours a day (possibly to avoid the sight of me wandering around in my undies, come to think of it).
Thanks for sharing with us, Lynne.

Brian: I think we all know what downtown means. These specific terms are used regionally and Seattlites don't use the term "financial district".

Awesome!!

Can you please tell me where you got that piece that your TV sits on? Im looking for something just like it. Thanks and good luck.

Hey, that's Belltown Lofts. I live there too!

Hi. I have been on the lookout for the moroccan floor lamp you have there beside the sofa. where did you get it? I'm from Calgary, Alberta Canada and I don't know many stores here that carry that kind of lamp. I saw one once at Linens-and-things a long time ago but with a different shade and it was discontinued. Any thoughts on where I could get it online? Thanks!