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Name:

Khris and Valerie

Location:

Seattle, WA

Square Feet:

565

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

There is a lot of natural "Old Seattle" character in our building, with its rugged brick walls and 1920s details. The small size of the apartment suits us. Since we can see the TV from the living room AND the bedroom, we start each morning by taking our coffee and phones back to bed to watch the a.m. news, read emails, and hang out together before getting ready for work. We like to think of our apartment as a rustic cozy squirrel den, and it's romantic to share a small space.

New York City — if you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere. But what if you made it there, and now you have to move?? Will you ever find a neighborhood in your new city that suits you as well as your NYC one did? 

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Name:

Kristen

Location:

Seattle, WA

Square Feet:

530

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

It's definitely been refreshing for us to move into a smaller home, as our last apartment was nearly 1200 square feet. We're both pretty quiet people, and our dogs are total couch potatoes, making a large apartment pretty unnecessary. It's been very freeing to downsize, as we now have less to clean and we're really able to focus on making each area of the apartment something that we really love. The William Morris quote "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful" really rings true for us. Also, we love all of the natural light that we get being in a corner unit. In a city like Seattle, big windows in a home can make a huge difference!

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Name:

Danl

Location:

Seattle, WA

Square Feet:

460

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

Having recently become single, I'm living alone for the first time in my life. I moved into a studio because I didn't really need any more space than that. I was really afraid that I would have to shed many of my belongings, but I feel that I've been successful in hanging on to most of the things I love without feeling overwhelmed. And having those things so close to me...it feels like a hug.

Soon we'll spend our weekends enjoying cookouts and beach parties. Until then, let's take the time to get our homes in shape for summer entertaining. To help, here are the week's best design-centric sales and events. Check them all out in the Weekend Guide, pass it on and be sure to send us your own sale or event.

Name: Mark
Location: South Lake Union, Seattle, Washington
Size: 680 square feet (plus 150 square foot terrace)
Years lived in: 3 years; Rented

Whether he’s entertaining a group of friends for a home-cooked meal (one specialty is chilaquiles), working on architectural plans at the kitchen table, or relaxing after work with the patio doors open, Mark brings a sense of ease and playfulness to his condo — and there’s always good music playing. Despite having once been in love with crisp lines and modern profiles, he’s now “so over stark modern” and is enjoying having fun with the decor in his centrally located Seattle loft.

Name: Jean Lee & Dylan Davis of Ladies & Gentlemen Studio
Location: Ballard, Seattle, Washington
Size: About 900 square feet
Years lived in: 5 years; owned (co-owned)

Remember Chika and Jared from the Duplex Part 1? Jean and Dylan make up the other half! Owners of Ladies & Gentlemen Studio, Jean Lee and Dylan Davis live in the right side of the duplex (the studio connects to each home), where they work side by side on their line of textile accessories: R&L Goods.

Name: Chika Eustace & Jared Randall + 8 month old Lisle Randall
Location: Ballard, Seattle, Washington
Size: 850 square feet (living) + 500 square feet (basement studio) 
Years lived in: 5 years; owned (co-owned)

On the left side of a cozy little duplex in Ballard (the tour of the other half is coming up next week), Chika Eustace and her husband Jared Randall live with their son Lisle in a colorful and creative space. The duplex (sweetly referred to as "The Dupe") is co-owned by Chika and Jared, along with Chika's business partner Jean and her fiance, Dylan. Chika and Jean own R&L Goods, a textiles and accessories company, and the two couples have found a serene and productive way to combine work and life.

I've been a happy Seattle resident for going on seven years, and I actually moved here completely blindly—I had never been to the city in my life. I found which neighborhoods and hangouts I would enjoy through old friends who had lived here, and have actually stayed in the neighborhood I originally chose for the entire time! Seattle is a multi-faceted community, with an immense amount of neighborhoods, and although we couldn't cover them all here, I hope that this little guide can give a Seattle newbie and hopeful renter an idea of what to look for.