Name: Sarah S.
Location: Chelsea
Size: 320 sq. feet
Type: Studio
The Pitch:
I purchased this studio several months ago and it was in uninhabitable shape. I bought it knowing it would be an arduous task to renovate my first apartment, but I was up for the challenge. Because the apartment is so small, I kept the design minimal yet functional.
AAAHHH!!!! That first photo of the gutted apartment actually scared me. Is that what it looked like when you bought it? And that linen closet right by the bed is genius.
I absolutely love the details like the medicine cabinet, the stairs to your bed, the built in shelves under your loft. The brick wall is so beautiful.
But have you just moved in? It doesn't feel very "lived" in so I wasn't sure. Like maybe you are still deciding about hanging some art and maybe experimenting with some colors.
I like the brick backsplash. And the 'before' pic was truly scary. I can't imagine what it must be like to build a place out from that mess... great work!
As I've stated in other posts I really am not a fan of loft beds, but you have nevertheless created a cool space here with nice details and a lot of potential. Especially after looking at the before picture. It still is lacking in personality at this point so its not "super-cool". Did you do all the planning/design yourself?
Brave brave Sarah...
The cabinets look great and having them conform around the details in the wall I'm sure give the place a cleaner look.
My only critic if any is the counter tops in the kitchen. They look incredible and the veins in the stone make them such a bold choice that I feel it's almost forced in to the place. I don;t think it jives as well as it could. Perhaps if the appliances had strong black accents?
I do really like the place though. the storage at the head of the bed is a great idea. Books, eye glasses etc
The pocket doors! I totally forgot.
It's a great choice.
The pocket doors! I totally forgot.
It's a great choice.
12 weeks for everything..you must have really done a great job at hounding your contractor.
Hi Sarah, Nicely done. It looks great for just over 300 sqft. You said it cost $45k. Is that for the purchase price and total renovation or just the renovation?
Oh Pete, you've obviously never lived in New York.
Pete, the deafening sound you hear is every one of us New Yorkers laughing at the idea of $45,000 for the purchase price. Oh my, thanks. I needed a good laugh today.
Really like the loft bed/office and storage spaces. How high are your ceilings, and what's the height of the office? And...is it kosher to ask for the name of your contractor? Hoping to embark on my own renovation soon and like the general look of your place.
Can you tell me where you purchased that beautiful bookshelf in the "hall"?
For some reason I can't vote here.
I'd give you highest marks. Good space saving points on the pocket door. Quality of life points for the Austin Air Hepa unit (pic by the window, same as mine and rated for a space 5 times yours.
What wood is on the floors. What kind of sound proofing material did your building require go underneath? Also what wood for the desk and ladder rails.
What's by the windows in front of the desk, I don't see a pic for that view.
Great job! And in such a short time. I'm impressed. Having gone
through a renovation myself recently on a larger space, the details and craft you packed in are really something to be proud of. I hope you'll enjoy furnishing it and playing around with color
and textures in the months to come.
Beautiful, but it could use some great paint on the walls to warm things up. And more stuff, of course.
Sarah,
I've always wondered if having a loft bed up near the ceiling is hot or stuffy because supposedly the warm air rises. What is your experience? I like your arrangement a lot with the office underneath your bed.
Rob
Where does one find a pocket door these days? I really wanted one for my bathroom and didn't know where to go. Ended up going for a standard Home Depot door. The attached transom isn't that great but they didn't offer a choice of styles. I have pocket door envy!
~Trish
They have them at home depot.
Unless your renovating, pocket doors are hard to implement since they require widening the wall in some cases.
Hi,
Is anyone else unable to vote? this is Sarah and I am answering the questions about my apt. thanks for looking! I did just move in about a month ago after months of couch-surfing during the reno and most of my stuff is still in storage, so it is very "unlived" in right now. Believe it or not, the bookshelf is Ikea's Expedit shelf. The ladder and desk are oak, and the floors are Brazilian cherry select from Lumber Liquidators, where the quality and prices are great. The pocket door is from Home Depot on 23rd st, and yes, if you are doing a pocket door from scratch, it requires contractor work. The loft so far is not too hot but of course summer hasn't hit. it's actually quite nice sleeping there. The ceilings are almost 10 feet, so i can fully sit up in the loft and walk into the desk w/out ducking. I do want to put paint and art up in time...and yes, the renovation was a nightmare! I almost had a nervous breakdown a couple times, but I had great contractors who helped me through it, and in the end it was all worth it. thanks for looking,
sarah
Ah, okay I got mine from a Home Depot up in Putnam County a couple of years ago - they weren't offering pockets doors at that one. Thanks for the info, though. My wee place is still a work in progress and there's lots more left to do. Congrats on your hard work Sarah!
I love it. The use of space is very clever and details like the bathroom liles and fixtures are beautiful. This is making me wish to ditch all my stuff and start anew. I wish AT existed fifteen years ago when I was 22.
Sarah, may I ask where you bought your bookcase, or is it custom? I've seen something similar in several places, but yours looks particularly good. Thanks!
Congratulations Sarah on your purchase and renovation. You made some great design decisions that really make the most of a typical nyc dumbell apt. I have a particular prediliction for the cut into dry wall with thick borders shelf look (I sent some pics of some that I had done to AT when I sent my bathroom pics but they must have got lost in the shuffle) so there's a lot I like about your solutions.
Couple of comments on the comments
For the ppl gasping at the before pics, I'm guessing that the down to the studs look is after the demo stage by the contractors. I.e. Sarah did not buy the place in this state. This is the picture taken after stuff was ripped out at the first stage of the renovation.
About pocket doors. I love them and installed one of my own in the same bathroom that I posted pics of. As long as you have 2X4 wooden studs (and obviously nothing in the walls to block the door) then widening the wall should not be required. The pocket door kit should come with extra thin studs for the opening of the pocket. Where you have metal studs you will have to add depth to the wall containing the pocket because those studs are only about 2 5/8" wide leaving no space in the resultant cavity for the door and the extra slim studs.
The sliding door kit will allow you to screw the wheeled trucks to the top of any solid core door so you can choose (as your budget permits) any design of door.
If you are handly with drywall hanging and stud framing (not that hard really) then you can install a pocket door. However I found it best to watch an installation on TV (Gimme Shelter re-run) than follow printed or online intructions on their own. I really needed to see someone do it to see how straightforward it was.
This place is utterly charming. I love the office area under the loft. I have seen this sort of arrangement many times, but this is the first that looks like a really nice use of space.
For those of you who voted So-so, how about having the balls to explain why.
the bookcase is actually the Expedit bookcase from Ikea! It is great, only a hundred something dollars and holds tons of stuff. one of the best buys from ikea and looks nice. And yes, the first photo is the gut renovation. The contractors ripped it down to the studs b/c it was pretty much unliveable and I wanted to redo the layout. So yes, it is ultra scary looking, but also amazing that construction can turn into something so pretty!
A great choice and remodeling of the space... it has great potential, but doesn't get top votes from me just yet because at this point it is more of a blank slate. Can't wait to see what it looks like in a year or so, though!
Great space, beautiful remodel, but it is a naked body. I look forward to seeing you re-enter next year with your flat fully dressed dressed. I really love your material choices. The bathroom and kitchen look great! Nice bench, nice flooring...
Watch out about too much stuff in your place. It could end up "like a double-wide in Arkansas"
Really nice renovation and 12 weeks is so reasonable. If you share the name of your contractors, I promise not to ask where you bought that bookcase;)
Fabulous job of renovation. And although you won't always feel like climbing up that ladder to it, in this university-saturated apartment-starved city, you'll be able to sell so fast it will make your head spin once you're ready to go up to something bigger. Because you've put a lot of care and thought to the decisions.
But, you're probably either going to want to stay there almost forever because of how much you've bonded with it, or become addicted to the process of improvement and find the next challenge. If you do the latter, then the city will just become more full of the pretty apartments that you leave in your wake.
I, too, would love to see what you do with the place once you've been in it long enough to really make it home.
I gave it a super cool rating for the ingenious use of space. The decor would be the icing on the cake.
I hope you send pictures when you've settled in more and added your personal signature of color and shape to accompany your brilliant execution of storage and maximizing space.
I love the bench and the bookshelf!!
Wher'd you get the bench?
You place is quite lovely and I also can't wait to see it when it is complete done.