apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

wooowww. I thought I was looking in a display @ MoMa..

The second photo definetly took me by surprise. Very artistic but isn't it difficult keep it clean??

What's with the Hoover?

Very stylish and airy looking place. But it is so meek in color.

Really outstanding. Dramatic and interesting - this is my favoite thus far!

Meek in color? I don't think so.
It is an incredibly bold use of white.

Yowza, sexy.

Some things I'd do differently in the bedroom (so to speak) but the living room is drop-dead.

(and the Ikea cabinet/Judd homage is BRILLIANCE.)

(as is "vacuum as art". Hilarious. But successful. Maybe even more successful if the vacuum were a color? Or, of course, white.)

^^^^White is a color too.

I love the lighting---how did you make the place glow? I see a few lights on the floor, but are there any other secrets you'd care to share about how to create this effect?

Witty, brilliant and luminous. I love how you undercut potential cleaning ocd with a massive hit of art humor.

Wow! Fabulous - the second photo is particularly amazing.
Thanks for sharing.

patrick (the other one):

for me, I find this use of white meek. since its so limited. white, cream, off white, light blond wood. just wish here were like throws and pillows on the sofa that pulled color from the candy art or something.

Total hotness. You should enter this in the small cool tech contest as well with your projector solution. Buy a cooler looking vacuum, or maybe go nuts on it with paint or something. I think the Hoover would look cool covered in old-school punk band stickers.

Very nice. I really love the use of light in this space. Huge props for the projector and screen in the bedroom.

jamie--
To me, that's what makes it totally "unmeek": that color other than white was so strictly limited/contained. I think that pretty ballsy.I think picking colors out of the art for pillows or the like might look "art matched to the room" which I think would diminish the effect.

Not arguing, just trying to 'splain myself.

Plus, is it just me, or is "Gregg" with two Gs totally hot?!

Backlighting the furniture is cool, but it's too much for me on every piece. Otherwise, lovely. And great to see not every small apt is a studio!

I think the Hoover is a nod to Jeff Koons.

I'm a little confused. Is your dining table in your bedroom? Although why not, I guess that's kinda romantic. Your place is beautiful. even with all the use of saturated color over the past couple of years, I still love bold uses of white. Your lamps and art are fabulous. The Hoover as art doesn't work for me, it's just not slick enough, but all in all a beautiful place.

So not my style, but really, really sexy.
Well done!

Jamie: Meek? Stark perhaps, but not meek. I love this place because it isn't meek at all. The lighting clearly defines most of the boundries of the white-furniture-on-white-walls. Check out the white rectangles on the wall at the far side of the living room to the left of the door. Due to the lighting, they're well defined and totally pop.

The living area is beautiful and the bed in the dining area looks good too. However, something about the dining table and chairs looks a bit out of place -- I think it may be the dark chairs popping when you're going for a very much all-white look.

the vacuum cracks me up! hilarious! i agree that it would be uberly awesome if it was a white vacuum.

For myself, white all over, isn't something I like. D:

The layout and use of light to define space and shapes: really awesome. Everything is totally cool, I am just not for the white. u_u"

Wow. Sexy is right.

I think this is the third entry of mostly white (in this case all white) that might be turning around my taste.

So luscious...and there are layers of different whites and I don't find it meek at all. If anything, it would encourage me to...uh.....prance around sans clothing....I really like this.

I'm wondering if the wide angle photos don't give a true feel for the place but, what the hell, who cares, its sexy and dreamy.

Very cool.

Are the 1st and 3rd Pic looking at the same space, with and without the futon? Just I can see the pendant light and am wondering if you have some clever way of attaching / detaching it when converted to a dining area? (something I was thinking about doing myself)

The floor lighting and the wiggle chair are very funky.

Simply Stellar.

Also agree with the entry into the Small Cool Tech contest.

I love this...very romantic! The furniture is gorgeous!!

I'm confused about the vacuum as well...but hey, that's your style!!

This place is sick!

The first photo is a little deceiving, I think there is probably a fair amount of space in the front of the room near the entryway?

Really cool place to look at. Three photos definately do not showcase the talent that is displayed in this space.

I usually prefer more colorful apartments, but I don't miss it as much as I would expect in this space. I very much like your use of texture in lieu of bold color. Certain areas still seem too much on the stark side, though. Given your severely limited palette, I think you could push the textures much, much further and really make your place have more pop.

Andy Johnson: Good call.

Now I'm curious. If that's the bedroom in the third photo, then where does Gregg put the futon when in dining mode in the first photo?

I would love to know the answer to this. I mean, its a great idea, but I'd like to know this is achieved?

When this contest is over, will you *please* post some more pictures somewhere, Flickr maybe??!!

Me too, confused by this. Where does one store the bed or dining table when not in use? And how easy is it to switch between the two room functions?

It is an amazing use of white and really full of ideas for those who are stuck with white walls!

suddenly, that chair looks like ribbon candy . . .

(love it)

I did say WOW when I saw the pictures.
It certainly is nice enough for a magazine spread.
Would I want to live there? Probably not. The problem isn't the apartment though. The problem is that I don't have (as someone said the other day) enough shizzle.
Gregg obviously reeks of shizzle. Good for Gregg.

I'm sure you'll be a finalist. How could you not be?

What is wrong with the lighting (esp. in the first photo)? :(

While I appreciate modern design, I think the hodge-podge of seating is... overkill? I think one-of-everything may be better in a larger space, but in a smaller space like this, I'd like to see the barcelona chairs together? Maybe?

I'm having a hard time getting a sense of the layout of furniture, too. The dining room is in the bedroom?

I'm wondering if this space is owned or rented? I'd love, love to tear down that wall and open up the space! Hehe!

Awesome collection, though!!

I think this is the first one I've voted "Stellar."

Because the second photo made me gasp.

And the vacuum made me giggle.

Haha! Fab, chic and silly. I love it. Meek? I don't think so at all. The monochromatic palette looks high fashion to me. Keep up the good work! I love that it looks liveable and modest despite the sexy high end pieces. Great balance of high brow furniture art and starving artist creativity. Brilliantly cheeky!

My only constructive criticism... I find the placement of the art in the dining/bedroom to be awkward.

Things I couldn't quite figure out... Where does the futon go when the dining table is out? I guess there is still space in the room for it? And the pendant light? Does that only come out when you are using the table?

love the living room,

like the bedroom,

don't care at all for the forced dining area...perhaps the dining area was staged for the photo, but is really something else in reality?

such a lovely dramatic breath-taking space with such an "eh" dining area...i would love to see a dining area that rivals or is up to par with the living room....imho, it looks like a card table with a bedsheet thrown over it.

otherwise, as i expressed earlier, breath-taking sitting area with a tasteful display and collection of iconic pieces. niiiiice.

The Hoover killed it for me. Otherwise, it's beautiful.

I love the white. Sometimes spaces with this much white feel a bit sterile, but not this puppy.

This is really kinda of interesting, because with all of the white and creamy colors, the art (as simple as it is) really stands out. But is a hoover vacuum really art?

hmm...Do I walk into a store or a home???
I think every single piece of furniture is so identifiable in terms of where it is from. Where is the owner's own taste?

I love the white and your curtains appear to be a linen/cream color which softens the room. Maybe it's just different shades of white? Either way, I definately like your space especially the Hoover! Takes the edge outta being in such a clean looking space :) !!

The other all-white apartment felt suffocating, but this one does not. And I'm not as anxious about spilling Sangiovese in this apartment (although I still would not want to).

Not sure why this one appeals to me, but I do like it.

I think the futon bed doubles as a table.

Heh.

(It's probably just a couch pushed against some other wall elsewhere in the dining table photo.)

i love the design! but it looks like it was expensive.

It's really an interesting layout. But I'd be worried about spilling something on the pristine whiteness.

Now there's someone who really knows how to use lighting.

Reminds me of that SNL skit with Dwight from The Office visits this designer apartment and has to sit on the designer chair made of toast. Hehe, Nuni....No it's Nuni...Nuni...No Nuni....

Horrible.

I've always liked the all white concept. In fact I recall asking advice here on AT (about 3 years ago) on how to go about executing my all white bedroom and got a few negative comments. Seems the idea has grown on some. Can I consider myself ahead of a trend.

Gregg's is well executed. The place looks smart and chic. Bravo. Hope to vote later because i am having an error message when i try.

Yeah, Chucky, what ever happened to that plan?!??! ;)

If I owned this place, the first thing I'd do is take down the wall between the living room and the bedroom. 11x17 for a bedroom is, in my view, excessive when working with a small space, esp. given the living room is only 12' wide. But I don't know if Gregg owns or rents this one. Nice job with the place though.

maybe i'm being overly harsh - but the warm and fuzzy glow that everything has could easily be achieved from the dodge tool in photoshop

:/

the dinning area is gorgeous, regardless, and i would love to spend a night around that table with friends! however, i could do without the living room. its very stiff.

do you really have 3 of those chairs in each of your rooms! sheesh! aren't they like 10,000,000,000 a piece?? hehe.

P2, I "kind of" did the bedroom and then... life "kind of" caught up with me....

The more I look, the more I like.

Chucky--

You should have hired a designer to make sure you implemented it! ;)

Freakin' nice!

Wow--high style! As I need low lighting and lots of color to mask cat hair and brooklyn grime, I couldn't live here, but it looks cool. I do want to know what kind of projector you use and if you are pleased with it.

Love it!

Hmmm, I'm not sure. While I love each of the elements (the chairs especially), it feels like it all needs some space to breathe. A little bit too fussy and high-maintenance for my taste...

I'm surprised not many other people picked up on the use of dodge and burn in Photoshop.

While I appreciate the fantastic design and furniture, Gregg, seriously, that first photograph is retouched to the extreme.

I'm sorry; this is my first negative comment on AT; I'm just disappointed that the powers of photography are used so roughly.

Love the furniture, the fantastic use of textures to emphasize the white, and the overall design. But - Photoshop OVERLOAD. Yikes.

I agree, high maintenance but very nice. Looks like something out of a design magazine. I think it's cool.
You think it's really touched up on photo-shop? That would be a shame. I can't tell, I guess I'm not very photo-shop saavy.

This apartment looks cool.
'not sure why photoshopping was necessary. If anything, it made the clean white look seems ashy and looks rendered.
Is this even a real apartment?

P2,
a) There were sub-plots to the main project and they took center stage.
b) I had an adviser of sort, remember.
c) Hiring the designer full time would not ward off the other circumstances.

Olya,
I'm not sure if I wouldn't call it "photoshop overload" but I agree that the treatment of the pics as well as the shots/angles submitted make a big difference in this contest. I feel there is so much more to some entries than the pics presented.

Great appartment - the best so far in the contest! i love the furniture and color choices! Many of the stuff you have are my all time favorites - the Barcelon chair, the lighting fixture above the dining table. Great job!

Despite all the white, something about this space leaves me gasping for air. I'm not sure what it is exactly ... maybe an all white scheme needs natural light, which is lacking here?

The place looks lovely. You clearly have a keen eye.

I appreciate your taste in designers; I sacrifice a touch of comfort for style sometimes too, but is your living room difficult to actually live in?

I am just not sure about the selection of furniture. In the second picture it appears that you have selected four of the least comfortable chairs in modern design history (Barcelona chairs are particularly beautiful and utterly useless to sit in).

When you use Ikea design icons exclusively it makes it easy to analyze your choice in furnishings and easy to tell that I would probably just stand and admire your furniture as apposed to sitting down.

All this to say that when I read through ATs mission statement and beliefs it seems that making ones house beautiful is only part of the goal.

Beautiful!

woodandplastic--

I think it unfair to criticize someone for a choice of furniture *you* find to be uncomfortable and "useless." Apparently, he doesn't.

I've always interpeted the AT mission to have lots of room for personal difference in defining what comfort *is*...

kristine--
Maybe the lack of natural lighting can be attributed to the fact that these shots seem to be taken at night...

chucky--
Just teasing you, of course. Hope everything, life-wise, has worked out.

And Olya and others, regarding Photoshop--

I attributed the weird light pattern in photo one to a longish exposure and the pattern of light put out by the hanging fixture. The same effect does not seem to be present in the other two shots.

Seems ridiculous to assume someone would be so heavy-handed with retouch trickery.

I like the white, very nice and warm. I really like your Ikea cabinets à la Donald Judd. Is the bottom one a desk as well? Which Model are they? Thank you.

Like some other posters, I felt the lack of natural light made it feel like I couldn't breathe in the space, but I figured the nighttime shoot decision was made to showcase the lighting scheme, which, if that's what you are really proud of, makes sense. Still, I would really like to see photos taken in natural light.

As for the white/color discussion, I see tons of color! The rich brown floors, all the art--whether it's for real or because of photoshop it's one of the warmest all-white modern spaces I've ever seen.

I'll second what someone else said.....it's sexy

I like the computers behind the curtains as well.

Nice job!

Is it just me, or did anyone else think that the most appropriate thing to do in a space like this is something that is also white?

Debaucherous.

this is great. i love white spaces.

ps- what's up w/ the vac??? made me laugh.

Gorgeous! Brilliant lighting.

Like another person who posted before, I'd love Gregg's commentary on how he decided to light things and the process. (I suck at lighting and any discussion adds to my well being.)

I love this place. I'd do something like that (all-white I mean), if I thought it would stay clean in NYC.

Best of luck in the contest, Gregg!

...and, please? Pretty please? Write us about lighting?

Nice! I'm not sure if I'm more impressed with the way it's been shot or the actual style elements. I think both.

Great job--I love all white interiors.

arza--
Powder or liquid?

This is what I get for actually working this morning - I miss all this activity....interesting comments ya'll...

I don't care if he used photoshop. I would care if someone put in something that was't there.....

It's a really sexy white apartment - tons of texture, the furniture is beautiful with or without photoshop. Look at those chairs! I'd photoshop my entire body if I could, doesn't mean I'm ugly.

I'd still like to know how he does the futon table switch but just out of curiosity.

Once again, P(too) brings me delight in such things as his response to Kristine about the light....&

Chucky? You're only ahead of the trend if you actually did your room in all white 3 years ago and actually pulled it off this well.

I call shenanigans on the futon/table swap.

Yeah, it is a curious thing...I think it would be nice to receive an answer on this one. There might be a perfectly logical explanation.

When I was a really young girl..........I knew someone who had a bathtub in their kitchen and they put a board on top so it could be used as a table. Hey, you never know....

but I'm loving the rest of it.

Wow, this place is really wild and sexy! This is the kind of place you meet your stewardess girlfriend at and do some coke off the plexiglass coffee tables before heading out to Studio 54 (I mean all this as a compliment). Also reminds of a set from 2001: A Space Odyssey-- probably the hottest looking film ever. The variety of chair designs really activate the space. Anything with an Eames chaise in it is a winner with me. I'm impressed by interiors that deviate from the bland "warm but inoffensive" look that seems to be everywhere.

I would love to see an explanation of where the desk/computers are and how you have it set up... I've thought about doing the same thing.

My only complaint would be that those chests of drawers from Gothic Cabinet look a little terrestrial next to the white-hot supernova of hipness surrounding them.

Congrats on creating such a groovy pad! Hope to see more of this place. (Contact me if you ever have extra stewardesses on your hands -- ha)

OK. Seriously. This place is completely off-the-hook sensational fabulosity incarnate. Yes, I've seen all-white rooms, but they were not so completely delicious as this. All-white does not guarantee that something will work. THIS works itself to a froth, and then some.

I'm on board with all those who call this sexy. For instance, can you imagine how beautiful a human body, undressed for bed, would look in that space? Heaven.

Entirely depends on the bod. ;)

very cheeky place! LOVE! one fo the first words that came to my mind was expensive, and not just because of the iconic chairs! The Koons vacum is hilarious!

Like the others, though, i'm a bit confused by the dining area and bedroom shots and the floorplan, but whatever the reason, i still think its a great job!

Sexy And Lickalicious, This Apartment would normally sell as a coop for a minimum of $700-750K in West Village, but one 'open house', in this pad, would fetch an additional $150K ($850K minimum) just for the presentation WOWIE value. Great Compositions, 100% Aphrodisiac. Eat!

Really like the candy art, and the Judd/Ikea clash. I'm not a fan of the Eames lounger and Barc chairs, but hey it's your apt! ;)

I'm sorry, I voted for it's not my style, but I can see how it could very well be someone elses. Anyway kudos to you for keeping it spotless!

(Maybe I'm just jealous that I can't keep anything as clean and tidy - having a 65 lb Belgian Malinois jumping around my teeny place makes things trickier. She actually helps me rearrange my chaise.)

patrick (too) --

I agree that diverse ideas are good, but if we cannot at least offer criticism what is the point of commenting? I enjoyed the photos and the style of this space, just had some comments on the (in my opinion) uncomfortable tone the furniture sets.

There is no right answer to design, but part of the fun in sharing your ideas are to recieve criticism - not just gushing - no?

I love the look of this space but I wish the description went beyond the list of objects, it was so great when the vaccuum koons was mentioned and that the picture was there to back it up I wanted to hear more.

Lighting is great, but the cords are driving me insane.

It seems like there was some heavy lifting to take these photos, where did that futon go in the dining area?

Also is entertaining difficult? It seems like more than 2 guests would be awkward.

Sorry, woodandplastic... I interpreted your original statement more harshly than intended then.

But, um, "useless" is a fairly strong word about someone else's stuff, no, whether you were talking to the designer or the owner of the piece?

I guess just a matter of semantics and diplomacy. And in fairness, you DID start from the positive.

Thanks to everyone for all the comments. Reading them has been a lot of fun. BrooklynRob, you're hilarious!

I'm happy to answer the questions people asked on the site today:

My bedroom is a bedroom 99% of the time. 10 times a year or so, I have people over. If it's a lot of people (20) I fold up the futon and set up another coffee table (danish modern, legs come off for storage) and make the bedroom into a 2nd living room. In December, I have a Christmas tree in there and usually have a couple parties. If it's 6 or so, I bring in my kitchen table and unfold it all the way for a sit-down dinner. The futon goes in the kitchen where the table usually lives. and is folded up like a couch. Swapping the furniture takes around 10 minutes. I've done it a ton of times so it's pretty easy for me. I think a key to being able to live well in a small place is having flexible pieces like the futon and the drop-leaf table and flexible spaces that can serve multiple purposes.

My lighting is done with lots of different fixtures everywhere. I have uplights scattered throughout and a track in the ceiling that lets me direct light wherever I need it. Some of the fixtures in the track have extra attachents so I can pull the light in extra tight on art, so that all the light hits the art and none hits the wall behind it. Everything is on dimmers. I use rope lights under the bed and in the kitchen.

At first, I struggled a lot with the photographs. My camera couldn't take in enough of the rooms to represent them accurately in only 3 shots. After a few, missteps, I ended up borrowing a digital camera with a wide-angle lens from a friend. Then I took shots from a tripod rotating the camera 30 degrees for each shot. I used software called Panorama Studio to "stitch" the multiple shots into one panorama shot. I bought spotlights at the hardware store to throw light in places that needed it and installed extra lamps into my track lighting system to flood it with light. All the lights were turned up to the max for the pictures. The apartment actually got really hot. It took quite a few "takes" to get it right. The stitching software seemed to darken the floors, so I did use the dodge and burn tools in Photoshop to try to bring the balance back. I think the photographs accurately reflect the feeling of the lighting in the room and the furnishings. The wide-angle panorama shots make the rooms seem bigger and more open than they actually are.

My Donald Judd-influenced Ikea cabinets are called: AKURUM
I got them a year ago for around $45/a piece.

Natural light's not so great in my apartment these days. I'm on the first floor facing north and they're re-pointing the bricks on the building so there's scaffolding blocking what little natural light I'd normally get. I get decent light in the bathroom and kitchen in the early afternoon.

The apartment's not so hard to keep clean. I used to have a white wool rug that was a nightmare. Now, I have an interlocking rubber tile mat. I can take it apart and wash it in tile by tile in the bathtub. I do it 4 times/year. It's great and it was under $200.

I agree, the dining chairs aren't quite right. They're old chairs from the Members' Dining Room at the Museum of Modern Art. When I worked there they switched designs and sold the old chairs to staff at low prices. This was well before the latest renovation. It's kind of a sentimental attachment and they work pretty well in their usual home in the kitchen.

It's a rental apartment in the West Village. I've been here 14 years. I wish I could tear the wall down too, but I can't. I can't have a dog either. :(

My Barcelona & Eames chairs are knock-offs.
I have 2 "barcelona" chairs. One in the living room and one in the bedroom.

I LOVE my projector. With the rebate it was under $500 and I have an HDTV 66" picture.
I got it at J&R. It's the Infocus Play Big IN72 DLP Projector.

I actually find the chairs quite comfortable. I don't end up in them for hours at a time, but I think they're much more comfortable than they look and guests always get a big kick out of them.

The desk is hidden behind the curtain in the back corner of the living room. The curtain is on a track in the ceiling so it's a clean line from floor to ceiling. Light behind the curtain makes the whole thing glow.

Thanks everybody!

i absolutely love the vacuum cleaner!

Stunning. 10 out of 10 for this beauty.

LOVE IT!

I enjoyed your art joke inspired decorating.

Hi Gregg, I love the white, the candy art, and the IDEA of the vaccuum. Since I am in my first apartment (on my own) I am hesitant to comment.
I think if I were a guest I wouldn't feel welcome to sit in the lovely sitting area. (The furniture doesn't look comfy) subjective I know, because although I think your futon looks a little saggy It is very inviting because it reminds me of my grandma's bed--somehow the chair looks plenty comfortable in there.
I always wanted to have my vaccuum out and ready to use and that is why I like your IDEA. I dont think the design works though.how about an open back frosted acrylic box cozy to set over the platform? Then the sillouette of the vac would still show. Or, I am not sure what those white boxes are on the entry wall but how about one --wall hung or free standing-- to house it unseen. Then you could put a plant on top.
My very favorite things are your art work and that "ribbon candy" chair. With your style and versatile use of the space, I think you have made beautiful and good use of the place.

Nice collection of design pieces, but it seems a bit cluttered and awkward. With such little space, I think there should be more concentration on use of the area you have and less on having a bunch of really cool furniture (which you definitely have).

hmmm...for some reason it has a photoshop effect to it..

otherwise, very neat space.

Jeff Koons is sacred.

The vacuum is hilarious. I was about to say it looked like a DWR vignette with no personality but I totally retract that.

Fan-frickin'-tastic!!!!