apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I love the metal tiles but the place feels very austere to me. A little color, a few bigger pieces of art perhaps, to warm it up? Very tidy, though! Much better than any apartment of any guy I ever dated.

love that this man has opted for the clear glass food storage jars. well done! and, of course, love your kitty (looks like a slenderer version of mine).

Nice backsplash.

digging the backsplash...nice kitchen. agree with DWF that large artwork and color would add a lot of personality to the place.

I love the tiles. They look easy to clean, too. Maybe just one too many photos of the kitchen area, considering this is a 2-bedroom apartment? I would have liked to see more...

There are things I love such as the use of space in the IKEA kitchen, the wooden shelves in the niches, the slate floor in the kitchen, the lit niche below the bar opening, the narrow fridge, the stacked shelves in the corner above the heater as a library...

...but there are also things that I don't get: Why doesn't the metal backsplash tile go all the way to the upper cabinets? Why is he using the big bedroom with the ensuite bath for a living room/den instead of the smaller bedroom?

I also agree that it looks austere - it needs more artwork & personality.

Nice backsplash tiles. I wonder though why we got so many views of the kitchen and none of the 2 bedrooms...

need more photos to accurately judge, but yeah overall the place seems to lack personality.

i'm not sure about the butcher/pot rack in the dining room. i think it looks weird. the kitchen is definitely the nicest element.

Yeah, it's very straight-guy.

Love the kitchen...I also love when I spot a little black cat.

I really like certain elements: the dining room table & chairs, in particular. Also the silver backsplash and the kitchen countertop.

But the pot rack looks out of place and some of the decorations need just a little nudge more of...something. The lit niche under the bar is interesting, but why just two undersized jars in that space?

Nice kitchen. I agree the pot rack has to go-- wouldn't you want the pots & pans near the stove, if you are going to use them? I'm not sure, I don't cook.

The recessed area under the counter could be a good place to store a rotating stock of wine!

love the kitchen!

You have a very nice space. But, it's just not pushed far enough for me to vote cool. Love the rows of book shelves in the living area and the kitchen organization. With 750sqft for New York, you gotta go for broke.

Love the backsplash, otherwise it feels rather uninspired...
750 sq ft in the West Village is like 4,000 sq ft in Kansas (on 10 acres no less)... Stylistically, this feels more like what I would expect in Kansas.
Sorry...

Any submission with a pot rack, particularly one sitting OUTSIDE of the kitchen should be instantly disqualified. The kitchen is decent and it looks like the entrant spent all his money there. The living room is completely underwhelming except for the bookshelves and the coffee table is shameful. Thus far, with one exception, this has been a very inauspicious start for the Smallest Coolest Contest

it hurts having to agree with edina here... a lot of kitchen pictures with nothing much else that could be inspiring. the two bottles in the niche could use some viagra, the whole apartment a little more adventure and whimsey. i am sure this could all work out a lot ore interesting when a little more courage was put into it. and artwork.

The real problem are the pictures. One gets no sense of what the apartment is all about. You can't tell if it has any style at all.

I'm finding that it makes me uncomfortable. Does anyone live here?

I really like it. The slate floor in the kitchen, the backlighting on the shelves. It is a nice change from what I usually see here.

agree about the pot-rack seeming very out-of-place.

the kitchen is nice...it's a great bachelor's apartment, but since i'm not a bachelor, it doesn't really appeal to me.

it's pretty boring for some reason. I like my spaces to have a little more personality, and I can tell that he's trying, but it isn't as successful as it could be.
also, that's a pretty big apartment! I wish my old apartment was that big with two bathrooms!

Not feeling it. Two bed/two bath for one person(?), with no real space challenges to overcome, and nothing really interesting going on.

I like the black cat. I hope his name is Midnight.

Underwhelming. The backsplash is the only cool touch i could see.

i'm also not inspired.

hmm... i'm wondering if there's more to the story here? maybe he has a roommate? is that why the common areas are so... neutral?

Hi - I like the lighting in the kitchen - it shows well in that first picture - you've inspired me to consider putting in under-counter lights too, though it probably won't look as cool because my backsplash isn't as fun and shiny!

Have to agree with Edina Monsoon and ARC, although I would have phrased things differently. The pot rack really stands out like a sore thumb; I'm sure you can find a better way to store your cookware. The overall look of the place is awfully bland; injecting some color and personality could be done easily and cheaply.

Too bad that you had to be featured the same day as Luca's place; pretty much everything is going to pale in comparison to that apartment.

hard to judge with no pictures of either bathrooms or either bedrooms. It's a bit too simple and unfinished for my liking but it looks like you are off to a really good start at decorating it.

There aren't enough pictures. I do like the backsplash, but other than that it's lacking. Post more pics.

I do like the glass jars. And the kitty.

I like your kitchen, Joel, and shelves of books are always a welcome sign, BUT... this place is so big! This is the second time I find myself making this comment in this year's contest. There is such an abundance of space in this apartment, there didn't seem to be much challenge for you in configuring it and not much inspiration for me as the viewer. The neutral colors are calm, but in such an expanse it's like wandering the Gobi Desert. Some bold color accents are needed.

I know we are suppose to comment about the interior design. But I am appalled by calling a 750 sq.ft. apartment in the West Village small. Relative to it's location this 'small' apartment will cost close to or over 7 figures to buy today.

several of the entries so far seem to be coming off as just "nice"; this one included. if this was a friend's place i would definitely walk in the front door and say "hey, nice place." but that's about it, nothing really that special about it.

Nice kitchen! I like the back splash as well, although I also wish it continued up to the cabinets. Good lighting and well thought out materials selection: good balance between shiny metal and warmer woods. I also like the book shelves in the living room; they're modern and warm. The baker's rack also seems distracting to me and while you may have limited cabinet storage, there has got to be some way to pare down and get those out of the dining area. Nice beginning but I agree with others in that there is no particularly inspiring space saving arrangement, color theory, or other type of design going on. While I appreciate a calm, edited design aesthetic this gives me more of a feeling of being unfinished; that could be because the few decorative objects are a bit under-scaled. It could be that it is unfinished and you are building the design over time. Either way, great start and I hope you are encouraged and inspired to continue working on your home. Thanks for sharing.

huh? where's the rest of the apartment?
5 pictures and all I saw was the kitchen.

The pot rack in the living room is a deal breaker. And nothing particularly inspiring in the rest of the apartment. Good bones though -- back to the drawing board!

at least there's some constructive criticism going on here.
Better than all the monotonous oohs and ahs.

So. it's not a big winner.
Not bad either.

I would remove the top shelf of the 4 floating shelves.
Pot rack=kitchen. Okay!?
Put something substantial in that sweet little alcove below the kitchen wall.
(ditch the insignificant looking bottles).
Interesting space.

I'm with Lawnmowr. I didn't let myself vote on this one because I'm too biased by how spacious the apartment is. 750 sq ft does not require any small space innovation. Yes I have moaned about this before and yes I will probably moan about it again: I don't see the point of allowing entries this large in a smallest-coolest contest.

Mid-C Frank is dead on. That pot rack is a serious trouble.

And 750 sqft is huge and this place doesn't feel huge, which is a pity.

It would make such a big difference if you were to just paint the walls some colors - even subtle ones.