Actually the place I currently live in:) My boyfriend and I just moved into a 1 bedroom in Palo Alto in a very cute complex, close to University Ave. Hardwood floors throughout, huge fireplace and mantle and a charming outdoor area for everyone's use. The best part for me is that it is an older place that has all of these wonderful little knooks and cupboards, that you just don't find in newer buildings.

Here! I have my big bay window and my giant closets. Most of my life is within walking distance, and I have no extra rooms to make me feel guilty.

There are always little things I bitch about -- and of course I fantasize about what we could do with this place if we owned it -- but it's really the best total deal we've had.

Outside: an apartment I lived in for years on Dolores Street (near the park)- it bordered the Castro, the Mission and Noe Valley so there was just so much within walking distance. And of course some great weather.

Inside: my favorite actual apartment was in West Oakland in a loft conversion (real conversion not new construction). It was very well done and HUGE, complete with original safe from its previous life as the office of a neon sign factory.

I'm moving into a new place in a couple of weeks so maybe I will finally find the best of both inside and outside.

Anyone know where I could take a furniture class, preferably somewhere on the peninsula?

My favorite place I've lived was in college. I had a 5th floor room in Cambridge, MA with a great view of Boston and the Charles River. When the Red Sox were in the playoffs, I could hear the muted cheers from Fenway. It was the best view I'll probably ever have.

My best apartment was a tiny studio on top of Russian Hill. Top floor of the building, view side. I had a view of the GG Bridge and the Marina, and all that real estate between RH and Ft. Point. When the fishing boats strung out their lights under the bridge, it was magic. On the 4th of July, everyone was out on their fire escapes and on roofs, having a city-wide party. There was a great coffee house/bakery a block away (in the early days of coffee madness, before the independents all became Starbucks or Peets). A couple of fabulous restaurants were within a few blocks. Easy access to public transport, so concerts and other performances didn't require a taxi to get home late at night. A quick hop to work downtown. Terrible landlord, from an infamous SF apartment-owning family I won't mention. But I loved that apartment...the first and only I ever had all to myself. God knows what it rents for now.

Kristie, I don't know of places on the peninsula, but California College of the Arts (cca.edu) is now registering for their summer extended education program. There are a few furniture classes listed and those ususally take place on their SF campus.

Kristie, I'd try the community colleges down there. Most CCs offer evening "how to" classes. (My grandfather taught upholstery at his local CC for many years.)

i still live in the downtown SF apartment that i grew up in. i used to think that i was supposed to eventually buy a big house with a yard in the suburbs, but realized in the last few years that i LOVE living in a compact, efficient space & having everything i need within walking distance. during the next year or two, i'll be remodeling the apartment to become MY ideal residence. i'll probably be asking all of you for advice on windows, lighting, counters, etc in the next few months. i love this site!

Thanks amy and wende... looks like I'll have to do a bit more searching. At least now it's directed - thanks!

The Bay Area! (complaining in DC...)

Oh my. I just looked at CCA.edu. All of their classes look great... just when I was thinking that I could relax this summer!

while we're on the topic of cca... they're graduate exhibition kicks off this thursday, may 11. all events are free and open to the public.

http://sites.cca.edu/gradexhibition/

Re furniture building: Hakone Japanese Garden in Saratoga sometimes offers a Japanese funiture building class. There is a Japanese tool store in Berkeley or Albany that does the same.

Maybe this is anti-AT, but is anyone interested going to see the Decorator Showcase one weekend this month? Maybe the 20th? Click on my name for more info.

Why is that "anti-AT"?

The Decorator Showcase being Anti-AT. A living space devoted to more stuff, bigger and less effecient living. And from everything I've read, it sounds like the decorators have even "left" clutter in the house.

But you get nifty color schemes and the latest in floral design...

When our neighbors in Troy were a Showcase house (they were on the other side of Washington Park, so our house was 1/6th the size of theirs), the room everyone loved was TINY. It was a sitting room painted aubergine, back when aubergine walls were just catching on.

Second biggest hit was probably the very small formal parlor, with trompe l'oeil panels, or the laundry room.

The big rooms were just... rooms. All I remember was that the dining table had a floral arrangement literally bigger than I am (and I'm not petite) and the master bedroom had terrifying grapevine and dried-flower pelmets that would probably lead to instant asthma.

Just from the look and feel of it, I know that my first apartment in SF is going to be the best so far. (Yes, I did get it - signed the lease today).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/victoriae/sets/72057594129660785/

Oh my! Victoria, that is the most perfect San Francisco-style studio I've ever seen! The bay window... the hardwood floors... the view... the non-frightening kitchen...

Wow, that is quite the statement! I had no idea that I got THAT lucky :O I just realized, after my boyfriend pointed it out last night, that the apartment doesn't have a dishwasher. This will be my first apartment that doesn't have one, but I think it will be a welcomed change.

Congrats Victoria, looks like a great place!

Although I love my little apt. in midtown Manhattan I would have to say the best place I've lived is a 2 story townhouse in Sausalito overlooking the bay. It had everything this place doesn't starting with room. It had a fireplace, 2 ensuite bedrooms, 2.5 baths, W/D, pool, jacuzzi, parking, Jenn-Aire grill and more. That was in the early '90s and it cost $1350/mo.!!

By far the best place I have ever lived is in Potrero Hill, San Francisco. A fantastic hidden, sunny gem in the best city in the US. I also lived in Northwest Portland which was a beautiful, fun city too, but the rain-of-biblical-proportions didn't really appeal to my California sensibilities. I'm in Los Angeles now, but hoping to return to San Francisco soon.

I grew up there, and will likely return there: Vancouver BC. SF is lovely but Canada on a whole seems much more civilized. Even the rain doesn't bother me anymore.

yay, victoria! i agree with wende. that looks perfect! congrats!

I had a one-bedroom apartment in my hometown (Olympia, Washington) that I really liked: mint-condition midcentury kitchen, tiled bathroom, open floor plan, closets. I'm liking my small studio apartment here in San Francisco more now that I'm doing some of the Apartment Therapy cure steps. Love the location--downtown, the Castro, Civic Center, the Mission, and the Haight are all walkable.

if i lived at 1022 powell, it would be the best place i've ever lived. it's for sale - only $1,625,000! click my name for pix of it's amazing view.

i'll continue this trend and say that my current place is the best place i've ever lived. (well, only if you exclude the unheated basement flat in central London, which was awesome.)

i love having a studio with a separate kitchen for the first time in my life--it really makes it feel so much bigger. the neighborhood is fantastic (upper noe), it's generally sunnier here, and i have great views of the city from my deck. throw in nice neighbors/landlords upstairs, easy parking, and easy freeway access, and i'll i really need to be happy is to pick up my south bay office and move it 35 miles closer to san francisco :)

oh, and if the landlords would cave and let me have a dog, that would be even BETTER.

The best place I ever wanted to live was a place in the haight. It may have been a ballroom orginally but I'm not sure. There was a huge step down room that had been decorated in various areas with wonderful mixes of items and furniture. Back up the steps was a small kitchen and bath and maybe a small bedroom. Whomever decorated was a genius. Also it was below street level so the windows looked up which gave it a surreal aura.

My favorite place was Asheville NC. I lived in an attic on a sheep farm, and there was a horse farm across the way. Nestled in the Appalachian mountains I couldn't have asked for more. Then I fell in love and moved to SF. I have a crack head out my window screaming,and I can't go outside at night or I'll get followed- I'm so glad I pay 3 times more for this.

I'm moving out of my favorite apartment in three weeks - ugh. It's in the Mission on an incredibly friendly block. It's big for a city apartment (2BR, 2BA, large living/dining/kitchen space up and family room/1BR/1BA down). Lots of light. A newer building (80s), which I really appreciated after living in lots of cut-up Victorians with no closet space. I have a one year old son and my husband works from home, so we really dug having all the room. We were hoping to buy the building, but now our landlords are moving back into the unit.

Since we're only going to be renting for one more year, we decided to downsize to save money. We're moving into a smallish 2BR in Glen Park, a neighborhood I had never visited until we went to look at the unit. At least I can still take BART to work...

To console myself over the upcoming move, I'm thinking of the Glen Park place as a design laboratory for when we buy next year.

Victoria: we all hate you.

rockfox: How's the general glen park area?

We don't move until the first week in June, so I still don't know much about Glen Park. It looks a little sleepy to me and feels a little suburban, but I'll have to report back once I've been there a bit.

Packed the first boxes (books) last night.