Name: Natalie Moore
Location: Lower Nob Hill, San Francisco
Size: 285 square feet
Years lived in: 1
Natalie has managed to create a glamorous, put-together space, despite only having 285 square feet with which to work. This is why she was an Apartment Therapy favorite during our recent Small Cool contest. She has now given us a full tour, even though it's still fairly small, of her home. Take a look!
Natalie's ability to highlight the beautiful architectural details of her studio, enhancing the space with which she has to work, has aided in her ability to make this space uniquely her own. She has a clear sense of what she likes, and is able to add punches of color, pattern and texture where they really count, without overdoing it. She's absolutely made the most of the space, and managed to do it in a way that still gives off a grown-up and sophisticated vibe.
Apartment Therapy Survey:
My style: Hollywood Regency glamour with a dash of Mid-Century sensibility. I like to think of my style as being tailored, yet cozy at the same time.
Inspiration: I was inspired by the architecture and original elements of the studio and sought to draw attention to the beautiful alcove, mouldings, hardwood floors, radiator and claw foot tub. I wanted the furnishings and décor to flow seamlessly from the building’s character and charm while adding modern touches along the way.
Favorite Element: My bed alcove is my sanctuary. I am a pillow-holic and love that I can layer and display as many as I want in this alcove which makes it the coziest spot to hang out, work on the laptop, read a book, or of course, take a nap. I also love having the curtains at arm’s reach for when I want to pull them closed and snooze a couple more hours!
Biggest Challenge: The itty bitty size has been a challenge but has also forced me to be more creative. When you live in a place this small you realize what is necessary for a home to be comfortable and functional and everything else just takes up precious space. The biggest challenge I faced was finding small enough pieces that would trick the eye and shift the scale of the place.
What Friends Say: Friends say that the place fits my personality because it’s fun but laidback.
Biggest Embarrassment: My biggest embarrassment is my boyfriend’s pride and joy: his large flat screen television and surround sound system that takes up one of the walls. Don’t get me wrong, I love the full effect of TV and movie watching but the scale is all wrong for the space.
Proudest DIY: The rug! I had been ogling Moroccan tile rugs for a long time but could never find one that fit my teeny-tiny budget, so I decided to make one myself. My mom gave me an Erslev Ikea rug that she pulled out of her garage and since it was so cheap I didn’t mind attempting to paint it. I made a stencil out of a sheet of cardstock and just starting painting. I’m enamored with the results and the best part is that it’s completely machine washable!
Biggest Indulgence: The couch was the biggest purchase I made for the space but I got it on sale for $699 so I don’t even know if many would consider that an indulgence!
Best advice: Best advice received is from my mom “fresh fruit and fresh flowers go a long way.”
Dream source: Ross has the best prices anywhere for home décor and is full of hidden treasures. Most of my pillows, the ceramic white elephant, the octagon mirror, zebra rug and the curtains (which I “classed up” by making the black tie-backs) are all from Ross.
Resources:
Lamps: cb2
Coffee table: Urban Outfitters
Couch: Macy’s
Sunburst mirror and duvet: West Elm
White tray and chartreuse vase: Crate & Barrel
Telephone bench: reupholstered sidewalk find
Fu dogs: garage sale find
Side tables: craigslist
(Thanks, Natalie!)
Images: Natalie Moore
Which Wall Color Gives the Best Sleep?
Marisa and Peter's Playfully Eclectic Home
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Z2 iPod Dock and Wi...
10 Low-Budget Pantry Items Everyone Should Have
Summer Recipe: Gluten-Free & Vegan Strawberry Shortcake
Absolutely lovely. I love that coffee table.
I love it! Where is that coffee table from?
beautiful work, Natalie! i looooove the curtained bed alcove!
living room wall color??
Absolutely one of my favorite spaces! This really should of won the contest. It is super cute! It also inspired me to move to a smaller place. Not only am I living smaller amongst less mess but also saving money! It's funny...when I have people over, they say that they like our place mow more than the other one I had...should of done it sooner! Bravo-great place.
@melissaflorence - the "resources" list above indicates the coffee table is from Urban Outfitters.
Very sweet!
What a great space! It looks much bigger than 285 sq feet! It feels open and clean, while still having texture and pattern! My favorite is the chair by the window! Looks perfectly inviting in such a sunny spot!
The slide show is kind of messed up--might need to be fixed. Stops at 11 if you don't have the thumbnails open.
Like an earlier commenter, I've been inspired to live in a smaller apartment myself, and I'm really excited to apply many of the space-saving and DIY techniques I've seen on here - like your rug! I love it! What kind of paint did you use?
wouldn't it be nicer if those picture frames are hung lower? like about a foot above the backrest of the sofa?
Love this place! So inspiring as the style is very similar to my own. :)
Question - how long have you had that sofa and how has it held up? I'm looking at similar ones from Macy's (and probably that one too.)
Love the diy rug- Brilliant! Really nice space you've created :)
WOW - this house tour is by far one of the greatest. Small is often best :)
Good job!
Love it! And your mom's advice is spot on.
And I too was looking at sofas from Macy's (that one included) and wanted to know how it held up.
Ugh! I can't get over how sweet and bright it is. Absolutely lovely!
I know they're an eyesore, but I was hoping to see how the large tv and surround sound were incorporated...I too have a boyfriend with a massive tv (and all the various components) and I'm trying to figure out how to incorporate it with minimum pain into a small apartment...
I absolutely love it! Especially the living room area. So clean and pulled together yet cozy. I would have liked to see the kitchen and bathroom...
Anyone know where the glass jug that she has her lemonade in is from?
Oh, I guess it does show the kitchen and bathroom in the thumbnails... my slideshow didn't let me go that far..
Love this place, and those pin-up girls are a great touch. I remember this apartment from small cool and I really wanted it to win. How cool is it that you shop at Ross, and here I was thinking I was the only one. Such cute stuff at great prices!
I believe that I saw the glass pitcher at Crate & Barrel last year.
Lovely. Curious, how is the couch holding up? I've been looking at it at Macy's, but some say it would not be a good sofa for high-traffic rooms.
Also, where are the pillows on the couch from?
Thanks! e
That is so beautiful, I really like the living room area and the old phone-chair. She must have put new fabric on the seat area.
Like the others, I'd love to see the bathroom and kitchen!
Too cute.
@manaynay: The glass pitcher is the Ona Pitcher from Crate & Barrel. I work there.
We still carry the Ona Pitcher.
Just lovely, its perfect. A nice balance of colors and use of light and dark furniture and accessories. Where is the 'Ross' shop located?
She has done some an amazing job with the space, so clean and pared down makes the 285 sq. ft. seem huge. would love to see what her closet looks like - where is all of her stuff? only wish I could be such a minimalist!
Cute place! I totally agree about the pictures needing to be hung lower and how about painting the alcove with the picture in it and putting in something taller. I shouldn't criticize. My place doesn't look nearly as nice.
Thanks for the inspiration.
Your space is amazing. I am so glad someone else shops at Ross, as they do have some quality items at such inexpensive prices.
Very cute!
Gorgeous! I love the rug..what a great look. What kind of paint did you use for it?
Great use of such a small space. And I love the green/black/white color combo. How did you attach the fabric skirt to your sink to create more of a "vanity"? I'd love to do something like that to mine, which is also an early 1900s SF style sink without a counter and with pipes exposed below.
I have been in awe of that bed forever- nice to see where it comes from.
I miss SF. Where did you get the blinds? I'm looking for some for my son's room, and those are handsome.
I am so impressed by the entire space but especially your DIY rug! I might have to shamelessly copy you. Can you describe what type of paint you used that enables you to be able to wash the rug? Is the rug cotton or wool? It looks really well pulled together and expensive.
Beautiful, beautiful place! Love what you did with the telephone bench.
I absolutely love the pin up art; can anyone tell me where those are from or where to find similar pieces?
I love the rug! How did you create the stencil?
do you have a picture of the floor plan, I didn't see the kitchen area etc.
I must say I do love what you've done!
Hey Natalie, I just found your floor plan on your previous post.....great job!
This was on my top three from the whole competition (with Beth from Sausalito and Lindsay from Brooklyn). It's great to see more.
This is one of my favorites house tours so far! My one complaint is that I didn't get to see enough. For such a small space, you guys could have showed us more of the apt. Where's the kitchen? And the bath? I feel like I'm missing half of the story, there is basically no storage in these photos.
More photos, please!
Nevermind, found those pics, not sure why the slideshow skips them, but you can see the kitchen, bath, etc when you click on the thumbnails view.
Yay, I love me some Ross too! And your apartment is fabulous!
Very messed up slide show.
This was one of my favs in the competition and I'm glad it was revisited. I agree with devonc -- there should have been photos of the TV/sound system, especially since she mentioned them. Are you trying part of the house? If so, don't do a "tour". What's the point? Lots of close up shots of framed mini pin-ups? What is the point in that?
1. a little too femine for me. surprised to know that a guy also lives here! REALLY...where are his things?
2. Where is the kitchen, where is the bathroom?
3. WHY do we get so many photos of knick-knacks instead of the actual room?
so I take back my question about where are the kitchen and bathroom...the slideshow is all messed up....but still...you would never know that a guy lives here...is he not allowed to have any manly decor?
Crisp and Fresh. The fact that a full kitchen has been put in such a small place is a wonderful thing. It is important to note that because people enjoy living in small places, does not mean they do not enjoy cooking and entertaining.
I love everything about this! So lovely and charming... jealous of that bed nook!!
the rug is beautiful and everything tastefully fits together.
wish we could have seen the kitchen and bathroom too!
On the slide shows: Sometimes they mess up and stop showing pictures after you've only viewed a few. When that happens, go to thumbnail view and click on that. Then you see whether you are really at the last picture or not. If not, you don't have to continue in thumbnail view. Click again to return to slideshow view and you will find that now you can go forward & see the other pictures. Don't know why that happens, but it does. I discovered this remedy some time ago and it has always (so far) worked for me.
I really love the way you've composed your space, and the objects you've chosen, except for the pin-up girl art. I'm always really surprised when a woman chooses to objectify other women.
Jazzy black and white cushions! They make me very happy.
That closet bed still makes me claustrophobic - which is bad coming from a agoraphobic.
I, like so many others, absolutely adore this place. I live in an apt. of about the same square footage and it's not nearly as elegant even though it has good bones, too. Looks just effortless. My only real gripe (I hate having one) has nothing to do with the apt. itself or your style; it's that I wish there were at least one big shot showing the alcove in relationship to the seating area. The "big picture," yes? I assume the two areas are directly across from one another, but still.
It's a small thing. Nevertheless, a stunner.
Inspiring! I as well have a studio apartment. I actually have a very similar layout besides the bed out cove which I WISH i had. Anyways...I really love the curtains, i have some generic ones the apt came with, where are those from? I'm sure I could find sillier ones, but i just love those.
I agree w/ your Mom as well, I have fresh flowers from my Mom's garden they totally brighten up my apartment!
If you all are into music and style you should check out my blog sticoftheweek.blogspot.com
I absolutely love that alcove. It's so chic. I would love to figure out a way to do that in my far bigger (473 sq ft) studio. This tour gives me the inspiration I need to tackle what I thought was a small space.
What a charming home you've created! I can't believe you stenciled that rug yourself. I think it's one of my favorite pieces in your place, it turned out beautifully!
this post inspires me to make more of my 1 bd apt!
That bed is beyond gorgeous, great job.
I love love love everything about this apartment!!! I am going to try to hunt down a telephone bench on CL asap.
I really loved your place.
I love the couch! I bought mine about 8-9 months ago. I can't say how it will stand up for years to come, but so far it's as beautiful as the day we bought it. Cleans up like a dream too--I have a habit of spilling guacamole on it approximately every third week.
I don't think it's excessively girlie. Is it the fresh flowers everywhere? Does it need knotty pine or plaid to be masculine enough? Should the pin-ups be pinned up instead of framed?
Love your rug. please share your instructions and how you did this!!!!
BRILLIANT! Congratulations on the DIY rug! I am impressed and inspired by that achievement. Have you ever seen the blog IKEAhacker?
http://ikeahacker.blogspot.com/
Your rug is already a star on AT, but I can imagine it becoming a cross-over hit at IKEAhacker ...
You've made the tiniest place look spacious and sleek. I love your collection of vintage ad gals above the sofa. It's making me think of creating a similar arrangement with male images from the same period ...
WOW!!
I love the pictures on the wall!!
what a wonderful space! i'd love to snuggle up with a good book in that little alcove!
i had an apartment this small when i first moved out on my own, but it was no where near this sleek or stylish!
Love it !!! love it !!! love it!!! The coffee table is so lovely :) and the cozy bed...I am also pillow crazy I just want to snuggle into that bed!
beautiful and bright! and yes, that is such a great insider design trick: fresh flowers! i've just submitted my own home so we'll see if i get to do my own tour. :)
kindly,
vintagedress.etsy.com
Hi Natalie! I love your place. I especially like what you did with the Erslev Ikea rug. I've been looking for a rug for quite some time and really like the green and texture of the Erslev, it's really cheap but would like to dress it up as yours, it looks awesome. Would you mind sharing a tutorial on how you did it?
I love your place, it looks so bright and airy especially the bed! I have found that couch in Canada at the Bay but am doing a victorian theme in a dark grey hope it looks just as great in a different color!
Not sure I'm on board with the pin-ups, but your place is great. I really think the biggest help in making any room seem airy and bright is to have furniture with slim "legs" and a united (but not necessarily monochromatic) color scheme.
Sooo jealous of your kitchen. Maybe your landlord in SF could call my landlord here in NY...
love this place! i used to live on nob hill and had a completely different look at my place.
are the pinup girls by vargas? he was a famous purveyor of them. i have liked them ever since seeing them on my grandad's notepads with them on the cover (probably a business giveaway).
That orange picture frame just kills me-- I've been dying to paint something orange.
Love, plain and simple.
Natalie's IKEA rug DIY stencil idea has already been featured on IKEA Hacker. I just found it:
http://ikeahacker.blogspot.com/2010/04/from-sweden-to-morocco.html
great apt!!! Is your mom an interior decorator?
your apt is beautiful! how do you keep your white couch clean??
Objectifying women?! Pin-up art CELEBRATES women! I love your pictures...don't be put-off by what the earlier poster said. You have such great style and I love your apartment.
I love this apartment! I have a studio apartment in Lower Nob Hill that is almost this exact same layout with my bed in the alcove as well, I even have curtains in front of it, too. I've been trying to think of a way to make my bed look cute because its so hard to tuck the comforter on the sides of the mattress with it being so close to the walls. I love how you done it here with the comforter hanging all the way over one side, I think I'm going to have to steal your idea :). Funny thing is I've been looking at buying the pin-tuck duvet from West Elm in slate, I like it in the white too how you have it here. I really love your style! Great job! I can relate to the tiny space you have and you've really made it look a lot bigger than it really is.
I bet this is such a treat to come home to. It's bright, fun, and cozy. Good use of space. The decor and accessories you have are just right and not over cramp. I am a pillow-loving-maniac also and I absolutely understand what you're talking about. Great job!
Beautiful with room to breathe! :)
Bright, clean and beautiful. Thanks for sharing
Bed nook, bed nook, bed nook, bed nook, bed nook, bed nook, bed nook, bed nook!!
*sigh
Gorgeous! So in love with the sofa and the coffee table!
Beautiful space. Can you please let me know the wall color in the living room? Thanks!
I have to say. Im going through a divorce and letting my hubby have our 3 bd house on the water. I cannot afford it:( I am so inspired to buy a studio now. I am loving every bit of this place!
It's bright and cherry! i love it:)