My friend Britt recently agonized over choosing between the sofa of her dreams, which was beyond her budget, and a sofa that she liked well enough that also had the benefit of being affordable. She asked for my advice.

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Name:

Garrett

Location:

New York, NY

Square Feet:

340

Division:

Teeny-Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

I love how I can clean the whole apartment in a few hours. Everything has a place, and everything is in reach. It feels really manageable for a young person living in the city. I get to see and use everything that I love every day; nothing is shut away in an unused space.

Name: Austin White, Monica Rodgers and children, Manon and Shaw 
Location: Kingston, Rhode Island
Size: 1,850 square feet
Years lived in: 1.5 years; owned

It all started with a ship captain in the 1920’s. He translated his passion for the seafaring life into a nautical-inspired Arts and Crafts home. Wood planks from the deck of his boat became flooring, a porthole became a window, and ceramic tiles, souvenirs from his many ports of call, became embellishment for a stone fireplace.

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Name:

Julia

Location:

Philadelphia, PA

Square Feet:

550

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

My home is the perfect size for a live/work, solo artist space. I have designed it such that I wake up surrounded by my imagery and mind-escapes that motivate the creative process. I wake up, make coffee, tea, do yoga, and set to work at the long work tables against the window. In the evening I can entertain friends and show curators, interior designers, and art directors my work in my small kitchen area.

I love that I can only collect and house what is most necessary -- nothing beyond the art, the basics, and the small items I have accumulated through my travels and from friends that mean the most.

In a small space, a dining room table that seats more than two can easily make the "we can do without" list.  If, however, you enjoy entertaining, it becomes far more valuable.

Swedish firm Belatchew Arkitekter plans to turn the existing Söder Torn building into the Strawscraper, a new way to gather energy in an urban environment. By adding 14 floors and covering the exterior with plastic straws, even relatively small movements will generate wind power. If the technique proves viable, old and new buildings can be converted to be more energy efficient.

In other news, check out Nate Berkus' Chicago office, and the London Tube celebrates 150 years through art posters. See the headlines after the jump.

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Name:

Leah

Location:

San Francisco, CA

Square Feet:

400

Division:

Teeny-Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

I have never before loved a place I've lived in like I love this apartment. I wanted to create a space that was delightful, organized, and expressive of who I am. I draw comics, and designed my home to feel like i was in my own strip. The bedroom designed to be a Night scene, with a light up moon, and the living room a day scene, with sky, green-grass carpet, and cloud lamps. I wanted to to use almost exclusively reused items/material in my home instead of buying new mass produced items. I asked designer and furniture builder Aaron Kllc to help me furnish and decorate. The bed, hutch, and dining table were all made out of reclaimed wood. The dining table was made out of an old drafting table and a vintage piece of burl wood.

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Name:

Laura

Location:

New York, NY

Square Feet:

450

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

It’s efficient! We’ve squeezed two adults and a small dog into our tiny apartment. The separation of space with the upstairs and downstairs is what makes the space work for us. The two separate floors (and two 3-piece bathrooms!) make our apartment “live” like it’s much larger than 450 square feet; they give us a nice level of privacy when we’re there together as well as when we have overnight guests from time to time. Even though our space is small, we can host cocktail parties for eight downstairs in the living area or dinner parties for five upstairs in the kitchen/dining room. Fortunately, most of our favorite used pieces of furniture from Washington, D.C. and Chicago were small and able to fit. We’ve been able to add a few select pieces from New York, too, such as the small cabinet in the kitchen that Nick found on the curb shortly after we moved in.

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Name:

Jessica

Location:

Los Angeles, CA

Square Feet:

410

Division:

Tiny

What I Love About My Small Home:

It encourages me to think about what I truly value, to craft a space that serves my needs and to constantly reevaluate what is necessary and useful and what is getting in the way. Also, the small rooms are quicker to paint, so I get to experiment a lot with color.