I would have chosen "Not Sick!" if it were an option...
In my opinion these contests are a part of what makes the internet such a wonderful and amazing place. This sort of thing simply could not be done any other way and you are to be commended for doing it. Thank you for the forum you've created and the community that has developed around it! Please take the time to recover from all the effort required to pull this off (maybe with a couple of book signings...) and I'll look forward to seeing what next!

Actually, I'm not quite really sick of it. I guess I'm find it to be a tad wearying, though, at this point, but really, some of these have been REALLY lovely and really interesting!

And I think that seeing the ones that aren't actually apartments, but are small enough to feel like apartments is an interesting little cultural difference to see.

I feel like I should smoke a cigarette.

I was really, really sick of it until I fully grokked that there weren't going to be any more.

Not at all sick, have loved it and looked forward, each day, to new postings! When it's over, I'll miss it. Looking forward to more of the same!!

I'm still enjoying the contest. Lots of fun!

hmmm... a cig, a cuddle and a nap!

I am not at all sick of seeing the photos, but I am ready to take a break from reading the 60-100 comments for each entry. That's the problem with addiction, y'all, I just can't stop.

I am doomed to suffer a post-contest let-down, as I always do. Fortunately, the contest isn't quite totally over yet, just new entries.

I hope we get to see the other 37 entries eventually, perhaps after the final voting of the contest is done. I too am horribly addicted to seeing pictures of people's places.

Heck, maybe after the finalists are chosen and all is done, we could invite all contestants to post more pictures of their places. :)

I am *less* sick of this one . . .

Color and Art contests were more dire for me.
Or maybe I learned to Look Away this time.

Thanks a million to everyone for showing their cribs.
What is the 2006 slang for 'home' anyway?

I was depresssed to realize the contest was over.

I don't know what intrigues me more about AT, the wealth of info, the fab photos of everyone's apartments (I think its educational to see how real people do their digs), or P2's insane comments. It's probably the only opportunity I have during the day to laugh out loud.

And now with Maxwell's book, I'm completely addicted.

Of all things to lighten my year - a design blog. Who would have 'thunk...

I vote not sick. Just hard to keep up with them all.

I really enjoyed the contest and I have newfound respect for the people who are brave enough to post their apartments. It got harsh out there sometimes.

I thought there were going to be 120 apts? We've only had 102. Where are the rest, or were they that bad?!

I've looked through every entry over the past few weeks. I feel I need a picture next to each one on the contest so I don't have to go through each one again to vote. It's Friday...I'm feeling lazy.

Reef, I'm guessing that the other entries are east coast, not west.

I'm also not sick of the contest. I wish AT featured more pics of real people's places. I guess there's always next year. I'm looking forward to it already.

And I'll second the comment about Ptoo... HEEEEE-LARIOUS!

I'm not sick of it at all, but then again I didn't try to keep up with the comments threads at all either.

Wait... isn't "sick" now a good thing?!

Neal--
I like your thinking.

Patrick, you're SICK!

:)

WOW! I am sad that it's over. However, there is always the archives. I REALLY REALLY LOVE Apartment Therapy!!!! This contest has been so motivating to me. Whenever I felt a little lazy about getting rid of the clutter, organizing and desiging I would just click on this site to get that burst of energy and inspiration to keep me moving. Thanks to all for the COURAGE to showcase your private spaces to all of us. When it comes down to it know one is losing here. The best of luck to all of you.
- VIVI ;)

no one :0

Rob--
Uh, thank you? :)

OK, not checking scores, here's who I expect to see in top ten:

EAST COAST

#15, #13, #24, #14, #43 (and maybe #1, which I didn't like, personally)

WEST

#33, #32, #27 #16, #13

Anyone else venture to guess?

Oh, no-- it's over!?! My husband and I are 50 somethings about to downsize into our 1st apartment since college. Because of AT & this contest I am excited about the possibilities. At first glance I could see myself happily living in many of the entries and the comments educated me to embrace even more of them.

I was confused about the entries...I just went to the "view all entries" and went through them when I came here, as I could.

I'm not sick of it at all. I want more. I will be using those pictures again and again to link to from another site to show people ideas, color combinations, layouts, art, creativity, and adapting the space they have to best suit their own needs and personalities.

I'm desperately hoping that ALL the entries will be in the archives, and that the people who created each entry will occasionally pop in to check for new comments.

We could now have before/after shots of apartments as people read the new book, showing what they have done with their newfound knowledge.

I think there's nothing better than seeing what real people do with real spaces. I'm terribly tired of the magazine rooms.

Disappointed that it's over, no. Disappointed that we didn't get to see all the entries, yes. Does anyone else think that it's unfair that that the contest was extended to let more people enter and then 37 entries didn't get posted? I think that blows, personally...

Maggie: I agree except for the East: take out No.1 and add No.2

Holy crap. Talk about an impossible task.

West coast:
#13 - #16 - #19??? - #27 - #33
(I think my Apartmequarium is out of the running... grin)

East Coast - fahgettaboudit!!!!

Good grief - you east coasters have too many amazing places to chose from here!

#2, #5, #7??, #12??, #13, #14????
#15, #26????, #31??, #32??, #35?
#36?, #48?

I do not envy whoever has to choose who makes it into the finals and who doesn't.

I do think west coast #16 could win it all.

I couldn't vote for a house - otherwise, I'd have added #44 to my east coast entries.

Whoa. After browsing those entries again, I'm exhausted!!!!

Is it me, or did a lot of people update their photos after their entries were posted? I was shocked by how many I barely recognized!!!

I posted links to some of the places on another board too, including Marc's Architecture, East #5 for one. I felt it was an excellent example of taking space to the max...using and reusing (can "space" be recycled? LOL) space DAILY. Or as the need arises to USE that space in a certain manner.

On the BHG Decorating board, folks often say they don't HAVE ENOUGH SPACE. I try to explain my apartment, but now there are OODLES of WONDERFUL apartments to browse.

And they all have something to give to the various people that have larger homes...IDEAS. Sometimes I think that folks with larger homes get stuck in a rut...following the "rules of the floor plan"...with dining room furniture in the dining room. A bed in every bedroom.

We apartment folk know we can't DO that. We can't follow those rules, because they don't apply to us. One room...we might have ONE ROOM to serve ONLY OUR NEEDS. And we must decide what exactly it is that we NEED.

Hey, I could set up this apartment to be a chef's dream. Even if it is a rental. Sure, add in freestanding cabinets, have a prep area in the "dining nook", and a huge table for gathering.

I could sleep on the floor at night in a sleeping bag and an inflated air mattress. If that dining was important to me.

Hah, actually, I posted several of those that you mentioned Rob. Or I tried to post them...unless AOL gave me the unwelcome boot.

As it's done umpteen times when trying to post here on this site.

Oh! My! God!, Rob! I just went to your site. I am in hysterics. I am now browsing the 1975 Sears Wish Book and looking for the clothing I used to wear.

Well, didn't see much there, but nothing says "Christmas" like guns and ammo.

Does anybody else think this contest gives and unfare advantage to people who OWN their places and have loads of money to sink into renovations?

Looking at the few suggestions for finalists offered up above...if you look at those entries, they mostly appear to be owned by the contestant rather than rented. It may be an unfair advantage, so maybe there should be two categories next year...

Hi Anon, (about the two categories)
I totally agree with you! For this reason I believe we did not see a lot of kitchens and bathrooms. However, making your space an awesome one while living in a rented unit with water damage walls, out of date fixtures and hideous kitchen cabinets says a great deal about the amazing rented entries that was posted.

Anon -- Though I kind of favor having Owner and Renter categories because owners and renters are solving different problems, I'm not so sure that the contest obviously favors owners. Why?

--Last year's winner was a renter.

--The suggested finalists further up the thread were based on that poster's sense of enthusiasm and taste, not on assessing the numeric vote. A preponderance of owners doesn't mean anything unless those are *also* the high vote-getters.

--As ViVi points out, we didn't see a lot of kitchens and baths -- yet that's where owners are most likely to gut and go for it. The playing field for main rooms is more nearly level.

--Just because someone did a gut or spent a lot, that doesn't mean the total project was WOWZA fabulous in the eyes of the majority here. The chap who put the niches between the studs and his electronics in the fireplace did extensive rehab but didn't get raves. The gal who did the modern kitchen and the translucent sliding panels in her prewar apartment (but had almost no furniture) didn't get raves either.

March Madness, Or How I Muddled Through The 2d Smallest Coolest

I viewed all entries.
I read almost all posts.
If I went back to an entry, I considered voting.
I voted only for those entries that I felt were instant finalists.
I voted for a very few.

In past contests, I've been more involved with voting, but it left me feeling depressed or defensive or derisive. Didn't want this to happen again so I chose the formula, supra. It worked. This contest was definitely more fun for me. What I find interesting, is that none of the spaces that wowed me is anything like the space I live in. It's also interesting, how so many of the entries were subtle variations of each other.

I'm amazed and grateful that people invited me in. I tried to be a good guest.

Two high vote getters not included on the above lists were East #8 - Alison's Design to the Max and West #4: Thom's San Fran Delight...

In terms of owners vs. renters, not all owners have lots of money to put into renovations, and renters are also varied in the amount of money they were able to spend.

There are so many possible constraints to take into consideration - size, layout, location, as well as owner/renter, finances, what the entrant needed to be able to do in the space, etc. - when I was voting, I took all of that into my consideration of what seemed "WOWZA fabulous" - I imagine that the judges will be able to do so also.

what were the requirements to get your apartment on the list for the contest? I had submitted my place a 450sqft 1 bedroom but it didnt get it posted. It was in the Inside Out tour two weeks ago "Michael's Mid century Nest". I dont care that i didnt get into the contest I am just wondering how they were picked to get in.

Wende -

I seriously doubt last year's winner could win against this years' pool, espcially the owners who gut and rebuilt, or redid kitchens and bathrooms. No way. Comeptition is waaaay stiffer.

Just watch. I wonder if a 'token renter' will place in top 4. But I'd be surprised (pleasently), but I doubt it.

Money does not equal taste. But if you have taste and the funds to back it up, you just go to a whole new level most renters can't compete with.

For instance, the Venice loft is great - but it's the architecture and the windows with a view to the canals that make our hearts race. Would that orange Eames chair really seem all that special in non-architecture porn renter's box? Doubt it.

I really enjoyed the contest, although I personally cared for the spaces entered last year much more. The previous batch of entries seemed to have more decorating diversity between them, actual small space challenges and solutions, and completed designs. If we are providing suggestions, I would like to suggest that the next year's contest include a maximum square footage of 500 square feet. 650 seems positively huge, and less interesting in my opinion. With the number of large spaces entered this year, I found myself just looking at nicely decorated apartments, not inovative, cool small spaces.

Ali, not only do I think a renter will place in the top 4, I think a renter might win it all this year. Check out David and Im's place (west, #16). They rent, and the work they did on their place is apparently all non-destructive. WOW!

If we're supposed to hold the fact that the Venice loft has what you folks call "good bones" against the owner, then maybe the architect from east coast's #2 should win, since he built the space. My loft has good bones. That's why I picked it. (I'm the apartmequarium guy, and I'm a renter). To me, picking a place with good bones is just like picking decor. I try to find a space that feels like me. On a budget, that's tough though... I'm lucky and I know it.

Personally, I'm hoping the top 10 is filled with real people rather than designers and architects. I suspect that's the direction the contest will go in the future though: less about do it yourself apartment therapy and more about viewing portfolio properties like east coast's #2, #8 or #24. I can't blame the designers and architects seeking free press for promoting their work, but it definitely changes the overall contest. East's #2 in particular. That's amazing, but the person who entered it appears to be the architect who built it rather than someone who lives there. It appears that nobody lives there - it's more or less a hotel room (a guest house).

Also, a final suggestion. Can we maintain consistency of voting language for all entries? No way Jose, and Not my Pick as third options really feel quite different.

Oh, Rob, I so dearly hope you are wrong about the direction in which future contests may go.

I don't have cable, and only get a few channels, but I was a fervent follower of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition when it first came on air. When it was about doing things with the space they had.

Then the show took a turn for the worse (in my opinion) and became Extreme Makeover: Home Demolition. All they do is tear down the old structure and put up a new one.

No longer were there cool tips on redoing space, it was all about building new.

And I'd rather not see a jumble of categories, that separates owners/renters, architects/non-architects, etc, I don't want it to become a finance war.

Clever use of space that accommodates personal needs shouldn't depend on income. Or where the furniture came from.

The only categories I might like to see would be ones having to deal with various needs and how they were fulfilled by the person in the space.

All-around would have a little bit of everything. Kitchen-dining, would be people who are serious about cooking and have many guests over to dine. No...maybe not.

I don't want any steeeeeking categories. I just want to see apartments. I want to see what people did. I want to get ideas of all kinds. I want to show the ideas I've seen here to other people.

I love to see all the shapes and nooks and crannies and it's all soooo wonderful. I don't want uniform stuff, all done by designers...I can find that crap in magazines. I want to see REAL people doing REAL things to REAL places.

I want to see things that maybe *I* could actually do.

Extensive contest exposure caused major personal shift. For the first time in 20 years didn't regret not getting the two eames chairs for $180. (Well, very nearly...) Pleassssee, can next years contest not include so many plucked from the catalogs design correct (as opposed to politically correct) midcenturyesque with one funky and/or expensive accent piece (depending on economic level) apartments?

How are the finalists chosen? What if someone has a high number of top scores but a higher number of middle scores? Do those scores have different values? Do the middle scores offset the highs? And then, are the "No Way Jose" votes subtracted? I would think a numerical value (with negative numbers for "No Way") would be assigned each category of rating.

My husband wonders if finalists are determined by percentages, but that could be tricky as well. If someone only got a handful of votes but all of them were the highest score, that entry would have a greater percentage of highest scores (which illustrates why all entries needed to receive votes or ratings, as others have pointed out).

What makes it worse is the very high number of people voting early on, as opposed to the much smaller amount of votes being received by entries showing up later on. As the deadline approached, it seemed that less and less people were voting (as evidenced by the numbers). Can we have more time for people to rate each one before finalists are chosen? Since the last few entries haven't had as much time to accumulate points?

Gosh, I'm such a nerd. But I'm really curious about the whole process.

Oh, and I'm not sick of the contest - each day, I haven't been able to tear myself away from it. I'm just really exhausted by the number of entries. And the mathematics. :)

dIANE, I didn't even understand what they were talking about when they said "three each day"...because when I came here, I went to the main page with all the submissions and started going through them all.

All of them could be voted on, on that page. It didn't matter which was shown on the main page.

I'm hoping that the voting isn't the ONLY way they choose, because I tried to vote a few times only to get a "site is busy, or server is broken" kind of message. I got the same message many times when trying to post here.

Another thing I'd like to see is a tiny thumbnail picture next to each entry. I've never been good at putting names with faces...and I'm apparently just as bad at putting titles of an entry with the apartment pictures.

Catalogs ARE a great way to decide on furniture arrangement, combining colors and looks, and often they are free for the asking, or can be paged through online. I encourage people to use catalogs on BHG for decor ideas.

Remember that if we are buying new...we are really at the mercy of the current trends/fads/fashion. Oh, sure, there are a lot of selections...but they are all geared to consumers and current trends.

I was going through an old BHG Decorating book and had so forgotten about certain upholstery that was on every other sofa back then, and is just not seen now.

Looking through some of the entries, you'll see similar colors too. Because you can only buy what is available.

Modern and contemporary is well-suited for smaller spaces. Clean, uncluttered areas look larger. Reflect more light. Are easier to maintain. It's totally obvious if you left a jacket on the chair, as it stands out like a sore thumb or like a Jonathan finger. In my oh-so-cluttered space, I can't even find the jacket I took off, because there is sooo much going on visually that the one jacket blends in with all the other crap.

Truth be told, I'd been to this site before. It must have been awhile ago. Before the contest. I couldn't figure out how it worked. I didn't see what the big attraction was. And I didn't come back.

I came over this time from one of the DWR newsletters, then browsed their site and ended up clicking a link from there to here for the contest.

I was excited and thrilled and spent hours going through picture after picture, entry after entry, and didn't get through them all that first night. But I got a ton of ideas.

I want MORE APARTMENT PICTURES...whether there's a contest or not. I want to see possibilities.

In the Open Threads, it's seemingly a daily chat. I'd rather see a message board. Just don't use the Prospero boards, plesae. Thanks.

Where each new question can get the attention it deserves. "Help me pick a sofa" and "NY Loft Laws" and "Wall Color for HW furniture" would all be separate posts. Less confusing for me, when I want to help someone find something. I can't remember what Open Thread number that question was in.

Also easy if the apartments pictured for the contest or for new pictures I hope to see. Each apartment could have it's own thread, linked over from the pictures (so people are making a judgment on the pictures only, and not on what others say). The thread with the new messages would pop to the top of each reader's window like message boards do, and the contestants could see if there were new questions.

For the message boards, I'd also like to see everyone from every city posting in the same spot. No dividing lines. Folks who want a specific source can simply say in their post "I need a new dry cleaner in NYC that can do my priceless area rug".

I also believe that would attract more people. If they want more people coming to the site, that is.

I loved the contest, am sad it is over but I am sure my boss is not. Thank you so much to the homeowners this year. There were so many amazing entries.

Just before I woke up on Saturday, I had a dream that I was looking at many, many shots of apartments - and they all looked pretty much alike. They were scrolling fast, with 2-up pics. I wanted them to slow down so that I could concentrate and focus, but hell, they all looked alike. I couldn't really tell them apart.

I love looking at people's places - it's the main reason I come here, and I have many bookmarked or even on my hard drive.

But there were sooo many entries! And so many downloaded from catalogues. Homogenized. I don't recall thinking that last year.

Last year's had smaller, way cooler, and more originally diverse apartments. But they were from NYC only. I continue to look at them from time to time.

This year, it seemed a lot of people did not use their photo slots to advantage. We saw toilets in pretty average bathrooms, views out of windows, a butt-end shot of a bare room being vacuumed, and some very pleasant but not so original Typical American Kitchens.

There was a lot to love, though. Dave and Katy's, Jane and Darko's, Molly's golden clawfoot tub (envy!!), Shauna's low-cash dash, among others.

I congratulate everyone on their places and their willingness to put themselves out there.

I'm feeling mostly a lingering queasy/uneasiness at tuck's dark revelatory note (on the nautical apartment page). What a miserable denouement. He'll never be able to love anyone else's apartment until he loves his own.

"I live in a tiny, cheap place with hardly any furniture or possessions, think Ivars place but not as nice. I could care less about my place since I only sleep there and travel often (for pleasure not work). I don't even have a phone or TV or microwave so you all would probably think I'm weird."

I actually wish the entries had not been segregated East and West coast, but rather just posted simultaneously.

But yikes, what a task to narrow them down. My own attempt at review over the weekend yielded a "brief" list of about 20 entries...

I HOPE HOPE HOPE that when a finalist list is posted, they will have thumbnails.

Also wish we could pick/rank our own top 5.
I think that would also deter the possibility of loading a single vote...

The toilet in the shower is an insta-finalists

I would've chosen not sick.

Seeing pictures of other people's apartments didn't bother me at all. I guess I'm just nosey :)

Sick? I'm sick from all the work I postponed looking at the entries. I'm sick that I have even more copied images on my hard drive to organize in my "ideas" folder. I'm sick with AT addiction. What did I ever do online before?

Michael -- loved your place. East Coast couldn't post all the entries. Maybe that's why?

WEST

#4 #32 #13 #27 #16

It seems like the voting doesn't influence the finalists at all. Very disappointing. What was the point for the top vote getterz? Thank you all for sharing! Inspiring!