The Latest: Mar 2010

Name: Juhi, Jayant and Aksh PrabhuLocation: Bangalore, IndiaSize: 1,400 square feetYears Lived In: 5 months When Juhi sent us photos of her family’s recently renovated home in Bangalore, asking us if we wanted to feature it as a house tour, we jumped on it! We’ve found the homes we’ve featured from India to be especially beautiful in their use of vivid colour and this one is no exception.

In the same way a few well-placed lamps can revitalize a room, neighborhoods get a face lift when given the proper lighting. A well-lit, bright street is far more more welcoming than a dark row of creaky houses—but does that make it safer? Is it mother-nature-friendly? Should you leave your porch light on all night? DON’T leave the light on all night. It’s not green. DO set any overnight nights to a 1/2 power dimmer setting.

Name: Philip Leeming & Leong Ong of FallsLocation: East VillageSize: under 600 square feetYears lived in: 9 years — rented The apartment that Philip and Leong call home during the week is in the heart of the East Village — just east of Astor Place on Saint Marks. In addition to being their weekday home, the apartment functions as hub of the couple’s fashion line Falls — it functions as their design studio but also hosts meetings, photo shoots and model castings.

Name: Trish Grantham (along with Pablo the dog and Georgia & Arlo the cats)Location: Portland, OregonSize: 900 Sq FtYears lived in: One Month (yep, ONE MONTH!) Portland artist, Trish Grantham lives on the ground floor of a pretty amazing house in North Portland. Inside her living space, collections abound. Outside is a large fenced backyard that makes the house feel removed from the tightly packed neighborhood it is set in.

Name: Lauren Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan Size: 800 square feet studio rental converted to a temporary one-bedroom Years lived in: Less than a year After a couple of years of ‘roommating’ in New York City, Lauren leaped out on her own and rented a studio apartment. Fortunately, it was large enough to put up some temporary walls and create a generous looking one-bedroom. Within a couple of months, it looked like it had been lived in for years! Lauren is a talented designer.

Name: Jay & MelissaLocation: Manchester, New HampshireSize: 1,250 square feetYears lived in: Owned – 6 yearsWho else lives there: Dogs Brady and Cali and Cats Mama, Tony, and Pepper Jay and Melissa made an offer on this two family on Manchester’s South side six years ago only to find out through Melissa’s mom that the home had been built by her grandfather in 1950.

Name: Johnny & Stacie SlocumLocation: St. Paul, MinnesotaSize: 1300 square feetYears lived in: 2.5 You may remember Johnny and Stacie’s loft from a house call that we published in January. We were thrilled when they agreed to share some more photos of their converted warehouse space with us. It simply is a home that makes us happy – cheerful, sunny and special – we’re glad to take a longer look.

Name: Jenika and RobertLocation: Westchester, CaliforniaSize: 1,000 square feetYears lived in: 2 months Jenika and her boyfriend, Robert, had been living in Los Angeles for 4 years and desperately wanted to have a house of their own. Knowing how expensive real estate is in Los Angeles, they knew that they would have to find a great fixer. Jenika and Robert, with the help of her parents, purchased a small home in Westchester that needed a lot of work.

Name: Hollister Hovey & Porter HoveyLocation: Williamsburg, BrooklynSize: 1,400 square feetYears lived in: rented, 4½: years A few misconceptions about the Hoveys. They are not big-game hunters from the 1930’s. They are sisters from Kansas City with the given names Hollister and Porter. They are not taxidermists. Hollister works in PR and Porter for a management consulting firm. They are not hoarders. They are collectors of awesomeness.

Name: Emily Baker & Meeko MendezLocation: North Beach, San FranciscoSize: 850 square feetYears lived in: almost 1 year Emily and Meeko, just married last October, moved into their first apartment together in North Beach about a year ago. As exciting as that was, combining lives, stuff and styles into a small apartment proved to be challenging as both were moving from much larger spaces they shared with roommates.

Name: Julie Simonson & Wilbur (6-month-old chocolate cockapoo puppy)Location: Old City — Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaSize: 1,223 square feetYears lived in: 2½ Julie is a Philadelphia Native. She moved to Los Angeles for several years and has vacationed in Vermont for much of her life. She eventually returned back to the city of brotherly love, bringing with her treasures from around the country that help make this loft Julie’s Jubilant Loft.