The Latest: 2011

Name: Ryan and Michele Tansey with Buster & Lizzie (golden retrievers) Princess & Mr. Paws (softest cats ever) and our human roommate Jon McJiltonLocation: Central District/Madrona; Seattle, WashingtonSize: Built in 1903: two stories with unfinished basement. Three bedrooms, two baths plus office. 1380 finished 700 unfinishedYears lived in: 1 year, 3 months; owned I know I have a great house tour on my hands when I find myself smiling as I edit the photos.

Name: Lestat, Perry and their twin toddlers Lucrezia and OrazioLocation: Cotroceni Quarter, Bucharest, RomaniaSize: 6,000 square feet Years lived in: Owned 2.5 years 6,000 square feet is certainly a lot of space to fill, but Perry and Lestat did not shy away from the challenge. Instead, the stylish and talented Lestat designed and created a space full of color, personality, pattern, great furnishings and fun. There’s so much inspiration here, it’ll be hard to pick a favorite room.

Name: Drew and Mindy and their beloved dog, Winnie CooperLocation: Melrose, MassachusettsSize: 1,700 square feetYears lived in: almost 2 — owned After I walked up the steep-ish, ample stairs to the front door of Drew and Mindy’s house (greeted along the way by Winnie Cooper!), I walked in and remembered why it’s so much fun to be a house tour blogger. I was instantly smitten with their delightful, beautifully curated home (and their dog, but that’s another story).

Name: Jess ConstableLocation: East Lakeview — Chicago, IllinoisSize: 725 square feetYears lived in: 1 year — rented Jess has striven to turn her plain-Jane rental into a lovely comfortable home. Along the way, she often referred back to Summer Thornton’s house tour, which we posted way back in 2008. (Further proof that traditional elegant style is timeless.) Jess is one busy lady.

Name: Jenn SchoemehlLocation: La Salle Park — St. Louis, MissouriSize: 4500 square feetYears lived in: 7 — owned The first thing you need to know about Jenn Schoemehl’s house concerns the ceilings. They’re 13 soaring feet tall. Your eye keeps going up and up and up until you finally hit the ceiling. Then, and only then, can you begin to take in the rest of the house.

Name: Chris Sewell and Kenny Osehan, owners of the Presidio MotelLocation: Santa Barbara, CaliforniaSize: 700 square feetYears lived in: 4 months Last time I visited Kenny and Chris they were living in a well decorated apartment in Santa Barbara. Well…they still live in Santa Barbara, but now live in a new house. Big congrats! They moved over a lot of their furnishings, but purchased some new items to match the style of their new home.

Name: Sabrina SotoLocation: Upper West Side, New YorkSize: 1200 square feet, 2 bedroom, 2 bath rentalYears Lived In: 7 months Sabrina, an HGTV designer and personality, just moved to NYC from Washington DC for her new show. She downsized from a sizeable house to a brand new 2-bedroom luxury rental, basically starting over from scratch.

Location: Mt. Washington Valley, New HampshireSize: 1800 square feetYears lived in: 24 — owned I know this tour is a bit of a departure from standard Apartment Therapy fare. It’s roomier, lake-ier, and more traditionally decorated than the average tour. But it happens to be my favorite house in the world and a place of peace. So I finally decided it was time to share it. This lake house belongs to my parents. They bought it twenty four years ago.

Name: Chris, Master of Public Policy Candidate at Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of MichiganLocation: Ann Arbor, MichiganSize: 390 square feetYears lived in: 2 months, rented As a busy grad student, Chris takes a no-nonsense approach to decor. His space is tiny at only 390 square feet, but feels much more spacious because of his take-no-prisoners approach to clutter and excess.Because of his minimal style, Chris appreciates and is intentional about each item in his home.

Name: Daniel and Mercedes Location: South Park — Downtown Los Angeles, CASize: 978 Square FeetYears lived in: 2 — Rent Daniel and Mercedes Curran live in a renovated downtown loft building, where they have built a cozy home that celebrates the charms of postwar and midcentury classics. They have a knack for shopping and sourcing great pieces on a budget and they are not afraid to use every square foot of their loft.

Name: Pietsie Campbell, Stephen Hootstein, and CharlieLocation: Echo Park – Los Angeles, CaliforniaSize: 800 square feetYears lived in: 4 years Pietsie and her husband had sold their house and were on the hunt for another great place. After having no luck finding a place that really inspired them, Pietsie found a gem in Echo Park. The house was only 800 square feet, but the landlord was none other than the modern architect, Barbara Bestor.

Name: JaneLocation: Upper West Side, New YorkSize: 3 bedroom, 3 bathYears Lived In: 8 years Jane and her husband have very different approaches to design. While they both have a vested interest, Jane leans heavily towards form and her husband is a big fan of function. Together, however, they have achieved greatness. Jane is a designer by profession, so she took the lead seven years ago to create one home out of two apartments — one above the other.

Name: H. Keith Wagner and Sara KatzLocation: North Ferrisburgh, VermontSize: 2200 square feetYears lived in: 8 — owned We’ve seen several modern farmhouses here on Apartment Therapy. The best of the genre riffs on the traditional vernacular, and so too does this house outside of Burlington, Vermont. Keith Wagner, sculptor and landscape architect, took the landscape as his inspiration and built a house that lives peacefully with its rural surroundings rather than overpowers.

Name: John CoulterLocation: Miracle Mile — Los Angeles, CaliforniaSize: 1,500 square feet (1 bedroom + 1.5 bath)Years lived in: 5 years — own When my friends Craig Olsen and Robbie Laughlin urged me to shoot John’s house they explained his love of collecting art and decorating.

Name: Noemi Location: Berlin, Germany Beyond a lush garden courtyard, a tall twisting staircase leads to the top floor of a 19th century apartment building. Ivy-framed windows open wide as cool summer air drifts through elegant rooms inspired by the historic abodes of German philosophers, English writers, and even French queens.

Name: Greg Hennes & Grey Helvey Location: South East — Portland, OregonSize: approximately 1600 square feetYears lived in: 6 months — rented Greg and Grey moved into their studio loft in January of this year. The vibe they’ve created is one of serene calm, mixed with innovation and creativity. The space is astounding, full of open air and light — it’s the ideal showcase for their Antler & Co. handmade goods.

There’s a long list of things we love to blame for poor wireless signals—the weather, antenna placement, AT&T—and insulation is rarely one of them. It should be, though, because the insulation in your walls at home and at the office could be the real reason you’re dropping calls.Some construction materials are well-known to mess around with wireless signal strength.