The Latest: 2015

Name: Thomas and Tara Steffen Location: Nashville, TN Size: 2,650 square feet Years lived in: 3 years; Owned Who buys a house based on the wallpaper and lighting fixture in the front entryway? Tara does. She fell in love with her mid-century home the moment she walked in the door. This house, with its bright pops of color and classic lines, is just perfect to house her ever-evolving collections. Gallery walls are quite the trend these days and Tara has turned them into an art form.

Name: Monique, Stu, and their daughters, Lulu and Petula Location: Eltham; Melbourne, Victoria Size: 200 square metres (2,153 square feet) Years lived in: 6.5 years; Owned Monique and Stu’s home is cute, colorful, and inviting. Located in a leafy outer suburb of Melbourne, it is a perfect place to bring up their two young daughters.

Name: Carla Caruso Location: Ashfield, MA Size: 2,100 square feet Years lived in: 5 years; Owned Designer Carla Caruso, of Carla Caruso Jewelry, bought her home in the sleepy town of Ashfield, MA, five years ago. Nestled in the hilltowns of western Massachusetts, Carla embarked on a years-long renovation project, which she tackled largely on her own. The result is an eclectic and vibrant take on the New England farmhouse.

Name: Topaz Location: Downtown Wheaton, Illinois I work as an Art Director in the Chicagoland area and about two months ago moved into a gorgeous, half-basement nook. In the style of one of my favorite authors, L.M. Montgomery, I like to name my homes. However, accurately naming a home that is partially underground turned out to be more difficult than expected. After many word searches and some rather depressing synonym discoveries, I settled on “The Burrow.

This 100-year-old Craftsman-style home and opened up the living room, dining room, and kitchen to create one comfortable, communal space.

Name: Leah and Mike Location: Ocean Beach/Outer Sunset neighborhood, San Francisco, California My husband and I just finished renovating our 1940s, 800 square foot home near Ocean Beach. We fell in love with the neighborhood, the east/west light in our house, and the huge backyard.

Name: Ana and Fabiano Location: Villeray Montreal, Canada Size: 950 square feet Years lived in: 1 year; Owned It’s been a little more than 1 year since my husband and I moved to this 950 square foot 2-bedroom apartment in the cozy neighbourhood of Villeray in Montreal. We chose this area because it’s vibrant and multicultural. We spend a lot of time decorating the space and we’re really proud of our new home. I’m a Digital Marketer and my hubby is a graphic designer.

Name: Amy, Noah, River, Darby, and Isaiah Location: Portland, Maine Size: 1,800 square feet Years lived in: 9 years; Owned Far away from white and empty spaces, Amy and Noah celebrate the art of uniqueness, embracing blasts from the past, dramatic patterns and a modern era. The result is so refreshing that it left me speechless. Amy and Noah are the founders of Picnic, an indie music and art festival, and owners of Pinecone+Chickadee, a boutique full of quirky finds and old-time surprises.

Name: Linzi Clary and Spencer Tubbs Location: Providence, RI Size: 1,150 square feet Years lived in: 2 years; Rented Linzi Clary and her boyfriend Spencer Tubbs have an eye for interiors and share a passion for mid-century design. Linzi, a fine arts graduate and designer at Speidel, and Spencer, a shopkeeper and musician, moved to Providence two years ago, combining their styles and passions to create one seriously mod and beautiful space that truly reflects their personalities.

Name: Christina Clark Location: South Austin, TX Size: 400 square feet Years lived in: Almost 1 year; Rented While definitely qualifying as a small space, this newly-renovated apartment makes great use of its natural light and nice flow, making it seem much larger than it is. Tried and true elements including large windows, white walls, dark wood floors, and rich cabinet colors allow for a modern, yet classic appeal. Christina grew up in Vermont and spent some time studying abroad in London.

Name: Leila Younis and Ike the Pug Location: Ottawa, Ontario Size: 1,400 square feet Years lived in: 4 years; Owned Leila’s 110 year-old house is spacious, welcoming, and filled to the brim with personality. Since she bought the home four years ago, Leila has taken the time to make the space her own with both large renovation projects such as the kitchen or smaller touches like the accent walls in the living room and craft room.

Name: Edith, husband Ole, and 2-year-old daughter Ebba Location: Holtet — Oslo, Norway Size: 1,600 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned Welcome to Scandi Week—Apartment Therapy’s seven-day focus on all-things Scandinavia (often defined as the countries of Sweden, Denmark, and Norway). Sometimes it seems like the whole world is obsessed with trying to copy this corner of the globe, from its timeless style aesthetic to its now-famous coziness rituals.

Name: Andras Location: Palace district, Budapest, Hungary When I tried to find a home three years ago I was looking for a place with amazing possibilities. As a designer I’m lucky to have the ability to see the best in every room. When I first saw this apartment it was damaged, the walls were painted odd colors and the previous owner built arches to weird places, but I instantly fell in love with the picture of what the place could become.

Name: Jenny and Jim O’Connor (with children Lily, 3 and James, 7 months) Location: State Streets; Livonia, Michigan Size: 1,088 square feet Years lived in: 4 years; Owned Jenny and her family live in Livonia’s State Streets, a neighborhood where most streets are named after U.S. states. The neighborhood is adjacent to Old Rosedale, where Jenny’s parents Sue and Doug live.

Name: Jasmin Snyder Location: Irvington; Indianapolis, Indiana Size: 994 square feet of living space, 400 square feet of unfinished basement Years lived in: 3.5 years; Owned Jasmin’s house doesn’t immediately reveal the creative wealth it holds inside.