The Latest

Name: Pong C. & Gatsby the dog.Location: Rittenhouse — Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaSize: 568 square feetYears lived in: 2 years You may remember the Pong’s Restraint entry from this years Small Cool 2010. I just couldn’t resist paying his Rittenhouse digs a visit and I’m sure glad I did. There’s nothing more inspirational than a well decorated small space — restraint is key. Not only in restraint a key to the success of this space, there’s also color.

Name: Andrew, Kathleen, and RubyLocation: Berkeley Hills — Berkeley, CaliforniaSize: 2,600 square feetYears lived in: 7 — owned It’s all about respect. It is, at least, for Kathleen and Andrew when it comes to decorating their 1947 mid-century modern home in the Berkeley Hills. When they first moved into the space they were perplexed by the layout of the home. The bedrooms were small and awkward and the living spaces were open and undefined.

Name: Rylie Beverly Scott, 7 weeks oldLocation: Los Angeles, CARoom Size: 12′ x 14′ Liz Scott is a Los Angeles based fabric designer, so it only makes sense that the nursery she created for her daughter, Rylie, is brimming with gorgeous, colorful prints on chairs, banners, and bedding. The beauty is certainly in the details in this space. From handmade plush animals to sweet vignettes carefully arranged on vintage wall shelves, Rylie’s nursery is a breezy mix of old and new.

Name: Shanan and ChrisLocation: West Queen West — Toronto, CanadaSize: 2000 square feet + 400 square foot studio (building behind the house)Years lived in: 3 — owned Take one newly renovated, 3 bedroom semi-detached home up for sale in Toronto’s West Queen West neighborhood. Add Shanan, a graphic designer who recently returned to Toronto in search of a home and workspace for her company, Linseed Projects. Wait a few months.

Name: Kerri & LukeLocation: Lakewood — Dallas, TexasSize: 1,400 square feetYears lived in: 8 months — rented Amidst the historic neighborhoods tucked away in east Dallas, Kerri and Luke have embraced their early 20th century home in a space that continues the tradition of southern hospitality updated for their 21st century guests. All at minimal cost.

What: Showtime House 2010Location: Midtown — New York, New YorkSize: 3 Penthouse apartments in Cassa Hotel & Residences, Benefiting: Harlem Children’s Zone Showhouses are a bizarre animal — and the third Showtime House is no exception. Pulling inspiration from 7 Showtime original series, the designers mix high-concept and high-design into themed rooms for the public to tour.

Name: Sharon, Chris, Julian and Larry (the dog)Location: Greenwich VillageSize: 1080 square foot 2-bedroom coopYears lived in: 1 Sharon is a fashion designer and her husband Chris is a developer and contractor. So, she wanted to go for a completely individualized look and he wanted to ensure re-sale potential. The result is great bones, and solid materials, with the most gorgeous and romantic flourishes.

Name: Tim LallyLocation: North Center — Chicago, IllinoisSize: 1,250 square feetYears lived in: 15 years — owned Knowing that Tim is a landscape designer, I had a hunch he would have beautiful outdoor spaces. And, of course, I was correct. What I didn’t know is that inside his home would be just as beautiful and tasteful as outside. Tim’s apartment has the typical layout of a classic Chicago two-flat.

Name: Patricia CaldwellLocation: Los Feliz — Los Angeles, CaliforniaSize: 800 square feetYears lived in: 2 months The idea of finding a new space, packing my stuff, and making it all fit somewhere else makes my head spin. But Patricia’s one-bedroom hideaway, nestled in the lovely Los Feliz area of Los Angeles makes me think again about the moving process. Three weeks is all it took Patricia to make an empty shell feel like a home.

Name: Alison and JoeLocation: Plainfield, IllinoisSize: 1,800 square feetYears lived in: 3 months Alison and Joe have only lived in their house for about three months but you wouldn’t know by looking at it. The way their suburban home is so completely and tastefully decorated it looks like they’ve lived in their house for three years.

Name: Mary & Eric Martineau (and Bogart the dog) Location: Harrison West — Columbus, OhioSize: 1,620 square feetYears lived in: 2 owned for 3½ Creative reuse is nothing new to Mary Martineau. As owner of Short North gallery Transformations, she used decoupage and paint to rework ordinary pieces of used furniture into functional works of art.

Name: Kevin Sharkey, decorating editorial director of Martha Stewart LivingLocation: Far West Village — New York, New YorkSize: 2,500 square feetYears lived in: 2 After 18 months of renovations, Kevin Sharkey was so pleased to have his apartment complete for the September issue of Martha Stewart Living that he invited Apartment Therapy editors for a private tour! The contemporary space is high over the Hudson in one of the Richard Meier towers on the West Side Highway.

Name: Kate Bingaman-Burt & Clifton BurtLocation: Portland, OregonSize: 600 square feetYears lived in: 2 Kate and Clifton have done an amazing job showing off the items they’ve collected while maintaining a great live/work space in their small lofted apartment. You may be familiar with Kate’s art-project-turned-book, Obsessive Consumption: What Did You Buy Today?, a collection of ink drawings cataloging many of her daily purchases.

Name: Tyke O’Brien and Jon LeaverLocation: Topanga Canyon, CaliforniaSize: 1,700 square feet — 2 bedrooms Years lived in: 3 — ownedWho else lives here? Our son, Monty (almost 2 year old) and our cat, Tiny. And there’s a coyote named Jeff who sometimes mills around outside. When we last saw Jon and Tyke in their Topanga Canyon Casa it was cozy and warm, filled with wood and deep rich colors and patterns.

Name: Amna & Paul WerdelLocation: Adams Morgan — Washington DCSize: 750 square feetYears lived in: 2 — rented Take a good look, because these are some of the last pictures snapped of Amna and Paul’s Adams Morgan gem before it goes under the knife…or the sledge hammer as it were. Their turn of the century building is being turned into condos, and part of the process is a major renovation of all the units.

Emily Henderson is a professional prop stylist, so it comes as no surprise that her own home is very lovely to look at — her talent for creating beautiful rooms is wonderfully apparent and for HGTV viewers, familiar. Her design skills are on display on HGTV’s Design Star, where she has made it very far in the competition, currently she is one of the final two contestants.

Name: Lindsay & JeremyLocation: Capitol Hill — Washington, DCSize: 700 square feetYears lived in: 1 As anyone who’s ever lived with a significant other can tell you, there’s an art to compromise. When Lindsay and Jeremy moved in together four years ago, they found themselves confronted with the challenge of creating a space that reflected their mutual interests (books, movies, music) without losing sight of their individual aesthetics (geek chic for him, granny chic for her).

Name: Christopher Cushingham Location: Downtown Los Angeles, California Size: 780 Square Feet Years lived in: 6 months Large windows are a valued element to loft living. Chris worked as a residential window cleaner growing up, which helped develop his appreciation for unique and expansive windows. In fact, these industrial windows and the generous natural light they provide sold him on this particular loft.

Name: SarikaLocation: Lower East Side — New York, New York My studio apartment is smack dab in the middle of New York City’s Lower East Side — a neighborhood that recently topped a list of best places to live for the “young, single and cash-strapped.” Fitting the bill on all three of those things, and zeroing in on the last item (working on a reporter’s budget here!

Name: Kate & CameronLocation: Carroll Gardens — Brooklyn, New YorkSize: 850 square feet — 1 bedroomYears lived in: 10 months Kate and Cameron are very in sync when it comes to style. They married a year ago, and moved into this great apartment soon thereafter. Buying furniture was easy as they both knew they wanted simple and efficient pieces.

Name: Dan & Sarah Herchenroether Location: Newport, Rhode Island Size: 1,176 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years Dan used all his experience as an architect and whole lot of elbow grease to transform a small cottage on a quiet street away from the tourist hustle and bustle of Newport, Rhode Island from drab and dated (think tons of wood paneling) into a sweet and contemporary family home.

Name: Nicole GibbonsLocation: HarlemSize: 650 square feetYears lived in: 3.5 years We love peeking inside the homes of designers and other creative professionals, and our latest House Tour comes courtesy of Nicole Gibbons, who is the brains and the beauty behind one of our favorite interior design blogs So Haute.

Name: Alisha, Graham & Finley Irwin Location: Fairfax, CA Size: 320 square foot studio cottage with loft Years lived in: newly built guest cottage behind our home Rented or Owned: owned When Alisha and her husband were ready to renovate their tiny guest house they decided on two things: to keep it as low impact and green as possible and to infuse it with their happy, bright, vintage style.

Many rooms just mandate a bed on an angle. Placing it against the walls makes the space feel stale and sticking it straight out into the room might take up all of the available floor space. So when we ran across Jonas’ bedroom from yesterday’s Hollywood Regency Homestead tour, we wanted to make sure to highlight that it can be done and the end result is fabulous!

Name: Jonas Location: Brookside, Kansas City, MissouriStyle: Dutch Colonial Years lived in: 4 On the drive to photograph Jonas’ home, I had geared myself up for the “nice but non-creative” that is usually found in neighborhoods of this age. His home resides just south of Kansas City in an area that’s trying to make a shift from old money to new young blood.

Name: Emily Location: Ukrainian Village, ChicagoSize: 1,000 sfYears lived in: Just over one year When I wrote the post about Emily’s welcoming guest room earlier this month, I knew I had to see the rest of her apartment. Luckily, Emily was willing to have us all over for a House Tour! And just as I expected, the rest of her home is decorated with her cute, light, bright, and mostly DIY shabby chic style.

Welcome to Kate from the Pacific Northwest; a blogger trying out for a place on the Apartment Therapy editorial team as a House Tour Contributor. Enjoy her work!Name: JenniferLocation: Rio Dell, CaliforniaSize: 1850 square feetYears lived in: 28 Fondly referred to as Masion Un (which means House One in French), this home seems almost hidden among the lush, overgrown plants, orchard, pond and alluring views all vying for attention over the five acre sprawl.