Name: Ricardo Guisse and three roommates Location: Washington, DC Size: 850 square feet Years lived in: Renting 3 years Architectural charm fills this renovated row house, as do roommates! Four young professionals share this 850 square foot rental home (an affordable option in a big city). With so little space, the challenge was creating a comfortable home with enough room. Their smart storage solutions help the small space function and look stylish.

Name: Maria Raco, Founder of NewWall Location: Toronto, Ontario Size: 2,000 square feet Years Lived In: 9 years, owned The walls in Maria Raco’s downtown Toronto apartment do not disappoint. As the founder and director of NewWall, a wallpaper distributor of collections from Marimekko, Timorous Beasties and more, plenty of rooms in her home feature vibrant patterns.

Name: Molly Fitzpatrick and William Sill and Malachi (3) and Malala (two months old) Location: Cleveland, Ohio Size: 875 square feet Years Lived In: 6 years, owned What happens when a mason and a textile designer renovate a house together? In the case of Molly Fitzpatrick, the creative behind the colorful home wares of DittoHouse, and her husband William Sill, the result is a modern space with an attention to detail and a respect of natural materials.

Name: Marianne Brown 
 Location: Denver, Colorado Size: 600 square feet Years Lived In: 1 year, renting “My apartment is a small one bedroom in downtown Denver. Not among the tall buildings of downtown, but just on the edge, in the Uptown neighborhood of Denver. A whopping 600 square feet. I’ve lived here for a year, after moving several times over the past few years.

Name: Puji Sherer Location: St. Johns neighborhood — Portland, Oregon Size: 864 square feet Years Lived In: 2 years, owned Nine. That’s the number of different colors on display in the Portland house of Puji Sherer, President and “Chief Color Nerd” at Colorhouse Paint, an eco-conscious, low-odor paint company. But don’t think you’re in for a dizzying blend of too-bright hues in this tour.

Name: Danika and family Location: Fort Worth, Texas Size: 3400 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting When you’re outnumbered by kids, it can sometimes be hard to craft a home that both fits your style personality and theirs. Particularly if you’re renting. But as this young family proves, you can get creative — and colorful — even in a rental. Danika’s advice for making a home is simple, but universal: “Make your home yours. Unapologetically.

Name: Tuva, with partner Lars and 10-month-old son Bo (and a cat called Nils) Location: Tøyen — Oslo, Norway Size: 950 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, 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).

Life is hectic. It can be even more overwhelming if you live in a vibrant, bustling urban area. Interior designer Séverine Piller and her boyfriend Gianfranco share this Milan apartment, and she wanted to create a calming, minimal retreat.

If you’re looking for a minimal look that isn’t too stark and melds together such eclectic decor styles as “Parisian Chic” and “California Cool,” you’ll love this apartment in Milan. Its effortless atmosphere mixes in modern furnishings and travel finds with warm woods and clean lines. The result is a stunningly simple, modern space. Find resources on how to recreate the look in your own home.

Even if you don’t have a lot of money in your budget, you can fit a lot of bold into your home. We’ve gathered up examples of real life decor choices from our tours that prove our point; they are are wallet friendly and made a big impact on the space. Mixing patterns can be an affordable way to get really bold in your home. Because different patterns interact with one another dynamically, you can mix high- and low-priced pieces (even all-low pieces) to create a bold composition.

Name: Thimblepress headquarters Location: Jackson, Mississippi Size: 2300 square feet Years lived in: Rented 1.5 years In business for over three years, Thimblepress is “an art studio, sewing studio, design studio, woodworking studio, and basically anything creative that Kristen [the founder] wants to try her hand at next.

If you’re looking for inspiration on how to balance the design of an outdoor area—so it can be a creative space for kids, a refreshing zone for parents and a playful space for entertaining— this backyard is full of ideas. It’s a balanced mix of clever kid’s toys and dreamy areas to relax in. Inspiration: We love California inspired indoor-outdoor homes, Scandinavian sensibilities, neutral spaces with a hint of mid-century modern, and sustainable design features.

When a minimal approach to furnishings, Scandinavian influences, warm colors and playful accents combine, they create an interesting and inviting place. That’s just what Mina and Sumit did in their Stockholm house, which is also home to their three young children. Below, find the shopping resources to incorporate a playful, minimal, Scandinavian style in your space.

Name: Astral Riles Location: Harvey, Illinois Size: 990 square feet Years lived in: Owned 8+ years Astral is a interior designer, DIY home blogger and fiber artist, and her cozy house in Harvey, Illinois showcases all her loves — as well as design talents! Astral writes: “I live in a mid-century, all-brick, raised Ranch home located in the south suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. The house was built in 1950. I originally purchased the house as a fixer-upper.

In this 650 square foot loft studio, located in a small town just above Dallas, the theme is airy, minimal and cool. What sets this space apart from other minimally decorated homes is how warm and inviting it is—despite not having a lot of “stuff.” You can get this look in your home (no matter its size)—Drew provided the exact shopping resources for nearly every item in his Texas home!

Living in a small space isn’t easy. Sharing that small space with another person and making it look good? That’s an incredible feat, but it’s one that Will and Kate tackled without a sweat in their small studio apartment in Hell’s Kitchen. Find shopping resources to replicate their smart mix of affordable mid-century style buys and vintage finds.

It’s hard to imagine a more fabulous, fun, fantasy-fueling space than Rory’s Vibrant Urban Jungle Paradise in Downtown Los Angeles. It’s full of bold bursts of color, neon lights, quirky accessories, natural materials and a whole lot of pink! Below, find the shopping resources to recreate some of this decor magic in your home.

Name: Angie Cooper and Matt Johnson Location: Midlothian, Virginia (just outside Richmond) Size: 1,807 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years Nestled on two acres of land and surrounded by tall trees, Angie and Matt’s home is a mix of styles. Rustic elements pay homage to the natural setting just outside, while modern pieces reflect their personalities. Add in antiques and vintage finds (as well as a motorcycle!

These kids’ rooms are packed with daring, colorful inspiration that you can use for the rest of your home (whether you live with kids or not!). Full of playful energy, these rooms and their decor styles prove that for big style statements, you don’t always have to take design so seriously. You don’t have to splurge on fancy wallpaper to add energy to a space.

When trying to decide what colors to use to decorate your home, you can’t go wrong with warm colors found in nature. Painted on the walls, colors like reds, oranges, browns, golden yellows and even some greens add intensity to a room, wrapping it in warmth. Boldly painted walls increase the passion in a home, creating rooms that almost glow. Here are seven rooms fully embracing earthy colors to inspire your own nature-colored palettes.

Reclaimed wood walls, lots of plants, colorful textiles and a master bedroom mountain mural—all these elements come together in Lulu and Justin’s Los Angeles home. The result is a cozy space that has California cabin vibes.

Name: Manfung and Angel Location: Rotterdam, The Netherlands Size: 1237 square feet Years lived in: Owned 6 years Minimalism can be a peaceful, calming design style that can create a relaxed home. In Manfung and Angel’s home in Rotterdam, they combined minimal sensibilities with repurposed building materials and charming vintage finds. The result is a welcoming home.

Bold patterns, bright colors and a daring sense of style—Lauren and Jason’s West Seattle home is an inspiring mix of elements. But it’s also proof that taking design chances can pay off big! Inside: the shopping resources to get the look.

Name: Eliza Clark and Tim Trojian Location: Foxfire Mountain House — Mt Tremper, New York Size: 7200 square feet Years lived in: Owned 3 years A historic inn in the heart of New York’s Catskill Mountains has been recently restored—much of it on a tight budget and by hand—by the creative couple of Eliza Clark and Tim Trojian.

Name: Eliza Clark and Tim Trojian Location: Foxfire Mountain House — Mt Tremper, New York Size: 7200 square feet Years lived in: Owned 3 years The Foxfire Mountain House is a recently restored 100-year-old vintage inn in the Catskill Mountains of New York that has been a labor of love for Eliza Clark and Tim Trojian, a creative married couple (and passionate DIYers) who tackled many of the renovation projects themselves.

Name: Vanessa Matsalla Location: Carlsbad, California You had a look at designer Vanessa Matsalla’s California home earlier this week; it’s got cool Cali vibes, earthy textures and a lot of natural light. Her showroom in Carlsbad, California also serves as the office of her full-service interior design practice. Though a small space, it complements the look of her home, while giving off its own specific style vibes.

Name: Mary MacGill Location: Block Island, Rhode Island Years lived in: Owned 12 years Mary MacGill’s jewelry is ethereal—semi-precious stones in subtle colors mix with structured metal like gold. It’s hard not to see that aesthetic mirrored in the studio she creates her work in, in Block Island, Rhode Island. Elegant minimalism, bright white, natural textures and rich materials make this a calming and creative space.

Emily doesn’t have a ton of space in her Fort Greene studio apartment (just 400 square feet), but her eclectic mix of decor—vintage and new—creates an elegant mix of style that makes her home feel much larger than it is. The sweet architectural details (that fireplace!) don’t hurt either.

Project by: Filipe Battazza and Raoni Mariano of Fábrica Arquitetos Location: São Paulo, Brazil This professional project is one of those amazing examples of how you can do so much with so little when you harness the power of design. Engineered by architects, using a lot of sleek materials, this exact renovation might be out of reach for some, but it’s still filled with tons of ideas you can steal to make a small home work (and look) so much better.

Full of boldly colored walls, fun furniture, and vibrant accessories, these 13 homes are bursting with vivid hues in bold ways. They just might inspire you to do some painting in the new year. This home is practically a playground of color and pattern, spearheaded by a budding interior designer. DIY projects abound in this beautifully modern home, but what caught my eye the most was the inventive use of color.

End-of-year round-up lists are the best if only because they’re an opportunity to see any house tours you may have missed! In 2018, many folks shared their beautiful homes, but somereally resonated with readers, particularly those who find inspiration on Pinterest. The photographs in this post represent the most pinned house tour photos of the year… did any of your favorites make the list?

Apartment Therapy’s Instagram feed is a scrolling wonderland of stunningly gorgeous interior spaces, due in no small part to the photos from all of our house tours that end up on the feed. Curious about which house tour photos were the most liked on our Instagram this year? See if it was one of your favorites from the countdown below!

Name: Red Rescue Retreat Location: Lake District, United Kingdom I think it’s accurate to say I’m slightly obsessed with things that aren’t homes being converted into a homes. That’s why you’ve seen everything from a former prison bus turned mobile home, to a converted van, to a school bus turned tiny home featured on Apartment Therapy. I’m very happy to share a first for the site: a converted former fire truck.

Scandinavian and Nordic-inspired interiors are very good at very white, bright interiors, but they also do dark, moody spaces well, too.