Sydney Fazende says it took a lot of trial and error with furniture arrangements (and custom pieces) to maximize her small SoHo apartment.

This rental apartment before Madeline Warshaw moved in was “sad, drab, landlord special.” Not anymore!

Except for a few pieces of cookware, all of the furniture, wall art, linens, trinkets, rugs, and even plants have been found secondhand in this stylish rental apartment.

Two artists mixed Mediterranean-inspired minimalism, a Scandinavian approach to storage, and hints of space-age design elements in this hip Barcelona apartment.

This native New Yorker has personalized her small rental apartment with renter-friendly DIYs and “98% secondhand finds.”

Dalton and Dave transformed their blank, white shoebox of an apartment with art and vintage treasures.

Although just a rental, Devin and Jess have put their stamp on their 1970s bungalow in Portland, Oregon.

This vibrant 1076-square-foot rental apartment in Brussels has high ceilings, lots of light, and fun furnishings.

This modern loft reno features concrete columns, high ceilings, exposed beams, great brickwork, and cool plywood shelves.

This Finnish graphic designer and illustrator has used Finnish design in her small and bright Portuguese rental apartment.

These first-time homeowners worked with pros to renovate a worn-down Brooklyn house originally built in 1910

Interior designer and stylist Justin Coakley and his partner, Zunaid, renovated this 1930s property, creating a more open-plan feel by taking down walls and converting a loft into a bedroom with incredible walk-in wardrobe.

Lynette has designed the perfect home for entertaining in the two-bedroom apartment she owns in Singapore.

Eishi describes this home’s style as colorful, silly, and fun. “It’s definitely a bit over the top, which we love, and it definitely cheers us up and lifts our mood.”

Merçè’s grandmother lived in this 721-square-foot apartment — located in the center of Barcelona — her whole life, before leaving the small, two-bedroom space to Merçè two years ago. While in a great location, the apartment was pretty antiquated and “not-so-well-designed,” not to mention that Merçè wanted to add her own style to the space.

See photos of the minimal and organic modern renovated home of designer Casey Keasler, founder of design firm Casework.

See every colorful and eclectic detail of the gorgeous small Columbia rental apartment that won 2023’s Small/Cool Contest.

Teju’s rental came with typical NYC apartment challenges like old infrastructure, window issues, uneven floors, and weird walls.

Emilia and her husband had a tight budget for these renovations, which is why they did most of the labor themselves.

See inside a Barcelona apartment that was renovated to modernize it, but still kept the historical character. And the pink kitchen is a must-see!

This couple hired architects to redesign their apartment for themselves, their 8-year-old daughter, and her grandparents.

At first glance, this home might appear to be maximalist, but the style is actually more of a reflection of the family. There’s a fry-themed room, a skateboard bedroom, and plenty of other personal touches.

See photos of this 388-square-foot Warsaw, Poland, apartment that uses color in a minimal, Parisian-inspired way.

Fenna’s home is a very cool vintage-filled loft apartment that was once a woodworking shop in the 1930s.

Tour this small San Fran studio apartment in a 1906 Edwardian building with ornate molding and gothic door hardware.

See inside Gina Fuchs’ small Brooklyn studio apartment that’s full of color, tchotchkes, small-space design ideas, and perhaps most importantly, a ton of fun!

“I know it might sound silly to pick an apartment because of its bathroom, but finding an apartment with a decent bathroom is really difficult in NY,” writes Jhenene.

This prop stylist’s apartment went from a “vintage California cottage” vibe to an “eclectic contemporary space.”

The built-in planter in the entryway was a huge draw for Lauren and Mark, who got a friend to add a vintage mural, too.

With two people sharing 535 square feet, storage space gets used in unique ways. Case in point: Emily and Trei’s kitchen cupboards “hold books, holiday decor, and other non-kitchen items.”

It’s small but has a mid-century modern fireplace, hardwood floors, and retro bathroom tiles.

For the last three years, this couple has painstakingly renovated every single room in this house “from drywall to entirely rebuilding rooms and spaces to thoroughly reflect our personalities.”

See inside this rental apartment with French doors, a large kitchen, and tons of natural light from 12 total windows.

The couple completely redid the kitchen, combined two of the bedrooms into one, opened up two main doorways, rehabbed floors, updated lighting and shelving, and added fresh paint.

“Live, Laugh, Loft” is the motto of this newly single woman’s home in Preston, England.

This “clean cut” rental apartment is now sexy, groovy, and a little bit like “organized chaos.”

Alicia got a second chance at decorating when she moved out of, and then back into, this Astoria apartment.

The biggest challenge has been navigating the different stages of a family living in a small space (and accommodating all the kid gear!).

Following a divorce, Leslie craved a home where she could start a new chapter and put down roots. This house in Portland, Oregon, checked all her boxes and then some.

And they've basically filled every room with plants and disco balls, too!

This house's original hardwood floors and Art Deco chandelier are gorgeous (and so is the rest of the decor!)

This house came with all-white walls and no landscaping, but it’s now moody and has an incredible backyard after the couple “landscaped the crap out of the whole property.”

This Scandi-inspired rental has mid-century modern touches like a gas fireplace, warm wooden floors, and huge windows.