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Alison Goldman

Special Projects Director

Chicago, IL

Alison Goldman is an editor, writer, and TV binge-watcher based in Chicago. She's held editorial positions at Boston.com, WomensHealthMag.com, and Glamour magazine. She's also worked as a full-time freelance journalist, crafting lifestyle and culture content with an emphasis on women’s issues for publications including Cosmopolitan, The Lily from The Washington Post, The Boston Globe Magazine, and Chicago Magazine. She is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
Are You Ready to Meet the Grand Prize Winner of the Small/Cool Contest?
Small/Cool Contest
It’s giving champion-worthy decor ideas.
Alison Goldman
Jul 27, 2023
How Many Functions Can One Tiny Living Area Serve? Meet This Winning Studio
Small/Cool Contest
This Small/Cool Contest category winner seriously *works*.
Alison Goldman
Jul 27, 2023
The Small/Cool Contest Creativity Winner’s Home Has Major Color Inspo
Small/Cool Contest
Takeaway number one: Paint both the walls and ceiling blue.
Alison Goldman
Jul 27, 2023
8 Tips for Where to Start When Decorating a Small Home
According to literal small-space design champions: three past winners of the Small/Cool Contest.
Alison Goldman
Jul 12, 2023
This Easy TikTok Hack Turns a Basic Kitchen Item into Gorgeous Wall Art
A rug can become a massive living room wall hanging. A homemade quilt can take pride of place in a bedroom. And TikTok is here to suggest one more home linen item you may not have considered before for wall art.
Alison Goldman
Jan 26, 2023
5 Trends That Apartment Therapy Editors Want to See in 2023
Here at Apartment Therapy, we're all about loving your home and thriving in it.
Alison Goldman
Jan 1, 2023
6 Hobbies Apartment Therapy Editors Took Up in 2022
Maybe you'll choose to try one in 2023!
Alison Goldman
Dec 31, 2022
Bookshelf Lights Are the Solution to Sconces with No Drilling or Visible Cords
Because unlike some other forms of accent lighting, adding a new sconce to a room requires drilling into your wall. Even a plug-in sconce needs to hang from something.
Alison Goldman
Dec 28, 2022
The 10 Most Popular Home Products We Tested and Reviewed in 2022
We've got a review for just about every product category and every homeowner or renter, but if you're wondering which ones were the most popular all year, these are the product reviews that the most readers purchased from in 2022.
Alison Goldman
Dec 24, 2022
Apartment Therapy Staffers’ 5 Favorite Books of 2022
The holidays are the perfect time to grab a chunky blanket and bubbling hot cocoa and dive headfirst into a book without emerging for hours.
Alison Goldman
Dec 23, 2022
5 Favorite Decor Pieces Our Editors Bought This Year
From an antique shop painting to a gorgeous throw pillow to Moroccan rugs straight from the source, our staffers struck design gold.
Alison Goldman
Nov 27, 2022
6 Favorite Designs from TV Shows and Movies That AT Staffers Watched This Year
If you're looking for an aesthetically-pleasing television series or film to add to your must-watch list, check out our staffers' favorite production design eye candy of 2022.
Alison Goldman
Nov 23, 2022
Before and After: A Wood-Everywhere 1950s Home Gets a Bright New Life
When Laura Wilson of Velvet Sweatpants Interior Design and her fiancé purchased their 1959 home from the original owner, they knew the home needed a lot of love. They also knew they had their work cut out for them.
Alison Goldman
Oct 12, 2022
Another Mom Taught Me This Genius (and Inexpensive!) Cleaning Solution
Because cleaning involves lots of liquids — both the messy and often gross ones you have to mop up and the solutions you use to do so.
Alison Goldman
Aug 21, 2022
3 Dramatic DIY Transformations That Cost $50 or Less
With careful thought, preparation, and a good amount of creativity, you can make small but still really impactful changes to your space on a tighter budget.
Alison Goldman
Jul 20, 2022
Meet the 2022 Small/Cool Contest Superlative Winners!
Check out the most genius storage solution, best painted accent, and more from the 2022 Small/Cool Contest.
Alison Goldman
Jun 21, 2022
10 Inspiring Ideas from Some of the Tiniest Small/Cool Contest Homes
Some spaces are really, really, really small — and yet, thanks to the brilliance of their residents, they're still packed with gorgeous design and storage solutions.
Alison Goldman
Jun 14, 2022
20 Brilliant Design Tips from the Small/Cool Contest's Top 20 Spaces
The 20 homes that make up the second round of the 2022 Small/Cool Contest are all 1,000 square feet or fewer — and positively packed with beautiful decor and genius ideas.
Alison Goldman
May 18, 2022
This Gallery Wall Idea Has Been Living in My Head Rent-Free
Our readers come up with some of the most brilliant ideas.
Alison Goldman
May 18, 2022
This Counterintuitive Art Selection Tip Can Make Small Spaces Look Larger
Think big when it comes to adding art to small spaces. This year’s Small/Cool NYC designers have created rooms that offer all the evidence you need. 
Alison Goldman
May 16, 2022
3 Soothing Color Combos from Small/Cool NYC
As this year’s Small/Cool NYC designers demonstrate, warm tones and even monochrome can create a calming backdrop.
Alison Goldman
May 5, 2022
How I Made Zero Holes Hanging a Nursery Mobile from the Ceiling of a Rental
I designed the perfect custom felt baby mobile on Etsy and realized sometime between ordering it and receiving it that I also needed something to hang it from.
Alison Goldman
Apr 30, 2022
Thanks to Repairs and Renos, This Midwest Family Farmhouse Got a New Life
Starter Packs
"If you asked me two years ago if I could refinish hardwood floors, tile a backsplash, or repair holes in the wall, I would’ve laughed," Jessica Youngquist says.
Alison Goldman
Apr 3, 2022
The 2022 Small/Cool Contest Is Here — and Better Than Ever!
Each year, Apartment Therapy hosts the Small/Cool Contest to search for the smallest, coolest real-life spaces around the world. And starting today, you can find all things 2022 Small/Cool Contest on our full contest page.
Alison Goldman
Mar 15, 2022
B&A: You'll Swoon Over This $125 (!) Rental-Friendly (!!) Bathroom Makeover
Starter Packs
It's totally understandable if you think living in a rental apartment means you're pretty much stuck with the bathroom you've got. However, if you're willing to get creative, you can absolutely give this space a reversible, renter-friendly upgrade.
Alison Goldman
Mar 4, 2022
How to Prepare Your Small/Cool Contest Video Submission
This year, as part of your Small/Cool Contest submission, we’re asking for something new: a phone-recorded video of one room in your home showing your best and coolest small-space tip in action!
Alison Goldman
Feb 18, 2022
6 Space-Saving Organizational Tools That Apartment Therapy Editors Love
Whether it’s due to a nonexistent pantry or linen closet, a super narrow entryway, or minimal kitchen drawers, most homes present organizational challenges. The solve? Creativity... and some top-notch products.
Alison Goldman
Oct 26, 2021
B&A: A $1,500 IKEA Closet Redo Looks Completely Custom and Seriously Luxe
A walk-in closet is a hot commodity. Obviously, if you draw that dream ticket, you'd like your walk-in closet to actually be functional, not just a large room of minimal organization opportunities.
Alison Goldman
Aug 16, 2021
How Ethel's Club's Naj Austin Designed Her Brownstone Apartment to Promote Rest
"My home makes me feel healthy because it’s a place I can fully relax," says Naj Austin, founder and CEO of Ethel’s Club and Somewhere Good.
Alison Goldman
Jul 26, 2021
An Epidemiologist and Her Family's Temporary Home in a 1,600-Sq.-Ft. Bungalow
If you're the kind of person who likes to fill your Instagram feed with useful information, you may already know of Jessica Malaty Rivera, an infectious disease epidemiologist and the science communication lead at the COVID Tracking Project at The Atlantic.
Alison Goldman
Jul 26, 2021
A Tennessee Therapist's Joyful House Full of Pink Doors and a Rainbow Mural
Amilia James' Knoxville, Tennessee, house (aka the Rose Door Home) has always given her positive vibes
Alison Goldman
Jul 26, 2021
3 Plant-Filled Zoom Backgrounds for Spring
We designed three fun and colorful Zoom backgrounds that bring the outdoors in and onto your screen.
Alison Goldman
May 20, 2021
The 2021 Grand Prize Winner Is…
You voted, our judges met, and we’re thrilled to announce the grand prize winner of the 2021 Small/Cool Contest!
Alison Goldman
May 17, 2021
Before and After: This Stunning Redo Proves Even Laundry Rooms Can Be Luxurious
Yes, function is the most important part of a laundry room—but that space can be gorgeous, too.
Alison Goldman
Dec 14, 2020
Before & After: A Dated Bathroom Becomes a Serene, Plant-Filled Oasis for £2,000
A DIY redo totally transformed this once-carpeted bathroom.
Alison Goldman
Nov 8, 2020
Before and After: Bold Paint and Built-Ins Make a Plain Living Room Look Luxe
A good indication that a room needs a redo is the realization that you're not using it to its full potential.
Alison Goldman
Nov 7, 2020