Andrea Sparacio

Name: Sofia Berger Location: Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York Size: 480 square feet + garden Years lived in: 3 years; rented Sofia is a banker by day and an aspiring interior designer in the rest of her time. She frequents the hardware stores so often that the employees know her by name. Her bookcases are stocked with shelter magazines and her furniture has been decoupaged, reconstructed, upholstered, hacked or built from scratch.

Name: Joan and Matt LeMay Location: Fort Greene, Brooklyn Size: 850 square feet Years lived in: Renting 2.5 months We cannot get enough of Joan, Matt, and their consistently awesome style. We first met Joan in her Portland studio, and Matt later in New York once their lives merged. Now in their first new apartment together, this creative force has been gracious enough to let us chronicle their style evolution—and after living there for only two and a half months!

Name:Location:Size:Years lived in:New York apartment dwellers know all too well what a challenge it can be living the dream on a budget. Sometimes all you can afford is the lower level railroad apartment without direct sunlight. For Alex, the plus side to this is having backyard access to plant a garden and express his love of horticulture.

Name: Ryan Cassidy Location: Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York Size: 700 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years; rented Ryan Cassidy has the kind of loft most people dream about before moving to New York. Big, bright 15’ windows; a common area perfect for gatherings and stop-bys; an open kitchen connecting the living and dining area; paintings and obscurities decorated throughout.

Name: Tracy Steele Location: West 14th Street, New York, New York Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: 15 years; rented In Tracy Steele’s apartment, things are not always what they seem: a drink set hides inside a bowling ball trophy, a rotary telephone lamp base is a clock that used to be a cigarette lighter, and the narrow slice of a drawer inside a mid-century modern buffet opens vertically and holds sewing supplies.

Name: Darla Minnis & Andrew Childs Location: Greenpoint, Brooklyn Size: 500 square feet Years lived in: 3 years; rented Darla & Andrew are both creatives pursuing their dreams; he’s a web designer and she’s a freelance accessory designer. When they first saw this apartment they knew right away they had to have it. In Brooklyn, outdoor space is highly coveted, and this one has an outdoor deck to boot.

Name: Bryan & Sarah Farevaag Location: Brooklyn, New York (Prospect Park South) Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 3.5; rented Bryan and Sarah Farevaag are creative powerhouses who live and breathe good design; Bryan is Deputy Art Director of Digital at O Magazine, and Sarah is an Interior Designer.

Name: Mike Rugnetta & Molly Templeton Location: Bed Stuy, Brooklyn NY Size: 1,350 square feet Years lived in: 2.5 years; rented Molly Templeton is better known as her internet personality Mememolly, and Mike Rugnetta is a composer, programmer and performer who hosts PBS’s web series Idea Channel. This ultra media-savvy duo are often busy at work (so busy that Mike had to miss the portrait shot), so when they retreat back home they want their place to feel playful and fun.

Name: Evan Pohl Location: Upper East Side, Manhattan Size: 295 square feet Years lived in: 18 months; rented It’s not always easy to edit your life down to under 300 square feet, but Evan Pohl makes it look effortless. Not only is he faced with the challenge of small space living; landlord restrictions keep things limited with a strict no-paint rule.

Name: Sarah & David Location: Fort Greene, Brooklyn, New York Size: 1 bedroom + outdoor patio Years lived in: 10 months; rented Sarah and David’s apartment is the perfect example of a great tenant/landlord relationship. Their apartment had great bones to begin with, with exposed brick, a beautiful chandelier, and lots of lovely traditional moldings that provide a nice contrast to the soon-to-be married pair’s modern taste.

Name: Amanda Bullock & Justin Taylor Location: Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, New York Size: 1.5 bedroom; 600 square feet (estimated) Years lived in: 11 months; rented Amanda Bullock and Justin Taylor like books. Amanda came from the book publishing world and is now the Director of Public Programming at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe; Justin is an acclaimed author and teaches creative writing at a number of universities in the city.

Name: Carlos E. Fernández-Dieppa Location: Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York Size: 670 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years; rented Carlos Fernández takes the expression “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” to a whole other level. Carlos is a resourceful and highly intelligent designer who never lets a single item go to waste. His custom pieces are thoughtful and functional, with a playful flair.

Name: Nick and Lizzie Johnson Location: Meatpacking District / Chelsea, New York City Size: 1 Bedroom Years lived in: 18 months Nick and Lizzie relocated from London to New York during a rough week; Hurricane Sandy had just hit and they were about to face some apartment-seeking challenges. Narrowing their search to areas unaffected by the storm, they fell in love with Chelsea and the West Village.

Name: Jynne Dilling Martin & Louie Saletan Location: Park Slope; Brooklyn, New York Size: 500 square foot split-level duplex + 400 square foot backyard Years lived in: 2 years; Rent Jynne Dilling Martin is the Associate Publisher of Riverhead Books (and author of We Mammals in Hospitable Times, a book of poetry). A Texas transplant, Louie Saletan taught Russian language to the first crew of NASA astronauts to fly on a joint Space Shuttle flight with their Russian cosmonaut counterparts.

Name: Donna Henes Location: Prospect Heights, Brooklyn Size: 3,150 square feet Years lived in: 29 years, owned Donna Henes is an internationally-renowned urban shaman, contemporary ceremonialist, spiritual teacher, eco-artist, author, speaker, and workshop leader.

Name: Cristina, General, Najal & Rafia Judd Location: Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, NY Size: 950 square feet Years lived in: 6 years; rental Cristina and General Judd are a husband and wife interior design duo based in Brooklyn and co-founders of Me and General Design. This dynamic couple’s apartment rental is a testament to what happens when two creatives join forces at home.

Name: Amanda Gluck Location: Flatiron, New York Size: 3 bedroom, 3 bath, 1,800 square feet Years lived in: 1 year; Rented It might be easy to feel a tinge of jealousy entering a 3-bedroom apartment overlooking 5th Avenue in Manhattan, but Amanda’s personality will squash that immediately. As someone who makes her living by being hospitable as a Fashionable Hostess, visitors are comfortable and well taken care of in her beautiful abode.

Name: Laura Lee Gulledge Location: Flatlands, Brooklyn, New York Size: Basement Studio Years lived in: 6 months; rented Laura Lee Gulledge is no stranger to having her house featured (see Time Out New York and Houzz), but two apartments later she was faced with a new challenge: a far away Brooklyn neighborhood and an underground studio. “Bright” and “basement” are not often used in the same sentence, though Laura Lee’s space proves otherwise.

Name: Emma, Mike, and baby River Fusco-Straub Location: Prospect Lefferts Garden, Brooklyn, New York Size: Three-story limestone house Years lived in: 4 years; owned Emma Straub and Mike Fusco are quite a dynamic duo. Emma is an acclaimed novelist, and Mike creates stunning graphic design. Emma, Mike, and their Brooklyn home are creative, warm, and down to earth.