I think part of the reason shipping container houses are so appealing is that building a house from shipping containers is like the grown-up equivalent of making a really sweet fort from cardboard boxes — you have succeeded in making something awesome from something that you just found, something that would otherwise be in the trash. (Of course, the actual reality of shipping container homes is a bit more complicated than that — but there’s no denying they have a certain draw.

Prior to their renovation, Laura and Matthew’s kitchen had a few problems common to lots of NYC apartments: a tiny footprint, not enough storage space, and cabinets caked with years’ and years’ worth of paint. As you can see, the cabinets in their galley kitchen had taken on an unusual texture, and the oven was positioned about 18 inches from the opposite countertop. Definitely time for a change.

There were some great things that happened, design-wise, in the 70s, but this bathroom was not one of them. Molly and Jonathan had a few projects in mind when they purchased their Ditmas Park one-bedroom, but they knew that the “sunburn-colored” stripes in their bathroom needed to be the first thing to go. The problems with the bathroom went beyond the cosmetic.

We can’t all live in a gorgeous Haussmannien building on the left bank of the Seine. In fact, some of us have to live in effective but uninspiring homes with little to no architectural detail whatsoever. But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do. In fact, there’s a lot you can do, even if you live in the most boring of houses, to add a little character to your space. Check out these 7 DIY projects. Add a ceiling medallion.

When they bought their co-op apartment in Brooklyn, Casey and Kumar had a particularly ambitious project in mind: transforming a one-bedroom to meet the needs of a family of four people. Doing so involved some pretty clever solutions along with a full-scale overhaul of the unit’s very small, very outdated kitchen. Since space in their small apartment was at a premium, Casey and Kumar wanted the kitchen to flow seamlessly into the rest of the living area.

If you hate your floors, but are a little short on cash, I’ve got good news. A new floor can cost a ton of money — but it doesn’t have to. Here are nine budget-friendly ideas for upgrading your existing floors so you can get a whole new look without spending a whole lot of money. This vinyl floor cloth, demonstrated by designer Kerra Michele Huerta in an article from the Washington Post, is a great option for renters as well as homeowners on a budget.

Laura had been living in her two-bedroom co-op in Brooklyn’s Windsor Terrace for five years before she finally decided to take the plunge and renovate her kitchen. While her cabinets were still in decent shape, the linoleum floor was not: it “only looked serviceable in the five minutes after it was mopped.” And the original 1960s oven, while charming, was clearly due for an upgrade.

At Apartment Therapy, we talk a lot about dealing with small spaces, but larger spaces can also present their own unique design challenge. When one Brooklyn family moved into their dream home, the oversized living room proved to be a bit of a conundrum — so they turned to a designer for guidance. Before, the family’s furniture — a single sofa and a small dining table — was a bit lost in the expansive space.

Concrete might seem like an unusual choice for your kitchen, but given the right setting, its rustic, textured look can set just the right tone. Or it can be pink. Alex McCabe, co-founder of beloved Aussie brand Kip&Co, has a kitchen in her Melbourne home that’s as fun as her company’s bedding. Not only does it have glamorous brass cabinets and a standout quartzite backsplash, the island is pink concrete!

After living with the dark, dated kitchen in his Ditmas Park apartment for a while (and spending countless hours watching HGTV), Blane decided it was time for a change. On his wish list: lighter cabinets, to brighten up the space, and an island with a worktop, to turn the kitchen’s less-than-ideal L shape into something more user-friendly.

This Before & After is all about the pursuit of a beautiful dream. When they bought their co-op in Manhattan, Laura and Peter had a dream, the same dream that animates the hopes of millions of New Yorkers: an in-unit washer and dryer. In pursuit of their dream, they intentionally bought in a building that allowed retrofits of washer and dryer connections.

Curb appeal is about your home’s first impression—the face it presents to the world (and to you, when you come home every day). And while you may think of your home’s exterior as something that’s difficult to change without investing a lot of money and time, there are actually quite a few (really simple, DIY) things you can do to enhance your home’s curb appeal—many of them without even picking up a hammer.

One of my favorite small space hacks is swapping your bookcases for wall-mounted shelving. We’ve created roundups of wall mounted shelving systems before, but for those of you who are especially crafty there are also plenty of DIY options. Here are eight different DIY ways to turn a blank wall into a storage mecca. Above: Dabito from Old Brand New used components available at the hardware store to create this wall-mounted shelving system, which includes a desk.

We love good IKEA hacks and even more so when they solve small space problems.

Want to give those plain old IKEA frames a little extra bit of pizazz? Of course you do! Here are seven creative (and very inexpensive!) ways to dress them up using paint, tape, and a variety of creative techniques. Above: All it takes is a little spray paint to add gold corners, and a little touch of glam, to a RIBBA frame. DIY from Repolished.

While not lacking in a certain crumbly charm, the bathroom in Colin and Orli’s Crown Heights co-op was definitely not a place where you would want to take a bath. Five different layers of floor tiles, installed on top of each other over the years, made for an unsettling drop when stepping into the tub. The subway tile walls were starting to look far too much like an actual subway for comfort, and thanks to many decades of water damage, the whole thing was falling apart.

Here’s a thing that’s bound to happen when you’re house shopping: you see a place where the previous owner has replaced the kitchen (or bathroom), ostensibly as a selling point, but the new kitchen or bathroom already looks incredibly dated. It’s especially frustrating if you really like the place otherwise, because then you find yourself in the position of either living with a kitchen that you really don’t like, or ripping out one that’s brand-new.

When you find the perfect apartment, but it doesn’t have a closet, you have two choices: You can either A. throw away all your clothes, or B. get creative. I chose B. Finding an apartment in New York is not easy. In fact, it is damn near impossible.