Apartment

"It’s both chic and punk — a technicolor euphoria impossible not to feel at home at," describes writer, comedian, and award-winning screenwriter Greg Mania of this small rental apartment.

It’s so dreamy.

Through a mix of oil diffusers and flowers, Candace creates a clean scent when entering her cozy, minimalist home in Portland.

From glass blocks, vintage sofas that make a conversation pit, and more, secondhand finds have made this Bushwick rental incredible.

“We've transformed every inch of our 750-square-foot space as our family has grown from newlyweds to a family of five.”

Heather and Michael share a very organized, extremely stylish 600 square feet with their three daughters, Lennon (4 years), Georgie (2.5 years), and James (15 months). The home's style is "cozy, thoughtful, not fussy, and somewhere between minimal and collected."

This $5500-a-month West Village rental apartment of herbalist and floral designer Emily Swarts is only 550 square feet, but feels a lot larger, thanks to it being spread across three floors.

It was also a pepper factory!

Designer Alvin Wayne lives in this 800-square-foot apartment he's transformed from a plain white box into a warm, personality-filled rental.

Crystal Wyatt owned a house in Philadelphia for more than 18 years before needing a change, going tiny in this 190-square-foot rental studio apartment in Philadelphia's University City neighborhood.

After living in New York City for 10 years, Maria has found a place where she feels at home with great neighbors. Through the help of second-hands furniture and paint, she has created a gorgeous studio apartment.

Textile designer and freelance interior stylist Anna Brettschneider shares this 800-square-foot Park Slope rental apartment with her fiancé, Garrett Albury. Together they co-author the weekly newsletter, coolstuff.nyc.

Erin Kerr's style can best be described as: "Like if a Danish Grandpa and Primary School Teacher Grandma had a grandkid who loved Memphis Milano."

It can sleep up to three people!

"Every corner of the apartment has something tucked under or inside it to reduce clutter and free up visual space," Sarah shares.

When Emily got the keys, the paint was “uneven and patchy, it needed a good cleaning, and there was pee all over the walls from the previous tenant's elderly orange cat.”

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

The first time Maggie and Jesse saw this apartment, they knew it was theirs. Noise levels made them back out of the first lease, but months later the home was available and the noise had been resolved — the rest is history.

“Our apartment is a vibrant reflection of our identity as African American gay men with a deep love for art, culture, travel, and food,” writes renter Brandon Lightfoot.

“My favorite thing about our home is the way it feels like a true respite from the hustle and bustle of the city,” Hattie says.

Audrey Rogers is an American fashion designer living and designing in this gorgeous Paris apartment. "My priority was to not buy anything new. I love vintage clothing, I collect vintage clothing, why would I ever go and buy brand new furniture?”

If anyone is worthy of the line "this person needs no introduction..." it's writer Ashley C. Ford.

It also has Scandinavian finishes, light wooden floors, and modern appliances coupled with a soothing color palette of creams and terracotta.

Interior designer Alvin Wayne has lived in this gorgeous 800-square-foot rental apartment for three years.

Interior designer Adnan Anwar had to do some rearranging to fit his Christmas tree in his small, maximalist NYC apartment, but it was worth it. His holiday home is personal, layered, and bold, and full of clever holiday decor ideas to steal.

Actor Charles Busch believes a home is a visual autobiography. And his NYC apartment's style is best summed up as: 19th century Parisian bordello mixed with the Golden Age Hollywood.

Writer Sarah Ingle used clever DIYs and secondhand finds to transform this tiny and a “little grimy” apartment into a stylish sanctuary.

By embracing leopard print as a neutral and a massive collection of thrifted stone fruit, film and television writer Leah Gauthier transformed this plain 530-square-foot Vancouver apartment into a whimsical sanctuary.

Benita and Brian downsized from a three-bedroom home into this one-bedroom, introducing lots of color to the bright space to “bring in that happy whimsical feel.”

Paola and Slava used peel-and-stick wallpaper, secondhand finds, and ‘70s-inspired DIYs to turn a "quiet and empty" apartment into a vibrant and kind of nostalgic sanctuary.

This renter spent 10 years "stripping away decades' worth of paint that coated woodwork and fixtures” to restore the charm of this 1930s apartment to its original glory and adding her own “French Provincial” style to the space.

Self-taught designer Amel transformed this neutral rental in Paris with bold paint, genius IKEA hacks, and clever DIY illusions, turning the home she shares with her daughter into a chic, contemporary, maximalist dream.

When her last home flooded after Hurricane Ida, Alison Beshai had to find a new last-minute home, landing in this Brooklyn Brownstone with original mantels, an open layout, and tons of natural light pouring in from every side.

An architect redesigned this 645-square-foot apartment in San Sebastián by removing a bedroom and inserting a curved mirrored wall that reorganizes the layout, turning a typical 1960s home into an incredibly cool, contemporary home.

When this creative couple first walked into their Brooklyn Heights apartment, the original crown moldings were gone, the ceilings had been lowered, and every surface was gray and white — but they’ve spent years bringing the character back to the brownstone.

After a fire forced Taylor Jordan out of his San Francisco apartment of 11 years, he wanted to make his new 560-square-foot rental feel like home immediately. It took careful planning, some Etsy finds, and furniture he already owned, and he created a lived-in home in four days.