New York

Name: Jesa Location: Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York Size: 2,000 square feet Years lived in: 7 years; Owned Jesa and her husband moved to Bay Ridge, a family-oriented neighborhood in southern Brooklyn not necessarily known for high style. So, it was with great surprise, that around the side of a purposely derelict facade (so as to not draw unwanted attention), I found a modern, and very cool, renovated home.

Name: Adam Pash and Ellen Flaherty Location: Fort Greene; Brooklyn, NY Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 1 year; Rented After living in Los Angeles for many years, Adam and Ellen have relocated to Brooklyn. They are thriving and carving out a unique work/life balance in their beautiful Fort Greene Brownstone apartment. Their sense of style and free spirit are found throughout their home, which doubles as a workspace during the day.

Name: Danielle Colding Location: Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: Almost 2 years; Rented “Everything in here is from so many generations,” explains Danielle as I ooh and aah at an apartment packed with style and sentiment. At every turn there is a beautiful something and a story attached to it. Danielle is not afraid to let me know that for her, “more is more” when it comes to creating a home you want to come home to.

Name: Jacqueline Rousseau Location: West Village, NYC Size: 400 square feet Years lived in: 4 years; Rented After living in the UK for nearly a decade, Jacqueline returned stateside with a blank slate. To the envy of her friends and fellow New Yorkers like myself, Jacqueline settled into a sun-filled studio in the West Village. A white Ektorp lounge chair left by a previous tenant was the jumping-off point for what has developed into a very comfortable place to live and work.

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: Natasha Location: Gramercy Park – Manhattan, NY Apartment Therapy has been an inspiration as I have been renovating and decorating my new 1 BR apartment in New York’s Gramercy area. I have lived in the apartment for about half a year now. It’s a relatively small space, about 630 square feet, and like many New York apartments, only has windows only on one side.

Name: Sheena Location: Dumbo – Brooklyn, NY Our 650 square foot apartment is located in Dumbo in Brooklyn, in a former warehouse, which was gut-renovated in 2011. It has one bedroom with a den, and an open plan kitchen, dining and living space.

Name: Alana Range, CEO of Radish Lab Location: Greenpoint; Brooklyn Size: 850 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years; Rented After an exhaustive apartment search, Alana landed a rare, sun-drenched railroad style apartment in Brooklyn with an impressive nine windows! As any New Yorker can attest, railroad apartments can either be a total flop or, as in Alana’s case, a huge success.

Name: Erika Location: East Village – New York, New York Erika sent us photos of her lovely, dramatically dark-walled NYC apartment. She writes: These are pictures of my apartment that I share with my girlfriend and three (!) cats. My style trends towards warmth with modern and vintage pieces mixed together. What I love about my home is how guests respond to it when they are here; the design makes people feel at home.

Name: Joey Krietemeyer, Art Director at 1stdibs.com, Antoni, and one very well loved Fiddle Leaf Fig Location: Clinton Hill, Brooklyn Size: 600 square foot studio Years lived in: 3 years; renting Walking into Joey and Antoni’s studio apartment is not like walking into other studios in New York. They have managed to create a home that feels open and spacious, but still has distinctly separate living areas. Details abound that catch the eye without cluttering up the space.

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.

Name: Anne and Richard Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York Size: 2,500 square feet, 2 bedroom Years lived in: 2 years; Owned “I think that you go astray when you aim for perfection,” declares Anne when discussing her approach to home decor. Anne and Richard’s relatively new home is filled with a mix of the old and the new, the damaged and the pristine. For Anne, these charming inconsistencies make her home a much more comfortable place in which to live.

Name: JeanieLocation: East Village – NY, NY I likened the aesthetic of my home to Pee Wee’s Big Top situated in Candyland. Being a child of the late 70s, my biggest influences were cartoons and candy which have somehow shaped my personal design approach. I’m an avid collector of nostalgic pop culture like lunch boxes, glass soda bottles, Pez and vintage finds like globes and Carnival Chalkware.

Name: Aimee, Rene and Max Location: Park Slope; Brooklyn, New York Size: 1100 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years; Rented Aimee and her husband, Rene, recently readjusted their Park Slope home to accommodate baby Max, the newest addition to the family. Rene’s a chef and Aimee works as an Account Analyst in Apparel Production, so putting together a beautiful, warm home with plenty of style came naturally to this creative couple.

Name: Peter Hassler: web producer by day, designer by night Location: Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New YorkSize: Whole house roughly 4,000 square feet, owner living area roughly 2,000 square feet Years lived in: 9 years What I love most about the East Coast is the really old architecture, especially brownstones! Peter lives in my dream home, with tall ceilings, original moulding, and stunning woodwork everywhere. His mix of old and new and how it plays off each other really works in his home.

Name: David & JohnLocation: West Village, New York City The apartment blends two distinct tastes, into a cohesive style: The traditional taste of John based on the Art Deco style of the building and David’s modern tastes.John, a Philadelphia born lawyer, with fairly traditional taste in interior design had lived in this West Village Art Deco condominium for fifteen years.

Name: SarahLocation: West Village — NY, NYSize: 650 square feetYears lived in: 2.5 — rented Sarah is one of those enviable people who make the act of creating a very stylish home look effortless. While all of us who work on our homes know how much time, effort and research goes into a space that looks comfortably chic, when it’s done with this much panache, all thoughts of hard work fall away… Sarah describes her apartment as classic modern.

Name: Lauren Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan Size: 800 square feet studio rental converted to a temporary one-bedroom Years lived in: Less than a year After a couple of years of ‘roommating’ in New York City, Lauren leaped out on her own and rented a studio apartment. Fortunately, it was large enough to put up some temporary walls and create a generous looking one-bedroom. Within a couple of months, it looked like it had been lived in for years! Lauren is a talented designer.

Name:Tom and JustinLocation: Brooklyn HeightsSize: 1-bdrm, 410 sqft. co-op in a 1918 landmark apartment buildingYears lived in: 6 months >> This is Tom’s first owned home and first renovation. An art dealer, Tom is confident of his tastes and preferences, but never had to think about sink faucets and custom cabinetry configurations before.

Name: MargaretLocation: Fort Greene, BrooklynSize: 775 sqft. 3-room rentalYears lived in: less than 1 year >> Last time we met Margaret, she was unpacking. Since that house tour, Margaret has worked hard and it shows! She painted and purged, found a place for all her things, bought and installed strategic lighting, and rearranged to make the best use of a somewhat unusual layout.

Name: LauraLocation: Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn Size: 250sqftLived in: 5 months >> (Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Laura is a professional organizer and it shows. We last visited her in her former shrine to utilitarian yet soothing living a couple of years ago. Since then, she was forced to relocate to a smaller home that was in much worse condition upon arrival. Laura did not despair. In fact, she took on the challenge with gusto.

Here is Keehnan’s final post! Comment away…Name: Dave D.Location: East Williamsburg/BushwickSize: 1534 sq ft in total-2 floors divded with a wooden stairwell, lower level bedroom-the bedroom is 500 sq ftYears lived in: 8 years since the building’s inception >> Dave, in addition to living downstairs from us, works from home. While he designs tees for his own line and plays a part in other ventures, clearly his first love is surfing.