New York

Jillian Elliott is an artist and florist. She transformed her 650-square-foot Brooklyn rental apartment with cozy vintage finds, storied objects, and lots and lots of pretty floral patterns.

“My space is slightly cluttered, but also intentional. Everything has a place. Nothing matches perfectly, but goes together. It’s my little urban cottage,” writes Claudia.

“Making a small space work efficiently, and not being afraid of color, is definitely a result of my having embraced New York culture, which allows for any type of style experimentation,” writes Kim Narby.

Laura Bindloss, founder of Nylon Consulting, renovated this modern coastal cottage, using white walls to keep it bright and colored trim around the windows and fun wallpaper “to give it a punch.”

This rental was sad when Jillian moved in. “It was dark, cold, many things were broken, the vibe was off … ” Jillian put a lot of TLC, love, and effort to turn this dingy rental into an oasis.

"The apartment was rented as-is, meaning it needed a really good scrub, a lick of paint, and an updated kitchen and bathroom," explains artist and native New Yorker Kellie Rogers.

Before Danielle moved in, she described this Brooklyn loft as "drab, industrial, and soul-less." But now it's "bohemian, colorful (but not aggressive), layered, artsy, and autobiographic."

Abby didn’t realize quite how bad this Brooklyn apartment was when she first moved in: “ There were broken tiles, missing pipes, and it was filthy.” But after a huge transformation, Abby’s rental is now cheerful, colorful, and fun.

Some people live in New York City for a while, and then, when they start a family or grow tired of the hustle and bustle, they retreat to the suburbs or smaller cities. While it might not be the most common storyline for a family of four to trade their spacious home in Texas for a small apartment in New York City, that’s exactly what Tim and Liz Everett (and their children Ethan and Harper) did.

Alexa Priego is a full-time content creator and mom of three, and for the past 10 years has rented this 525-square-foot, one-bedroom NYC apartment.

It’s no wonder the renter signed the lease immediately after touring.

See inside a Brooklyn apartment that’s industrial, but joyful and relatable — and where every piece of furniture was deliberately and carefully designed to meet a specific function.

Minetta Archer has been renting this 725-square-foot Harlem apartment for 15 years, adding tons of color, pattern, and glam to each room.

After the passing of Troy's father last summer, she "needed a change of scenery and a fresh start in a place that would foster an environment of creativity, newness, and exploration as I navigated my grief."

The renter even teaches yoga classes in the living room.

The original apartment was also described as “cramped” and as having a “musty odor lingering in the air.”

Kalin Stovall “could talk about curtains all day,” and each room of the three-bedroom apartment she shares with her family “has a different combination of curtain length, fabric, and header.”

“I am often torn between maximalism and minimalism, and my apartment definitely straddles the two,” writes Lake Buckley, who describes her home’s style as “California New Wave or Brooklyn Beach House.”

When Sin Ying Tracy Leung first bought this small apartment, it was “old, dull, and lifeless,” but three years later it’s now a colorful, playful, eclectic, and warm home.

"It may seem a bit cluttered to some, but I love it!" exclaims Melanie, who shares this tiny studio with her cute cat. "Maximalism isn't for everyone, but I keep it clean!"

Rachel Schwartzmann, the author of “Slowing,” lets her Brooklyn Brownstone’s historic details — like moldings, wood floors, and fireplace — shine thanks to her minimal decor style.

Salome Mergia's Upper West Side studio was furnished a lot from places like Housing Works, Salvation Army, Goodwill, and other vintage spots.

After decluttering and downsizing, Matthew Jeffers embraced this small studio’s natural flow to create a personal retreat — what he calls “functional tranquility.”

Shaped like a “T” and with original picture molding lining the hallway, this NYC rental apartment has a “modern folk, moody modernism” vibe.

Sydney Fazende says it took a lot of trial and error with furniture arrangements (and custom pieces) to maximize her small SoHo apartment.

This native New Yorker has personalized her small rental apartment with renter-friendly DIYs and “98% secondhand finds.”

Dalton and Dave transformed their blank, white shoebox of an apartment with art and vintage treasures.

This home is print driven, maximalist, and theatrical, and has the most beautiful pistachio-colored living room.

These first-time homeowners worked with pros to renovate a worn-down Brooklyn house originally built in 1910

Teju’s rental came with typical NYC apartment challenges like old infrastructure, window issues, uneven floors, and weird walls.

Renter Aviv Grimm describes her home as “warm, calm, and artistically inspiring all at once.”

See inside Gina Fuchs’ small Brooklyn studio apartment that’s full of color, tchotchkes, small-space design ideas, and perhaps most importantly, a ton of fun!

“I know it might sound silly to pick an apartment because of its bathroom, but finding an apartment with a decent bathroom is really difficult in NY,” writes Jhenene.

The moment Chyelle Milgrom walked into the apartment her eyes watered because of the smell of “rotting cat piss, frat-house boys, trash, and food so moldy it burned your eyes.” She signed that day.

"As we've grown up together and built a life, the apartment feels much more like a reflection of our tastes and loves and how we want to spend our time: reading, writing, watching, lounging, cooking, snacking, and hanging out in Prospect Park," Virginia McLure writes.

Alicia got a second chance at decorating when she moved out of, and then back into, this Astoria apartment.

It’s the perfect place for entertaining.

Camoy Briscoe says it was important to "support small business owners" in their 900-square-foot, one-and-a-half bedroom rental apartment.

“We decided to lean into the industrial/brutalist style and outfit the space with lots of stainless steel, mirror, chrome metal materials, but also contrast it with softness using plants and vibrant, abstract-shaped wool rugs.”

Decorator Barbara Campbell isn’t a “white wall” person; instead she insists on being surrounded by “uplifting, welcoming color.”

There’s also an incredible 3D-printed coffee table, gorgeous wood moldings, and a neat art collection.

Fernanda Clark landed THE vintage orange couch used in Jeremy Allen White’s viral Calvin Klein ad.

Ariel Sun and her husband describe their 600-square-foot rental apartment as “colorful, energetic, curated, eclectic.”

When Sofia Marcogliese and her boyfriend, Oleg, moved in together for the first time into this 950-square-foot rental apartment on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, they weren’t expecting their existing furniture to go so well together. “But what really ties everything together is my mother’s oyster painting,” Sofia explains. “She’s a Montreal-based artist, and my sister, Laura-Michelle, curated and digitalized her work through her online gallery, Glasshouse.

“My home is my sanctuary,” renter and mom of three kids Lisa Miller says.

Interior designer Mariellas Urrutia worked with organizer (and fellow small-space dweller) Rachael Harvey to pack stylish storage into every inch of this home.

Amanda Phillips pays $2389 a month for her 425-square-foot studio apartment in Manhattan’s Rose Hill.

There's a brilliant cat litter box solution in this small Upper West Side studio apartment too!

Holly and her partner describe their home's style as "antique and cozy."

Honestly you'll forget you're even in New York City thanks to this apartment's chic floral pattern mixing.

The plants are bathed in abundant natural light in the sunroom.

A road trip through France inspired this cute Parisian-style rental apartment.

Maria-Elena Stellas and her husband have rented this 800-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment in New York City for one year.

Designer Dan Mazzarini “inherited a real ‘before,’” with this apartment that needed major structural and system updates. “Plumbing, electrical, lights, kitchen, bath, floors, closets … really everything.”

And it's packed with chic but renter-friendly ideas to make any space look stylish.

This couple was able to fit a dining area, coffee bar, TV and gaming zone, conversation area, bar, office, and music space all in their home’s living room.

The large home might be over 100 years old, but the husband-and-wife team did a beautiful job with the restoration, adding bold personality to the rooms but also respecting the home's history.

When designing their space, Scott Csoke follows a Dorothy Draper quote: “If it feels right, it is right.”

Tour this software engineer's 280-square-foot studio apartment in Crown Heights that rents for $2150 a month.

Sonam Dolker was born in Nepal, raised in Queens, and has spent her 20s in Brooklyn, with the last year in this small but stylish studio apartment.

Evoking a sense of warmth and serenity in their condo was priority number one for designers Oyin and Jeff Antwi.

Tour chef and TV host Will Coleman’s Brooklyn apartment that’s spread across two levels and showcases color and art.

See inside Cosmopolitan’s Digital Creative Director’s incredibly cool, chic, and contemporary NYC loft.

Jake Poser is an interior designer and visual artist, and the apartment he shares with partner, August, is transitional, classic, inviting, elegant, and quirky.

See how an architect and an interior designer were inspired by designers when decorating their Ditmas Park rental apartment.

See how this renter made his Upper West Side studio apartment feel playful and comfortable despite the small size.

Natalie Wong has painted, transformed the kitchen, and replaced all the boring boob lights with fun pendants in her New York City rental apartment.

It rents for $3360 a month.