Apartment

Location: Manhattan, New York Size: 830 square feet Years lived in: 10 months, renting These are not living spaces designed after a single period style. Instead, these are rooms full of variety, filled with delights in the surprise achieved by pairing disparate design elements. (For example, a family heirloom seascape painting in a heavy baroque frame mounted above a mid-century-inspired couch topped with African mud-cloth pillows.

Name: Oliviero Fontana Location: NDG, Montreal Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting Oliviero is a former professional skateboarder and current stylist who has a passion for design and an appreciation for handmade craftsmanship. And he loves refurbishing vintage pieces he finds on the streets.

Name: Kristin, Nathan, and Addison (a schnauzer/poodle mix) Location: Ukrainian Village — Chicago, Illinois Size: 1,600 square feet Years lived in: 10 months, owned Kristin and Nathan haven’t been in their loft for long, but it sure doesn’t show. Especially impressive when you learn how much work they had to do after purchasing the space. The chain smoking previous owner had been there for years and the loft was covered in (stinky) carpet.

Name: Sarah Hughes and her two children Location: Lowry Hill Neighborhood — Minneapolis, Minnesota Size: 1,800 square feet Years lived in: 7 years, renting Sarah and her kids occupy a spacious first floor apartment in the Lowry Hill neighborhood of Minneapolis — a perfect location within walking distance of coffee shops, delicious ice cream, an art museum and a handful of lakes and trails.

Name: Vicari Vollmar and Jordan Conley Location: Lansing, Michigan Size: 600 square feet Years lived in: 4 months, renting Vicari is a senior designer for a public policy firm with an affinity for fitness, bold color, and a good gin fizz. She firmly believes in carbohydrates, horoscopes, and the power of love. Jordan is a state contract monitor, CrossFit coach, and bookworm. He enjoys binge-watching a series on Netflix, comic books, and snuggling his calico, Harley.

Name: Sarah Lyon Location: Georgetown, Washington, DC Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: Almost 1 year, renting You’d never guess by this rental’s chic, classic style, but Sarah purchased 95 percent of her furniture off of Craigslist. The only things she bought for full price (in other words, from a store) were her bed, headboard, couch, and front console table. Everything else has been the result of successful scavenger hunts! Sarah’s a Washington D.C.

Name: Abigail Hibbs and Henri Broyard Location: Crown Heights, Brooklyn Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: Rented 1.5 years Walking into Abigail and Henri‘s Crown Heights apartment, it’s apparent they’ve got great style. Abbie is a gallery manager in Manhattan and Henri is a painter — their creative abilities have influenced a design aesthetic that’s a mix of mid-century furniture and Henri’s contemporary art.

Name: Terra Zosel Location: Kenwood Neighborhood, Minneapolis, Minnesota Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: Rented 6 months The story of Terra’s apartment is multi-fold. Her home occupies the attic of her grandparents’ house where she lives as caretaker to her grandmother. Her grandparents purchased the home in the 1960s from a couple who relocated from Minneapolis to the significantly warmer state of Florida.

Name: Linda Derschang, and Jack the Westie Location: Belltown — Seattle, Washington Size: 1,523 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned Linda is a Seattle powerhouse. She is the force behind many of the city’s hippest bars and restaurants, and has designed her latest home, a modern condo in Belltown, with vintage finds, designer pieces, eclectic artwork, and a solid dose of ’70s glam.

Name: Katie O’Connor Location: West Village, New York City Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: 2 years Katie and her husband have lived in their West Village one-bedroom for the past two years. With an enviable corner unit, the living room is wall-to-wall windows, giving them incredible views of the city and sunsets. Situated right next to the southern entrance to the High Line, they also have a great people-watching spot.

Name: George Morgan Location: West Loop — Chicago, Illinois Size: 1,150 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, owned George Morgan saw a lot of homes before he finally found his perfect Chicago bachelor pad.

Project by: Filipe Battazza and Raoni Mariano of Fábrica Arquitetos Location: São Paulo, Brazil This professional project is one of those amazing examples of how you can do so much with so little when you harness the power of design. Engineered by architects, using a lot of sleek materials, this exact renovation might be out of reach for some, but it’s still filled with tons of ideas you can steal to make a small home work (and look) so much better.

Name: Lezli Clendening Location: Vicenza, Italy Size: 1,614 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, renting Walking into Lezli’s second floor Italian apartment is like walking straight into a museum. With artifacts from all around the world, beautiful canvases from artists (some of whom she is related to) and even bones, insect display cases and taxidermy pieces, it certainly could be mistaken for one of the coziest exhibits ever.

Name: Holly Location: The Mission — San Francisco, California Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, renting The first thing you notice when you open the door to Holly’s apartment in San Francisco’s popular Mission neighborhood is the light in the hallway that runs two-thirds of the length of the space. Windows all along the right side — some stained glass — make it feel very airy and ethereal.

Name: Kirsten Schofield and Eric Ng Location: Vicenza, Italy Size: 3,200 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting Some apartments have good bones, and some apartments feature inhabitants who know good design. Amazingly, Kirsten and Eric’s apartment in downtown Vicenza features both! With thoughtfully chosen items from estate sales and antique stores around Europe and the U.S., this couple has quite the collection of beautiful things from their travels around the world.

Name: Fabiola, Javier, Claudia (5) and Guillermo (2) Location: Barcelona, Spain Size: 1,720 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, owned When Javi and Fabi first saw this space on the top floor of a beautiful duplex in the family-friendly neighborhood of Eixample, it was completely different. All of the fixtures were outdated and the layout needed to be reconfigured. Undeterred, they saw the potential of the space and decided to do a complete overhaul.

Name: Lucia and Paige Location: Highland Park — Los Angeles, California Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, rented Roommates Lucia and Paige have a decorating motto when it comes to treasures from thrift stores: If you want it, you get it! That’s how they were able to create a pretty home even though they don’t have a big budget. The roommates say they complement each other perfectly: Paige is good at solving problems and Lucia is the handy one.

Name: Andy Barlow, and his cat Cavanaugh Location: Eliot Neighborhood — Northeast Portland, Oregon Size: 850 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting Andy and his cat Cav live in one unit of a Portland duplex that was built in 1890 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Andy is a multi-talented real estate agent, freelance interior designer, and professional home-stager, who never thought that he would end up living in and loving a 127-year old home.

Name: Tami, Gleb and their two-year-old daughter, Mia Location: Barcelona, Spain Size: 915 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, own Imagine relocating to a new city where the language, culture, and landscape is completely different from your own and with only three suitcases in hand for both you and your partner. This is exactly what Tami and Gleb, a young couple from Moscow, Russia, did just four years ago when they decided to uproot themselves to the sunny city of Barcelona.

Name: Anna Location: Barcelona, Spain Size: 754 square feet Years lived in: 13 years, owned Anna has a degree in geography and has worked for 13 years as a publicist for IKEA, but after finally finishing her apartment’s two year-long renovation, I think it’s safe to say she also has quite the passion and expertise for design. Responsible for all of the design decisions in the 754-square-foot space, the biggest priority was a roomy and functional kitchen.

Name: Andréa Crofts and Stefan Jovanović Location: Toronto, Canada Size: 700 square feet Years lived in: 8 months, owned Andréa and Stefan’s home is a 700-square-foot unit in a modern condo overlooking the beautiful skyline of Toronto’s downtown. The eastern view is what sold the couple on this particular unit, and you can’t blame them. Even if the condo was completely empty, it would still be gorgeous with that view.

Name: Line Tiller Location: El Clot — Barcelona, Spain Size: 850 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, owned Stepping into the home of Line (pronounced Lee-Nuh) Tiller is like stepping into a cozy retreat in the middle of the city. “Warm and cozy are the main ingredients of a Norwegian home because it’s cold in Norway,” says Line, originally from the Scandinavian country.

Name: Raul, Igone, Nora and Naida Location: Sagrada Familia — Barcelona, Spain Size: 1,600 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, owned As their children grew, Raul and Igone started to look for a bigger apartment where their two girls could have more space to run and have fun. House searching was not easy, however, and it took Raul and Igone three years to finally find the place. Though the apartment certainly didn’t look like it does now when they first viewed it.

By visiting flea markets wherever they travel, the couple finds unusual objects to create a warm, romantic, and textural style throughout their home.

Name: Jessica Becker and Daniela Moebius Location: Bushwick — Brooklyn, New York Size: 950 square feet Years lived in: Rented — Jessica 13 years, Daniela 5 years Jessica and Daniela are the duo behind Konstruktive Studios, a design company. Additionally, Daniela provides architectural services through Moebius Architecture PLLC. And they created a workspace within their home that allows them to collaborate, but each with their distinct style.

Andrea her husband, Brian, live very cleanly and simply in a third floor apartment in Brooklyn.

The lower Manhattan studio she's inhabited for a decade with her partner Fred exudes freedom and fearlessness.

Name: Rachel Winard, and Stacey Flannery and their cat Location: Carroll Gardens — Brooklyn, NY Size: 500 square feet Years lived in: 5 years, owned When Rachel and her partner Stacey bought their Brooklyn apartment five years ago, they put in lots of work to create a clean and comfortable space that supports a healthy lifestyle.

Name: Blanca (Toco) Goñi, Fernando Oliver, little Clara, and dog Tigro Location: Palermo — Buenos Aires, Argentina Size: 1,077 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, owned A neutral color palette, natural materials, and white furniture are the trademarks of Toco Goñi, an Argentinian interior designer who’s worked for over seven years, mostly designing custom furniture for her clients.

Name: Phillip Picardi and Dr. Darien Sutton-Ramsey Location: Downtown Brooklyn — New York Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting Phillip and his partner Darien live in a luxury high rise apartment building in Downtown Brooklyn. “I hate to admit this, but we could never go back,” Darien laughed when talking about the perks of living in this space. The airy apartment features high ceilings, modern finishes, and amazing views of Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Name: Edmund Lam Location: Montreal, Canada Size: 850 square feet Years lived in: 3 months, owned Edmund Lam, creative director of fashion retailer Frank and Oak, lived in a mid-century house for five years in Montreal-West. Missing city life, he moved back into a smaller apartment a few months ago in Le Plateau Mont-Royal.

Name: Taylor DeBartola and husband, Will Shalosky, and two bulldogs, Lady and Trish Location: Harleston Village — Charleston, South Carolina Size: 1,400 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned “There’s a centuries-old piece of Charleston advice that goes something like ‘Don’t drink wine on your porch and look at real estate listings.

Name: Will Harvey, Iona Sangster, and Luna the Cockapoo Location: Leith — Edinburgh, Scotland Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, owned Will and Iona Harvey’s modernly colorful and whimsically decorated flat in Leith, a district to the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, is dotted with references to school: A vintage school desk and chair serve as office furniture in their living room, while a seat meant for a small student sits in the bedroom.

Julie Progin and Jesse McLin have their own homewares brand called Latitude 22N.

Name: Sarah Lyon and a roommate Location: The Dupont Circle/Logan Circle neighborhoods of Washington, D.C. Size: 950 square feet Years lived in: 11 months, renting I absolutely love my current apartment. It took awhile for my roommate and me to find this space, but without sounding too cliché, it was truly worth the wait.

Before this remodel, all of the rooms were closed off. The kitchen used to be a bedroom. And the current shower used to be a tiny kitchen.

Name: Aelfie Oudghiri, her husband, their daughter, and Shah the cat Location: Brooklyn, NY Size: 1,800 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned Fans of textile, furniture, and accessories company Aelfie are familiar with the brand’s stylish offerings—quirky graphics, loud colors, patterns that complement (and sometimes even clash, in a good way).

Ty and Lynne are the owners of the award-winning furniture store An Orange Moon, located in the West of Western district of Chicago.

Name: Natalie Jacob and Ethan Urban Location: Jersey City, New Jersey Size: 1,000 square foot apartment in a row house Years lived in: 1 1/2 years, renting Natalie Jacob has great taste across the board. As the beverage consultant and blogger behind Arsenic Lace, she knows good cocktails. Her colorful, playful interior design aesthetic—think ombre stairs and flamingo print in the back of a china cabinet—reaches every corner of the New Jersey home she shares with Ethan Urban.

This author's style is best described as "minimalist chic influenced by the beauty and diversity of the African diaspora."

Name: Mallory Fletchall and David Rhoads, and their two cats Michael and Kiki Location: Greenpoint, Brooklyn Size: 750 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, renting If Mallory and David’s Brooklyn rental looks familiar, it may be that you’ve caught a drool-worthy snapshot of it on her Instagram account, which has over 71K followers. It’s no wonder.

Following the end of a romantic relationship, Farah decided to remain in the 400-square-foot space she had shared with her partner. But doing so required a re-design.

Name: Ms. Pink and Mr. Black, two out of their three sons, and three cats Location: London, England Size: 1,350 square feet Years lived in: 16 years, owned When I asked Ms. Pink if I could feature her home on Apartment Therapy, she seemed almost apologetic that she didn’t have photos of every room of the 1,350-square-foot split level flat in a Victorian house she shares with her partner Mr. Black, two of their three sons, and three cats.

This renovated apartment in the City of Lights is full of light.

Name: Genevieve Danger Berrick Location: Echo Park — Los Angeles, California Size: 900(ish) square feet Years Lived In: 1 year, renting Family legend has it that when Genevieve was 3 years old she firmly informed her mother that she would no longer be wearing pink. And she stood by her word until she rediscovered the color and its place in her east side home. “I decided to really lean into my enjoyment of it.

Name: Max and Tamera Walters Location: Austin, Texas Size: 843 square feet Years lived in: 7 months, renting Tamera and her family live in South Austin with their daughter (with a second child on the way!). South Austin, an expanding part of the city, has become increasingly expensive, so Tamera and her family chose to live in a complex where they would have security, convenience to work, and be within their budget. The apartment is a two-bedroom, one-bathroom on the ground floor.

"I love all my chairs. I'm a chair person, and all my chairs have a story," interior designer JJ Acuna says.

Name: Christie Grotheim (and my husband, Niklas Andersson) Location: New York, New York Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, owned My husband and I found this fixer upper in Harlem, sold “as is,” which in this case, was pretty atrocious. But we saw past the filth and peeling paint and realized the potential in the place right away. A corner unit on the third floor, it was flooded with light, and as a four-bedroom (converted to three) we would each have our own office.

Name: Lilly Giraldo Location: Seabright — Santa Cruz, California Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, renting I currently live in a two-bedroom apartment in the Seabright neighborhood of Santa Cruz. I moved to Santa Cruz fresh out of college and I remember thinking, “When I grow up I want to live in Seabright,” and 20 years later (and after kind of growing up), I found this lovely apartment.

Name: Emily Kim Location: Pioneer Square — Seattle, Washington Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting Ever since I saw Emily’s first Instagram post of her new Pioneer Square apartment back in January, I’ve been hounding her about doing a house tour: “Are you ready yet? I mean, no pressure!” Then quietly, “But, are you ready yet?

Name: Andreea Cristina, husband Bryan Gaul, and two cats and one dog Location: Los Angeles, California Size: 850 square feet Years Lived In: 6 months, renting As a beauty blogger with over a million Instagram followers, Andreea Cristina of Simply Andreea rarely stays in one place for very long. Having both sponsorships that take her around the world and a professional soccer player for a husband means a lot of traveling and not a lot of time spent at home.

Name: Celeste and Felix Location: Monte Grande — Buenos Aires, Argentina Size: 410 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting Celeste and her boyfriend Felix’s story actually starts in chilly Canada, where he was living when they met. She tried moving there, but the cold weather and the distance from her friends and family made things hard for Celeste, so the couple decided to move to Buenos Aires to see how that worked for them.

Name: Maca Atencio, husband Esteban, and kids Nico and Oli Location: Montreal, Quebec Size: 1,120 square feet Years lived in: 11 months, owned Living in Montreal can be fun, artsy, and beautiful, and that’s completely on display in lifestyle blogger Maca Atencio’s home. She and her husband Esteban had waited a couple of years to buy the perfect house for their little family, and this one had every single detail they wanted!

Name: Thierry Chow and Peter Yuill Location: Hong Kong Size: 1,600 square feet Years Lived In: Rent for 2 good years Forget all the outdated notions of what you think feng shui is about—that isn’t what expert Thierry Chow practices. Under her company, TRE, this modern master blends ancient feng shui concepts in all aspects of design (including fashion) with the contemporary world.

Name: Roel Marius Brouwer, Remy, and their dog Stewie Location: Laren (North Holland province), the Netherlands Size: 861 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting Roel might be a legal adviser by day, but his true passion is interiors. His mom sparked this love at a young age by regularly changing things up in his childhood home; through tiny adjustments their interior looked different each season.

Name: Carly Fuller and her boyfriend Martin Location: Hell’s Kitchen — Manhattan, NY Size: 450 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, renting There wasn’t much of an opportunity for Carly Fuller to add her own style to this small Hell’s Kitchen rental when she moved in with a roommate, who had already been living there. But when the roommate moved out a year ago, Carly’s boyfriend Martin moved in, and the blank space was ready to be refreshed and filled.

Name: Ashley Taylor and Tymer Tilton and their dog Moseby Location: Red Hook, Brooklyn Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting Golden accents around this Red Hook loft shimmer in the warm sunlight beaming through a large south-facing window. Healthy green plants cheerfully spread their leaves from corners, tabletops, and even the ceiling. A deep, soothing teal grounds the space.

Name: Olivia Muenter, her boyfriend Jake, and their dog Winnie Location: Upper East Side, NYC Size: Not sure Years lived in: 1.

Name: Habiba Koroma Location: Central Harlem, NYC Size: 630 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, renting A ball pit is not necessarily something you expect in an NYC apartment, but in Habiba’s home, it’s an integral feature of her son’s play area. The ingenious, whimsical kid-friendly space that Habiba, an interior designer, has created for Miles also includes a library, a whiteboard, a hanging yarn installation, and a giant rasterized mural of him.

Nelson Chow bought this tiny apartment a year ago and made good use of a small space by building a "treehouse" bed loft.

Name: Gianni Ruggiero, his wife Valeria Dubin, and their two daughters Olivia and Mila Location: Barcelona — Spain Size: 2,153 square feet Years lived in: 8 years, renting This big open Barcelona loft has seen a lot over its lifetime. In the 1960s, it was a photography studio, welcoming lots of models and colorful characters into its airy interior. When that photographer retired, he moved out and let his son rent the place: Gianni, an architect who appreciates simplicity in things.

Meritxell Ribé and Josep Puigdomènech are the designers behind Barcelona-based firm The Room Studio.

This couple from Charleston settled into a 550-square-foot NYC apartment with lots of light but little storage... until they implemented their smart ideas.

Name: Nancy, Ken, and their little canine, Monty Location: Berkeley, California Size: 670 square feet Years lived in: 22 years; Owned Nancy says her home is a haven—it’s colorful, cozy, bright, and full of memories. Though the bright green walls help, it’s her collection of meaningful pieces that truly makes her Berkeley condo a home.

Name: Jaclyn Madar Location: Griffintown — Montreal, QC Size: 1,019 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned Jaclyn Madar is an obstetrician and surgeon who just purchased her first real “grown-up” bachelorette apartment. A space with industrial, modern architecture, she decorated it with an eclectic vintage flair… while still having it look pulled together. She’s spunky, stylish and extremely smart, and that shows through beautifully in her home decor.

The building has a modern, minimal style with concrete floors, white walls, sleek cabinetry, and sliding glass bedroom doors.

Name: Krystal Mack Location: Washington Hill — Baltimore, Maryland Size: 250 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting Krystal’s studio is peaceful, inviting, and full of inspiration. Cozy maximalism is the vibe. Everything holds meaning, and her belongings are arranged into what Krystal calls “moments”—be it a pair of pom-pom heels she wore on a special day in her career, or beer bottles she enjoyed with friends that now live on as bud vases.

Name: Ashley Miles and Sam Miles and their two daughters Location: West Village, New York Size: 1,300 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, renting Ashley’s 1800s carriage house in the West Village is as steeped in history as it is style; photographer Diane Arbus and her two daughters were once residents. Now, Ashley—the Executive Vice President of Sales & Brand Partnerships at Refinery29—and her husband Sam (college sweethearts from Ole Miss!

Name: Grace Flynn and her boyfriend, Tyler Tronson Location: Astoria, New York Size: 425 square feet Years lived in: 5 years, renting Grace’s studio is located in Astoria where longtime residents hang flower pots on their patios and wine bars host signs that kindly ask for smokers to stand by the tree, out of consideration for their neighbors.

Name: Adam LaGreca and Gabriela Gallegos Location: Clinton Hill — Brooklyn, NY Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting Adam was coming from a minimalist studio already in the neighborhood. Gabriela was coming from the East Village, where she could walk to her office in Astor Place. They both were tired of packing overnight bags, and after five years of dating, knew it may be time to combine forces.

This basement apartment in the city feels more like a handcrafted cottage, neatly nestled in a hidden forest somewhere in the mountains.