Chicago

Name: Dean Fisher (and Bunny, a corgi-beagle mix) Location: Logan Square — Chicago, Illinois Size: 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom Years lived in: 1.5 — rented One of the first things Dean said to me was, “I love old things.” A glance around her apartment will confirm this statement, as the eye readily falls on vintage furniture, taxidermy, and old copies of National Geographic. The place is full of antique treasures, but make no mistake: this is no fusty lair.

Name: Cory and Kristine HankinsLocation: Bucktown — Chicago, IllinoisSize: 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom + denYears lived in: 9 months — rented In a short amount of time, newlyweds Cory and Kristine Hankins have managed to turn their one-bedroom rental into a calm, inviting space. Kristine tends to favor a classic look, where Cory’s style is more modern, but the two have come together to form a cozy, surprising mixture.

Name: Steve Reidell and Stacey MarquardtLocation: Humboldt Park — Chicago, IllinoisSize: 1200 square feetYears lived in: 3 — rented At the risk of sounding creepy, I am enamored with Steve and Stacey and their amazing style. Not only do they both have cool jobs, theyalso live in this fabulously decorated vintage apartment. Plus, Stacey is a DIY Queen — a girl after my own heart! What is not to love?! Steve is a DJ and the man behind The Hood Internet.

Name: Jess ConstableLocation: East Lakeview — Chicago, IllinoisSize: 725 square feetYears lived in: 1 year — rented Jess has striven to turn her plain-Jane rental into a lovely comfortable home. Along the way, she often referred back to Summer Thornton’s house tour, which we posted way back in 2008. (Further proof that traditional elegant style is timeless.) Jess is one busy lady.

Earlier this week we were proud to show you the handiwork of Susan over at Freshly Picked and her upholstery transformation. Many of you asked for ideas of where to look in your own home towns and we’re here with answers.Although we can’t cover the entire US, we did our best to tackle a few major cities for you! Know of one we missed? Make sure to add it below!

Name: Nicole ZieglerProfession: Graphic Designer/Art DirectorLocation: Wicker Park, ChicagoType: 700 sq ft rented 1 bedroom brick townhouseYears lived in: 9 months >> A lot of Nicole’s finds come from family and near her Scranton, PA roots, creating what she calls her “vintage comfortable” apartment.

Name: Emily BallardProfession: Gallery Assistant/ Appraisal SupervisorLocation: Lincoln Park, ChicagoSize: Roughly 300 sq ft rented studioTime lived in: 7 months >> With solid bones and some interesting history, Emily has been able to make her Lincoln Park studio an open, light, whimsical yet thought-out home in just a few months. In a building that used to be a hotel, the (small) floor plans of each unit replicate those of vintage hotels.

Name: Summer and Josh ThorntonProfession: Summer – Owner, Summer Thornton Design, Josh – AdvertisingLocation: Lincoln ParkSize: 700 square feetYears lived in: A little over 1Type: 1 bedroom condo in 1890’s brick and greystone >> Those of you who joined as at our last Design Meetup know Summer. She was one of our guests, giving us the scoop on what it is like to run her own design business in Chicago.

Name: Amy (and Janis, her Maltese)Profession: Editor & Founder of Venus Zine and venuszine.comLocation: Humboldt Park, Chicago Size: About 500 square feetYears lived in: 1 year, ownedType: 1920s brick apartment building-turned-condos >> Amy is a wiz at working from the ground up. In college, she started a black-and-white stapled fanzine that evolved into Venus Zine, an internationally distributed full-sized glossy that covers women in pop culture.

Lisa is looking for some cleaning advice: I’ve got some (potentially) lovely tile in my bathroom, I just can’t get it clean! I don’t know if it’s original to the place or not (which would mean 1930’s)… the rest of the floors are though. Here’s a picture of the offending tile, and yes, that’s as clean as it gets….(Note: Include a pic of your problem and your question gets posted first.

Name: Andreas Location: Greektown, Chicago Size: 1,000 sq. ft. Years lived in: 8 months I’m inspired by the Danish Modern movement, specifically Grete Jalk, Arne Jacobsen, Hans Wegner. I really wanted my home to look different than any place I’d seen before. I wanted it completely different than the way it was when I moved in…and it is (see the “Before” photos). And I love good chairs!