Organic Modern

Brooke Abcarian is the the principal designer of Carian Design, and shares this 1200-square-foot house in Redondo Beach with her husband, Scott, and their two kids.

See behind the cabinet doors to learn valuable, small-space organizing tips.

One day Olivia Huffman was driving to work and saw something out of the corner of her eye in an alley: the "dreamiest, curved clamshell sofas" just sitting there, ready for the taking!

"This process can be an emotional one, but also brings clarity and perspective through our attachment to certain objects, memories, and spaces," says photographer Lauren Kolyn.

"Our home is a place for us to visually express ourselves. I like to think of it as one big canvas on which to design, taking inspiration from our lives together and telling little stories in different corners of our home."

"We were inspired by Australia and the American Southwest when designing and decorating. The area feels like a mix of Byron Bay and Tucson, so we wanted the home to reflect that.," explains designer Travis Wayne.

Photographer and interior designer Natalie Bird shares this 1000-square-foot, open-plan rental apartment in New York City's TriBeCa neighborhood with her husband.

When Lindsey Kephart first arrived, the previous tenants (and friends) had painted the kitchen a color they loved: yellow. With a little paint and new hardware, Lindsey transformed the room — and the entire apartment — into a chic space more fitting to her personality.

Bronwyn, who rents this 800-square-foot Nob Hill apartment, advises: "Let things evolve slowly. Invest in antiques with soul."

Amy and Jason sacrificed space so they could afford to buy something close to surfing and hiking trails. They did a gut reno on this 600-square-foot cottage, cladding it in warm wood from the ceiling to the walls and adding storage everywhere they could — under the couch, wall-to-wall cabinets in the tiny bedroom, and even vertical surfboard racks along the retaining wall outside." 

New Zealand design editor Georgina McWhirter's Perth, Australia home is "modern-organic with an artsy twist."

"From DIY to beach finds, there are so many budget-friendly ways to make your space somewhere you're excited to be," explains Kelsey. Some of her favorite budget hacks in her rental apartment include: framing matchbooks for art, hacked IKEA console, custom desk, and more.

Emily and Sean worked with designer Shelby Adamson at Little Black Fox to refresh their Georgia house that, at purchase, was clean and freshly painted but lacking in character. After a refresh, one room is now a deep monochromatic blue from floor to ceiling, and the rest of the house is full of personality.

As a designer, collector, and artist, Darien Stokes was captivated by the unique architectural characteristics of this one-bedroom loft nestled off the bustling streets of West Hollywood, California.

This tiny one-bedroom apartment was quite outdated. Agathe and her partner did the entire renovation themselves while working full-time, which meant they had to sleep in the kitchen for nearly two months!

When Carissa and her husband moved to NYC from Florida, they had to downsize from a 1,500-square-foot home, so they "had to really process not only the functionality of objects, but also their significance."

When Tyler and Sam moved to Colorado from New York, they fell in love with the gorgeous views of mountains everywhere. They took this inspiration into their own home with natural pieces and paintings of mountains for a beautiful, welcoming space.

It's a 1950s cottage with original hardwood floors, plaster walls, arches, crystal doorknobs, wavy glass windows, built-ins, and chunky baseboards all nestled within a cozy two-bedroom, one-bathroom footprint.

Alley and Ty's communal spaces "lean Scandinavian and minimalist, with the intent of fostering a calm space to recharge and connect."

LaToya Skinner, the owner and creative director of Lola Earl, a Sacramento-based interior design firm and retail home decor store selling sustainable, handmade, and vintage home decor and furniture, describes her home's style as cozy and soulful.

When Olivia moved into her Virginia studio apartment, it was her first time living on her own. Since moving in, she's hosted many Friendsgivings, dinner parties, and brunches, bringing her friends together in a small, cozy space.

This is Hill Stark's fourth renovation in the last seven years.

Meher immigrated to America ten years ago and never believed she'd be living on her own in New York. When she was finally ready to take the leap, she created a vision board of everything she wanted in her apartment. Just as she was about to settle, she found the perfect spot that she's decorated with items and color palettes from all over the world.

Robin's Canadian home is a reflection of her time traveling around the world. She has expensive taste, but has learned how to DIY a lot of the decor in her home to make it look and feel expensive on a low budget.

Allegra Rose Berger is a creative freelancer, influencer, and artist, and it has always been important to her to have a space that inspires her.

Ross and Marianna Popejoy's home blurs the line between indoors and outdoors after their thoughtful, intentional renovation of this 1900 worker's cottage in East London.

Natalie Doef describes her style as bohemian, whimsical, modern, and fresh. "I tend to gravitate towards earthy features; I love incorporating natural materials like rattan, bamboo, clay, ceramic, and stone."

Mish, who founded design studio Tangerine Living, says this rental apartment was initially a very awkward studio with a tiny, unused upstairs storage room. But along with partner, Ryan, they redid floors, ceilings, doors, kitchen, bathroom, and decor... and all on a DIY budget!

Amy Keevy and her fiancée, Maryke, bought this wooden cabin on stilts with a grass roof almost two years ago. Amy is an artist, art director, digital creator, and brand consultant and works from a stunning studio that overlooks an old-growth Tsitsikamma forest.

Built in 1920, this rental rowhome's builder-grade renovation stripped it of its original character, but renters Bryce and Stefan have been on a mission to "inject some love and character back into the space."

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."

The moment sisters Farah and Vanessa walked into this studio apartment, they knew it was the one and put in an offer the same day! "It was the perfect space with a little balcony."

Emily Greene runs Foodie Snitch, an account about the food and design scene in Portland. The rental apartment she shares with her partner, photographer Bryan Daugherty, beats gray and gloomy Portland weather with a mix of Danish pastel and Japanese minimalism styles.

Documentarian Reilly Dowd bought this vintage Airstream Sovereign travel trailer sight unseen in the midst of pre-vaccine Covid and after losing their family home in Sonoma to a wildfire.

Where are all my natural-wood enthusiasts? Aleksandra Zee and Antrom Kury, artists and woodworkers, live in this rental house that showcases the beauty of warm wood tones and terrific natural textures.

This renovated apartment in a bustling Barcelona neighborhood feels like a totally relaxing sanctuary surrounded by trees.

Melissa Chang's thoughtful (and smart!) furniture layout, her approach to collecting, and her experiences living even smaller in Tokyo have all contributed to a gorgeous, cozy, functional home, despite being a one-room studio apartment only 250 square feet large.

Grace Zhang chronicles her many home improvement efforts personalizing this "boring new construction” 650-square-foot apartment she shares with her boyfriend.

Tessa started Tessa Ariane Design, which focuses on affordable design work, in "response to how out of touch the interior design industry can be with what most folks actually need. We are all impacted by our environments, and I really believe we need to prioritize providing solutions for renters, folks in small spaces, and within realistic budgets that don’t leave anyone behind," she says.

Meg Quinn, author of "THE CHEESE BOARD DECK" and the popular website, "Ain't Too Proud to Meg," rented this LA apartment for 10 years.

Emily Auffrey describes the rental apartment she shares with her family as a NYC dream space. “We truly feel like we moved into our dream NYC apartment. In addition to being the dream home; the area is just absolutely ideal for a family," she writes.

A dated and dark house is now a warm, modern, tranquil home with a beautiful color palette.

Every detail of this rental appealed to Lauren Meichtry, the designer behind Elsie Home, from the high ceilings, wainscoting, built-in benches off the fireplace, green marble countertops in the kitchen, to the ocean view from the primary bedroom.

Professional organizer Shira Gill's definition of minimalism is "not about deprivation or scarcity, but rather, defining what is essential and meaningful to you, and then stripping away the clutter and distraction that stands in the way."

When interior designer and artist Sophia E. Aguiñaga realized she'd be moving out of her Oakland rental apartment, she took the opportunity to pare down and refresh the home's style. She re-homed almost everything and used minimalism, ease, and traveling light as a style guide.

Alex Willcock is the co-founder of Maker&Son, and his home is a Grade II listed country house in West Sussex dating back to the 1660s that's full of gorgeous furniture and beautiful paint colors.

Thanks to collaborating and facetiming with her bestfriend everyday, Christine was able to DIY furniture, create an enviable bed loft/home office setup, give an ugly kitchen a renter-friendly facelift, and create a stunning home that feels much bigger and more expensive than it actually is.

When artist Josie Azuma and her husband bought this house in 2015, it was in rough shape and too small. They renovated it to be a larger, light-filled, and functional home for their family.

This house had sturdy bones, unique character, a fun neighborhood, and great potential, and Amina beautifully transformed the home through a six-month renovation.

Anastasia Casey, the founder of boutique creative agency IDCO Studio, says her goal for designing spaces is for them to "feel collected and elevated, with each piece telling a story."

Shelley V. Worrell is the founder of caribBEING and led the initiative to designate the Little Caribbean neighborhood. She shares this beautiful Brownstone home in Brooklyn with her husband, Janluk Stanislas (a filmmaker and a co-founder of caribBEING).

Becca Crawford, who works at textiles and decor brand St. Frank, fell for the high ceilings and charming pre-war details of this Brooklyn Brownstone; it's the perfect canvas for her enviable collection of gorgeous textiles.

This cute white stucco house that was built in 1939 with really unique Spanish-style architectural features has been layered with calming neutrals to create a cozy and chic home.

Brooklyn resident Lidey Heuck is a recipe developer, food writer, blogger, and the former assistant of Ina Garten — so it only makes sense that she designed the apartment she shares with her fiancé and their dog to reflect her love of cooking and entertaining. 

Erica and Kristen purchased this airstream for only $500, then gutted it, cleaned it, and re-built the interiors to fit exactly what they need.

"Being an interior enthusiast, I also knew that I wanted a home that I could put my very-own stamp on. I didn’t want anything too turn-key. We instantly fell in love with this 1300-square-foot 1930s row house perched high up on a mountain top," says Anthony.

Alyssa Fetini works in HR but has a passion for interior design that she was able to express when she and her partner renovated this large house in Oakland's Lake Merritt neighborhood.

As soon as photographer Colleen O’Toole saw this rental apartment's gorgeous stained glass, clawfoot tub, and original hardwood floors, she fell in love with the place!

Peter Quinn and Caitlin Dawson bought this house in Mount Washington three years ago, and recently finished a remodel that modernized the small home, while retaining a lot of the original history and charm

Denise Bayron's tiny home is like a secret oasis... a personal paradise that's both a home and a creative workspace.