Studio Apartment

Name: Adam LaGreca Location: Clinton Hill, Brooklyn Size: 475 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting Adam’s apartment is located in a tall, all-glass high-rise building on a street that runs right through the heart of Brooklyn. His neighborhood is filled with tree-lined streets, long-time residents, college students from Pratt Institute and St. Joseph’s college, young professionals and aspiring every-things.

Name: Jenee Yuen Location: San Francisco, California Size: 400 square feet (maybe a little larger?) Years Lived In: 8 years, renting One of the fun things about living in an old San Francisco apartment is that sometimes, depending on your particular landlord, you get a little bit of creative control to “adjust” your living space as you see fit. Jenee did just that when she took out the carpet in her living room and refinished the beautiful hardwood floors that were hiding underneath.

Name: Eva Medoff, branded content editor at Well+Good, Delaney Rohan, and Scout (the cat) Location: Williamsburg — Brooklyn, New York Size: 450 square feet Years lived in: 6.5 years, renting When Eva moved into her Brooklyn studio apartment seven years ago, the space suited her needs: It’s centrally located in the trendy Williamsburg neighborhood and she has a great landlord. Despite the pros, “It didn’t feel like a real home,” Eva said.

Name: Angel and Ben Location: Fremont — Seattle, Washington Size: 580 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting The first thing you notice when walking into Angel and Ben’s Fremont studio is the huge floor-to-ceiling windows at the far end of the space, letting light pour into their living area.

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: Kim Location: Capitol Hill — Seattle, Washington Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, renting Having great style kinda comes with the territory when you’re a successful jewelry maker (and the owner of a business like Fresh Tangerine), but Kim has a particular brand that you just don’t see very often. She describes her home’s look as quirky Parisian with some PNW cozy mixed in. And it’s so true!

With a gorgeous outdoor space to lounge in, this rental apartment is much more than a studio, even though the rent is the price of a studio.

Name: Kachet Jackson-Henderson Location: Sacramento, California Size: 450 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting As a creative consultant, the writer at The Kachet Life, and the founder of The Blog Bloc, Kachet Jackson-Henderson needs a home where she can live, unwind, and work in. Though only 450 square feet, this Sacramento studio apartment is just the space.

Name: Becky Elfes-Terjung and Cliff Lance Location: Piedmont Avenue — Oakland, California Size: 400 square feet Years lived in: 6 years; rented When Becky took on a job as a display artist at Anthropologie, she would constantly bring home leftover scraps from work. This is where her love of plywood grew, as it provided her with a blank canvas that allowed her to be as creative as possible.

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?

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

"Don't be afraid of layers and colors, and don't do things halfway. Your vision will be best served if you really indulge your ideas. Scaling back is rarely the answer."

Name: Aurélie Desmas and her husband Location: Brooklyn, New York Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 5 years, renting Originally from France, decorator and photographer Aurélie Desmas has lived in Paris, London, and now New York, where she’s currently the founder and lead decorator of Maison KoduZen. Though versed in plenty of styles, her focus is on what kind of energy you can create in a home through decor.

Interior designer and stylist Elaine Burns has taken a small studio apartment and turned it into a cozy, functional home.

Name: Maeve Stier (and dog Weaver) Location: Back Bay — Boston, Massachusetts Size: 515 square feet Years lived in: Rented 1 year When Maeve and her dog Weaver moved to Boston last July, the first apartment they looked at fit the bill just perfectly. It was in the ideal location, had tall ceilings with intricate molding, lots of natural light, wooden floors, and was dog-friendly! Maeve signed on the spot and became a resident of the hip Back Bay neighborhood.

Name: Lee Tilghman Location: Koreatown, Los Angeles Years lived in: 8 months, renting When Lee Tilghman moved from New York City to Los Angeles a little over two years ago, she initially rented another apartment. But the building this Koreatown apartment is located in had great bones, Art Deco details, “amazing light and was central to everything I wanted to get to in LA,” says Lee. So she made the move to where she lives now!

Name: Mary Lee, her partner Jacob and her sweet chihuahua Kyley Location: Seattle, Washington Size: 366 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned The amount of blood, sweat and tears in any home remodel is substantial. But can you imagine the amount while making over a 366 square foot studio when you’re still living in it? A space that you share with your partner and a dog? It’s extraordinary, chaotic, and in Mary Lee’s case, ultimately worth it.

Felicity’s Brooklyn Heights home went through a complete shift in identity: from a dark, 1960s-style apartment with a sleeping loft to a modern-yet-historically-respectful and bright two-level studio. Felicity was particularly inspired by the work of Carlo Scarpa, an Italian architect. Just prior to closing on the apartment, a trip to Italy with her aunt provided many in-person experiences of Scarpa’s projects, including Castelvecchio and the Brion Sanctuary.

Name: Anna Zajac and her cat, Isaiah Location: Lincoln Square — Chicago, Illinois Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: 2 years; Rented Anna Zajac is a talented wedding photographer in Chicago with a background in design. Both she and her lovely studio apartment could not be more welcoming. The space is truly a reflection of her: warm, sweet, positive, and stylish. Delicate thrifted pieces are carefully juxtaposed with bold, dark walls and modern elements.

Name: Dave and Cathy Location: South West London; UK Size: 270 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting Editor’s note: This greatest hits tour of a teeny shared studio apartment is cleverly furnished and the commentary from the person who lived in it is hilarious! I always tell people that this studio was both the best and worst place I’ve ever lived.

Name: Erin Lyons and John Paul Doguin Location: Georgetown; Washington, DC Size: 525 square feet Years lived in: 3 years; Rented Meet Erin and John Paul. Erin’s a writer and JP works on a design team at a federal agency. I shot their studio one week before they moved into a larger one-bedroom apartment downstairs; I had seen their place for the first time a few days earlier and insisted we do a House Tour before they packed up! I’ll tell you why.

Name: Matthew Herbert Location: Downtown Phoenix, AZ Size: 468 square feet Years lived in: 6 Months; Rented When Matt first toured White Stone Studios, he was immediately drawn to the aesthetic; he knew it would highlight his personal style and design choices. His previous apartment was about twice the size of the studio, and downsizing his possessions, he says, has been a refreshing experience.

Name: Carl Seeno Location: Shaw; Washington, DC Size: 375 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years; rented Carl lives in the carriage house that’s attached to Jonathan and Colleen’s place, and when I peeked into his clean, stylish and seemingly spacious 375 square feet, there was no question: we’d have to take a tour of the carriage house, too!