Toronto

When Sheryl Song first bought this apartment, she could only afford a few IKEA pieces. “Slowly, over the next ten years, I transformed this apartment into a reflection of who I am — one chair, one corner, one layer at a time.”

Discover six storage tips that make this cozy 300 square-foot Toronto studio feel ultra-livable.

Jeff built the crib, coffee table, and dining nook in this gorgeous renovated Toronto house, and Miranda gave it a boutique hotel vibe.

"My home is a blend of Japandi and mid-century modern, with a touch of wabi-sabi," describes Abhishek Dekate.

Tour an elegant yet cozy studio apartment located in Toronto that rents for $1,560 a month.

"Our house is a reflection of who we are and what we love," homeowner Jean Ross shares.

But Sasha and Andrew saw past the dated home’s quirks, bringing out all the home’s charm with their stunning remodel.

Fiona's Downtown Toronto apartment isn't afraid to break every rule. With a shower featured prominently in the kitchen and cool vintage furniture and accessories everywhere, this home highlights its unique quirks.

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.

Fairy tales, period dramas, and fantasy novels have all lent imagination to this space. "I feel inspired among rich jewel tones like emerald green and plum, and have put up a fairy light canopy in every place I’ve lived — I like to make my inner child happy!" exclaims Lauren Park, who shares this home with partner, Kevin, and their two cats.

When Roanna Cochrane and Simon Phillips first viewed this turn-of-the-century loft, it was run-down with lime green walls in the kitchen, a shabby curtain dividing the bedroom from the living room, and no light fixtures to speak of.

Momina and her husband, Ali, moved into this Toronto townhouse at the start of the pandemic and spent A LOT of time at home. Since then, they have been spending their time slowly and intentionally customizing their space.

Janelle and Spencer's apartment is in an old Victorian house (built in 1883!) that’s been broken out into units. Their space has a ton of character, including original molding and ceiling medallions, chandeliers in every room (even the kitchen and bathrooms), a working fireplace, a large verandah, and big, lovely bay windows not overlooking someone else’s condo balcony.

Content creator Luna Lindsay has DIYed and painted her rental apartment into a pastel palace... and recently launched a hand-poured pastel candle business called Moonwix.

Franco Cheng renovated this small Toronto studio apartment, completely upgrading the kitchen and bathroom, and creating a neat bed alcove where a built-in mirrored closet used to be.

If you imagine that being a furniture designer means you get to be surrounded by your own gorgeous modern work, you'd be right.

Angelo and his boyfriend's strongest ability to decorate their small apartment is refurbishing old furniture to fit a more modern style (like their kitchen table, coffee table trunk, kitchen chairs) and they love creating art and furniture from scratch.

Anyone who's been captivated by the current checkerboard trend will fall head over heels for this Toronto rental apartment's original black and white checkered kitchen floor.

Like installing pink peel and stick backsplash tiles, replacing fixtures and hardware such as handles, light switches, faucets, and more!

Farida Talaat filled her studio with lightweight furniture so she can change the layout often, like Tetris.

Over the course of two years, Tess and her dad changed almost everything about this small space to get it to where it is today—a bright, plant-filled home brimming with creativity and pillows.

Shanna is an interior designer and her partner is an artist/illustrator, and their rental home is a reflection of these creative careers.

You don't have to spend a lot of money to make your house a home; you can rework what you already have to work for you.

While Shruti's style is bold and dramatic, her husband, Madhukar, prefers a calm and relaxed space. The couple has managed to strike a good-looking balance in their new condo.

This past year, Robin went through a breakup, and as part of her healing process, she undertook a major redesign frenzy of her rental home.

Most of what couple Seth and Ryan had—accessories, artwork, big furnishings—were pieces they bought years ago for previous apartments.

"Investing in a space is an investment into your well-being and happiness; it's never a waste."

This interior stylist and decorator calls her call her apartment "the treasure that people's trash built."

Elena and her husband Christoph bought this fixer upper in 2015, and have been slowly transforming it into a gorgeous home since.

This designer's biggest goal was infusing a plain, contemporary condo with vintage soul.

This couple got rid of their home's bland greige color palette, instead painting the walls blue, recovering hand-me-down furniture in bold colors like mustard yellow, and filling the rest of the space with vintage and secondhand finds.

This little apartment is a 1900 Victorian home in the heart of San Francisco, and it's filled with history, character, and all the quirks of living in a big city.

Minimalism blogger Jo Charron generally avoids red and green in her home's holiday decor... preferring accessories made of natural materials and colors.

The sun room is so dreamy!

The decor challenge for this studio was to counter the dark, heavy furnishings within such a small space without having to sacrifice style.

Name: Andrew Stelmack Location: Toronto, Canada Size: 725 square feet Years lived in: Owned 5 years Andrew is a professional actor (both on screen and stage), visual artist and writer. However, it is his visual art that now takes up most of his time. To accommodate his creativity, he moved into this live/work space five years ago.

It's filled with art, plants and micro shrimp.

These snowboarding sisters attend university living in a shared space that is equal parts modern and cool, but also classic and romantic.

It's so cute and bright, despite being located on the basement level!

Name: Lauren and Dylan Location: Cabbagetown — Toronto, Canada Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 3 years; owned Lauren, Marketing Director at Spacing Magazine, and Dylan’s home is nestled on a small, tree-lined street in Toronto’s historic Cabbagetown neighborhood, an area known for having the largest collection of designated heritage homes in North America. Lauren, Dylan, and Dylan’s brother Chris have spent the past three years renovating this 1904 Victorian home.

Name: Tim Tripp and his dog, Sebastian Location: Toronto; Ontario, Canada Size: 1,150 square feet Years lived in: 11 years; Owned For as long as he can remember, Tim has had an interest in collecting things. His passion for the history of decor and design is present throughout his space, whether it’s embodied by an Art Deco piece of furniture, dinnerware from the mid-20th century, or vintage telephones.

Name: Chris Collie Location: Cabbagetown; Toronto, Canada Size: 600 square feet (but feels like 1000!) Years lived in: 2+ years; Owned We recently toured Lauren and Dylan’s Historic Split Apartment in Toronto’s east end. Lauren, Dylan, and Dylan’s brother, Chris, share this Victorian home, which they’ve split into two entirely distinct spaces.

Name: Melinda Josie and Wesley Doerksen and their cat, Malkmus Location: The Junction; Toronto, Ontario Size: 1,000 square feet Years Lived In: 1 ¼ years; Rented Upon entering this home you immediately feel like you’ve been transported to a cabin in the woods. On a quiet street in Toronto just west of downtown, the couple have managed to cultivate a quaint and cozy environment inspired by their love for the outdoors.

Name: Dana Haddad Location: Corktown, Toronto Size: 750 square feet Years lived in: Owned 1 year For as long as she can remember, Dana has had a love for interiors and is known for decorating (and redecorating!) her space. Not expecting to move to Toronto’s East End or to purchase a condo, after walking into this space and seeing the trees in the distance she was sold!

Name: Jil and Jeff Location: Leslieville — Toronto, Canada Size: 1,250 square feet Years lived in: Owned 2 years Originally from the Canada’s East Coast, Jil and Jeff moved to Toronto in pursuit of career opportunities. They brought along not only their friendly character and Maritime hospitality but also many treasures, such as old barn ladders, driftwood and antiques.

Jil and Jeff’s home showcases many rustic, nautical and Scandinavian-inspired pieces, like the vintage wood crate at the sofa’s side or the coffee table made from a slab of wood. If you had your eye on some of the items in their expansive Toronto loft, you can get some of the items—or something similar—using the sources below.

Name: Caitlyn Murphy Location: Trinity Bellwoods — Toronto, Canada Size: 600-ish square feet Years lived in: Rented 6.5 years Caitlyn is a visual artist living and working in Toronto. She moved to the city nearly a decade ago, landing herself a one-bedroom apartment within a short distance from the art school she was attending.

Name: Juliana Ciccarelli Location: Toronto, Canada Size: 715 square feet Years lived in: Owned 2 years Within moments of first entering her loft, Juliana knew this space would be her first home. Conveniently located within a part of the city where she works and plays, Juliana has spent the past two years slowly and consciously designing her home. Undoubtedly, its selling feature is the over-20-foot windows that pour light into the space and offer a view of the city.

Name: Adam Kuhn Location: Little Italy — Toronto, Canada Size: 600 square feet Years lived in: Rented 3 years Finding an apartment in Toronto is no easy feat, so when Adam stumbled upon this gem in Little Italy he was ecstatic and relieved to have finally found a place to call home in the city. One of his favorite things about the neighborhood is the mix of dwellers from renters, owners and families — all folks that say hello to one another on the street.

Kate and Jennifer’s shared space is equal parts modern and cool, but also classic and romantic. In their 1,000 square foot condo, you’ll find bold colors and clean lines mixed with traditional furniture and accents. Shop the style below to get this sophisticated yet edgy look in your home.

Name: Jill and Warren Location: Roncesvalles — Toronto Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: Renting 4 months As soon as Jill and Warren stepped into their new loft, they were sold! Moving from a newer condo in the downtown core, this space – with a good story and some history behind it – really appealed to them. Initially from the West End, Jill knew the charm of the neighborhood and has now introduced Warren to a new part of the city.

Name: Kirsten White, Darcy Killeen and Brydie Killeen Location: Dufferin Grove — Downtown Toronto Size: 2,300 square feet Years lived in: 16 years, owned It took over a decade for Kirsten and Darcy to begin their home renovations — other than a few fresh coats of paint. But when you’re a professional designer (and self-proclaimed perfectionist), “it was all worth the wait to achieve exactly what I had envisioned for the space,” explained Kirsten.

Name: Sara, Kyle, and Monty the dog Location: Forest Hill, Toronto Size: 750 square feet| Years lived in: Renting 10 months. (They lived in the one-bedroom unit directly next door for 5 years.) This space proves that we should never judge a home by its exterior. Built in the late 1960s by architect Uni Prii, this apartment building was described as “space age” by Spacing Toronto. However, Kyle and Sara have created a home that leans far more toward cozy vintage than futuristic.

Name: Erin and Mike and their two kids (ages 6 and 3) Location: Riverdale — Toronto, Ontario Size: 2,000 square feet Years lived in: 2.5 years, owned This three-story, century home in Toronto is filled to the brim with stylish thrift hauls, DIY projects, and chic details. The combination of all those fixings make this house a pleasure to visit. It’s clear that Erin and Mike have put their hearts into making this the perfect luxurious family home for their small family.

Name: Joseph Luk Location: Downtown, Toronto Size: 550 square feet Years lived in: 2 years; owned Have you ever felt that your home has a dual personality depending on the time of day? The season? Joseph does. During the day, the space is bright, airy and open. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook the city, giving the illusion that you’re in the clouds. Transitioning into the evening, the lighting is dim and moody — perfect for having a mellow night in.

Name: Terra Loire Location: Toronto, Ontario Size: 700 square feet Years lived in: 8 months, renting After living in nine different spaces over the past eight years, Terra finally feels like she has found a home in her mid-town Toronto apartment. She’s definitely had her tour of living all over the city—east to west, centrally and along the lakeshore—experiencing many of Toronto’s diverse neighborhoods.

Name: Stacey Lipstein Location: Leslieville — Toronto, Canada Size: 950 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, owned Stacey knew that sizing up a 950-square-foot house for a growing family was going to be a challenge, but from the beginning she saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Fast forward a few years and the home is nearly complete (until Stacey’s next design vision), and it couldn’t be more charming!

Name: Tiffany Pratt Location: The Beaches — Toronto, Canada Size: 1,200 square feet Years lived in: 8 years, renting For as long as she can remember, Tiffany has had a deep affinity for color. As a designer and stylist, she uses it to create bright and beautiful spaces. She loves evoking thought, inspiration and delight using bold hues that some might overlook.