Lauren’s 500 Square Foot, 5th Floor West Village Walk-Up Studio

Name: Lauren
Location: West Village, New York City

I’ve been living in my 500 square foot, 5th floor walk-up studio in the West Village for about a year now. I moved approximately seven blocks south from another West Village place. The neighborhood feels like a dynamite grown-up version of Sesame Street to me where everyone knows everyone, which is a huge rarity in New York. I couldn’t possibly move out of the ‘hood!

I love studio spaces because they’re bigger and more open than a one bedroom, and who really needs a door when you live by yourself anyway? It’s like having the ultimate bachelorette bedroom complete with chaise lounge, fireplace, and bar cart all at an arm’s reach from the bed.

Once I moved into the space I knew that I wanted to design the entire apartment around a blue, black, and gold eight foot sailfish that my father caught decades ago but which has always been too large for any other apartment I’ve had in the city.

Working in the fashion industry also influences my decor style, as does travel. I have knickknacks that I’ve picked up from my trips all over the apartment and books on the fashion industry and the places I’ve visited or that I’m interested in visiting as well.

It took me the better half of a year to get to a place where I felt like the space was more or less complete. I painted the bronze chevron stripe wall above the mantle and the black chalkboard wall in the kitchen by myself. I definitely took a ton of inspiration from Apartment Therapy all along the way.

With the fish and the steel front door and kitchen appliances, as well as the exposed brick and wooden floors, the apartment had somewhat of a masculine feel to it when I first moved in, and I wanted to respect that with the color scheme.

I used various shades of blues and grays for the furniture and drapes, which are grounded by a lot of neutrals and complemented by all shades of metallics as well. I painted the roller blinds with black and white stripes to add some form to their function — the apartment gets a ton of morning light and the blackout drapes I have didn’t quite get the job done alone.

For sure one of my favorite things about the space is being surrounded by all my personal elements that remind me of my family, my friends, my travels, and my interests. Almost every piece in the space has a story behind it, which makes for easy conversation whenever I have guests. I also love entertaining and mixology, so I definitely get some good use out of all the glassware I’ve collected over the years. Even though the space is small, it is perfectly reflective of me and suits me well!

Thanks, Lauren Crabbe!

• Interested in sharing your home with Apartment Therapy? Contact the editors through our House Tour & House Call Submission Form.