Paris Was the Inspiration Behind This 331-Square-Foot Manhattan Apartment

Almost everything about content creator Sophie Simmons’ 331-square-foot Hell’s Kitchen apartment sounds like a miracle. Two years ago, Sophie thought she should live on the Upper West Side, but home hunting during the winter season wasn’t proving fruitful, and almost everything was above budget and didn’t offer much. Sophie, who’s a self-proclaimed “Southern Belle” from Texas, said the “pickin’s were slim.” She was beginning to lose hope of finding a home at all until her real estate broker suggested expanding her search radius.

It had become a habit for Sophie to skim real estate listings every day, and she spotted this one-bedroom rental “gem” that was in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood. It wasn’t as high up as she initially wanted, but it was still on the west side and centrally located. Only 20 people were able to view the apartment, and she immediately snagged the lease. 

“Not only was the apartment a miracle price, but it was also a one-bedroom with a split floor plan. I couldn’t believe it,” Sophie says. “It’s a railroad-style apartment with three separate rooms, 12-foot ceilings, a window in every room, and not one, not two, but three closets that extend all the way to the ceiling!”

Sophie’s mom is a retired interior decorator, so as she began designing her home and filling it with secondhand, inexpensive, and thrifted finds, she documented it on social media. Soon enough, the apartment earned the moniker “The Thrifted Palace,” and a viral video led real estate broker Ryan Serhant of SERHANT to invite her to join his brokerage. She worked there until moving full-time into content creation.

She had a lot of content to create while putting together her home. What was once “cookie-cutter, sterile, and generic” is now a warm, inviting home that’s so functional. Speaking of being practical, she met her now-husband, Christian, while living there and had to make the space work for not one, but two people. There are vintage, glam, and Parisian elements throughout and clever storage tricks, to boot.

• Kitchen Island — Amazon
• Bar Stools — Wayfair
• Chandelier — Amazon

• Nightstands — Lowe’s
• Flush Mount Ceiling Fixture — Amazon
• Rug — Amazon

• Cafe Curtain — Amazon
• Swan Artwork — Amazon

Thanks, Sophie and Christian!

This tour’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.

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