A Cup of Jo Editor Shares 6 Real Life Lessons on How to Cope With a Teeny Apartment

Manhattan has notoriously teeny apartments and I’m always fascinated by how people make them work. I mean, you have to be clever to figure out how to fit in a place to sleep, a place to eat, a place to hang out, a place to cook and a place to you know, store all of your stuff, all in about 300 square feet. Even more impressive? When someone figures out how to do it stylishly in about half of that footprint. Welcome to the 175-square-foot home of Stella Blackmon, an editor at lifestyle website Cup of Jo.

Earlier this week, she shared her home on the site (check out the whole tour here), and provided some really smart takeaways for how to deal with small space living and keep your sanity. From what sheets to use and how to maximize unexpected spots (like your suitcase!) for storage, here are some “game changers” from Stella on how to make it work when you kind of just have to:

1. Opt for White Bedding: “They brighten the room.”

2. Be Cutthroat on What You Keep Around: “We have to be savage and scrappy. I’ll donate anything I don’t use often enough — mostly kitchen tools and clothes.”

3. Bring in Those Green Babies: House plants “add lives, ones that can handle some neglect” if you aren’t always around or travel often.

4. Find Storage Anywhere You Can: “For storage, stuff goes under the bed or on a rickety closet shelf only Andrew [her boyfriend] can reach. Our suitcases store extra sheets and out-if-season clothes… My winter boots are stored in a cabinet above my oven.”

5. Open Those Windows: “Throwing open the windows for fresh air” makes your place feel like a treehouse.

6. Make the Most of Your “Backyard”: “The best part of living in New York is living in New York. When the apartment feels too small to host friends, there’s an old-school karaoke bar down the street that feels like a second home. Or if I need a morning to myself, I’ll take a bagel and the Sunday paper down to the promenade overlooking the East River.”

See the rest of Stella’s teeny yet stylish pad over on Cup of Jo.