Address: 352 West 12th Street #1CNeighborhood: West Village, ManhattanPrice: $429,000Listed by: Ivana Tagliamonte, CompassSize: 242 square feetBedrooms: StudioBathrooms: 1Chances are that when you scrolled through those details listed above, the square footage figure jumped out at you. But since location is everything in real estate, this teensy space in the West Village is nothing to toss aside.
A lot has changed since we first learned to do our laundry. It feels like our lives have gotten way more packed, and our personal time is at more of a premium. Plus, the machines themselves have changed. Washing machine drums have gotten bigger, which is a good thing: You can put off doing your laundry since the machines can handle larger loads. The problem is that our habits haven’t really changed with them.
If you’re like us, you may be a little mesmerized by the myriad colors in Le Creuset’s top-quality enamel cast iron cookware. The recent introduction of Artichaut, a brilliant, subtle bluish-green, might make it that much harder to choose your signature color. The good news is that you don’t have to pick just one. In fact, many of Le Creuset’s colorways might work even better when paired with others.
Can something as workaday as your cookware spark joy? We think it can. You may already be familiar with Le Creuset’s iconic pots and pans and their beautiful, brilliant colors. But they just added another color to the spectrum: Meet Nectar, a joyful, honeyed shade of yellow that will put a smile on your face every time you walk into your kitchen. The kitchen is a very practical space, but it doesn’t have to be boring.
We love special occasions. But we’re firm believers that you don’t need a special occasion to make life’s everyday moments feel special. A weeknight dinner can be just as festive as a holiday spread — even if it’s a quick pasta you throw together while old episodes of The Great British Baking Show play in the background. (Just us?) A couple of little touches are all it takes to make everyday moments more special: Keep cellphones off the table. Light a candle or two.
Significant others are great and all, but have you ever fallen in love with how clean your house is? This Valentine’s Day, make sure you’re showing a little affection to the space you call home — after all, it’s there for you 24/7. (Plus, it’s where your chocolate stash lives.)When we want to really care for our space, we turn to The Laundress. Their eco-friendly, super-effective products leave everything from our delicates to our countertops feeling extra special.
Any savvy shopper knows that your space doesn’t have to be filled with expensive items to look expensive. However, there are some home decor categories where the splurge is well worth it. A nice design piece can set the look, feel, and tone of a room, adding substance and detail that you can both see and feel and improving your overall mood. But how do you know when to spend vs when to save?
If you’re anything like us, your winter social calendar is packed with dinners, happy hours, and late-night dance parties. (Just kidding. Obviously, we’ll be at home under blankets until April.) Lean into nesting season by pampering your space and your senses with scents luxurious enough to make you forget tonight’s 7-degree wind chill.
We design our homes to be peaceful havens where we can relax and unwind. And lately, we’ve been making a more conscious effort to unplug from our devices, step back from our screens, and spend time offline. But if we’re being honest, even when we’re offline, we’re still pretty connected. When we set down our phones, we turn on Netflix; when we cook dinner, we ask Alexa to recite the next recipe step.
Right as the holiday season began, we hosted an event in NYC on fast and fancy holiday hosting. The purpose of the event was to show people that entertaining in your home over the holidays doesn’t have to be a big thing: All it takes is a little forethought and the smallest personal touches to make a party memorable and fun.While we had fun sipping cider and swapping tips with all of our guests in person, the good news is you didn’t have to be in NYC to benefit!
The best way to choose a great gift is to start with something you know your giftee loves — and who doesn’t love a good Disney movie? From exciting superhero adventures to heartfelt family features, we rounded up some of our faves and picked the perfect presents to go with them. Consider this your ultimate holiday shopping list.If they love: The Avengers…...give them: Are We There Yet?
Name: Vickie (and cats Luna and Lucy)Location: Austin, TXSize: 900 square feetYears Lived In: 2Vickie had owned her Austin home—a 1,700 square-foot space where she raised her children—for 10 years when she began to feel the itch to downsize. After her father’s passing, she sold the house and spent a year living with her mother in Florida. Upon returning to Austin, Vickie didn’t want to rush back into buying.
The New Year is a time of beginnings, and nothing gives your living room a refresh quite like a new sofa. Sure, not everyone can afford to buy a new sofa (and even if you can, getting rid of your old one is a royal pain). That’s why Bemz makes slipcovers and legs to transform IKEA couches, making them look totally new and unique without the price of buying a new couch.
When you’re a kid, one of the great joys of the holiday season is getting exactly the gift that you wanted. When you’re a grownup, one of the great joys of the holiday season is finding the perfect gift for someone you love. The nice thing about gift-giving at this stage of our lives is that the gifts become more meaningful.
Who: Mili Suleman, founder of KUFRI Fabrics, and co-founder of SHIFTNominated by: Danielle Blundell, Apartment Therapy Home DirectorWhere to follow her: InstagramApartment Therapy’s Class of 2020 Design Changemakers is a specially-selected group of the 20 people in the design world everyone should know about by next year. We asked experts (and you!) to tell us who they think should be included—see the rest of the nominees here.
Name: Jamie, Brocke, Clara (and two cats) Location: Dallas, TXSize: 1,140 square feetYears Lived In: 6Fashion and prop stylist, Jamie, and her photographer husband, Brocke, don’t just have style; they have a whole design philosophy. The 1925 Tudor they share with daughter Clara, and two cats, is a neutrals-only zone—mostly black-and-white, plus touches of warm wood and the occasional gilded frame.
Amidst all the gadgets, novelties, and blink-and-you’ll-miss-’em trends, that seem to be a part of every holiday gifting season, Kim Stoegbauer of TomKat Studio was looking for something more meaningful.
During the holidays, it’s easy to get caught up in gift-buying and party-throwing. But ultimately, the holidays are a time to make memorable moments with the people you love. That’s especially true this year for Apartment Therapy staffer Daniela and her longtime boyfriend, who recently got engaged.Daniela and her fiancé live together in New York, far away from their families in Colombia and Venezuela.
Name: Nicole, Jerome, Jaxon, and Jaden ReidLocation: Sicklerville, NJSize: 4,230 square feet Years lived in: 1The Reids had been living in Nashville for nine years when Nicole’s husband Jerome landed his dream job: head trainer with the Philadelphia Eagles. Suddenly, this family of four found itself in a whirlwind move north. The whole process was swift as an all-star running back.
The holidays are about the inside jokes, traditions, and family celebrations that make this time of year so special. Think about seasonal decorating as setting the scene to make those memorable moments happen. That’s exactly what Leandra, an Apartment Therapy staffer, is thinking about during her daughter’s first holiday season.
Name: Lauren Price and BrandonLocation: Smyrna, GA Size: 2610 square feet Years lived in: 1Lauren Price jokes that a Dalmatian would match her aesthetic perfectly, and she’s not wrong: Her penchant for black, white, and grey makes for a minimalist home where a spotted pup would fit right in.
You have a vision board for every room, an eagle eye for telling Eames knock-offs from the real deal, and strong opinions about painting hardwood floors. But you might not know how to turn your design hobby into a career. If you’ve always dreamed of pursuing your creative passion, now is the time to make it happen.Changing careers might sound daunting, but New York School of Interior Design (NYSID) can help you take the first step and jumpstart your dream career.
When we think about designing our spaces, it’s easy to get hung up on the obvious elements like color and scale. But there’s another major design element we tend to take for granted even though it has the potential to create a room that feels “alive,” and that’s material. Good materials go a long way, and Industry West‘s creative — and sometimes daring — use of different materials is what makes their pieces feel so stylish, grown-up, and unique.
Much like the right accessories can really make an outfit, the right fixtures—faucets, showerheads, and even things like toilet paper holders and towel bars—can really make your kitchen or bathroom. One design trend we’re loving right now is matte black fixtures. They add a stylish, modern look with a bit of contrast that will make your space truly memorable.
It’s no coincidence that some of our favorite homes feature great carpeting—after all, a well-designed room starts from the bottom up. Yet carpet is often overlooked and under-appreciated, despite being one of the most versatile, hardest-working floorings out there. Time to correct that. Read on for our ode to the fuzz beneath our feet. Texture, color, pattern: Carpet’s myriad options mean myriad design possibilities, none of which need to stand alone.
Name: Matthew Manupella and Andrew Horan Location: Southwest Waterfront, Washington, DCSize: 1,100 square feetYears lived in: 2Matthew and Andrew weren’t huge fans of mid-century modern architecture before they found their townhouse in Capitol Park in DC’s Southwest Waterfront neighborhood. The development embodies its 1960s origins, with clean lines and floor-to-ceiling windows.
When home design blogger Cynthia Harper and her husband bought their home in 2012, they focused on the design features they already loved: the simple mantle and their new front door (which was an all-important element considering their first home’s entrance was through the back). They knew they wanted to renovate the kitchen, which was “clean and well-maintained” but stuck in the ’90s, but they’d have to save up first.
Aniko‘s tastes are always changing, so when she got the opportunity to update one of the rooms in her house, she was ready for something new. The builder’s grade guest bathroom had “old and messy” flooring and was painted an “awful” green she’d chosen when she moved in eight years before. She couldn’t wait to get started on her vision to turn the room into a spa-like haven.The first order of business was a complete bathroom demo.
Considering we spend a third of our lives sleeping, mattresses should be as comfy and cozy as possible—and somewhere you can feel good about going to sleep at night. But as inviting as most mattresses might seem on the outside, many have hidden health hazards on the inside.While mattresses are regulated to be flame-retardant and meet other safety standards, most are made with materials that aren’t exactly healthy or natural by any means.
“Hey, I’m in town. Any chance I could crash at your place tonight?” We’ve all gotten that bittersweet text. It’s the dreaded (but really beloved) last-minute guest! And as we’re gearing up for the busy holiday travel season, it’s more important than ever to prepare to host that friend who’s suddenly in town. When square footage is at a premium, you have to be smart about the details that make a guest room feel just like home.
Sometimes our never-ending quest to give our homes a personal style can be a little overwhelming. In those moments, the best thing we can do is to take a breath and remind ourselves that all of us already have a personal style; we may just need some help identifying it. A good place to start is one you’re probably overlooking: your closet.Our wardrobes are the results of years of making choices about colors, patterns, and textures. And guess what the basics of home design are?
The furniture brand EQ3 recently opened a second beautiful showroom in Chicago, and Apartment Therapy was there to celebrate the grand opening. With partners like Vitra and Marimekko and a focus on process as much as the finished product, this Canadian retailer knows quality design. For those who weren’t with us to fête the brand’s latest stateside opening, we missed you! But here, we have a few of our editors’ favorite products to share with you.
When DIY home blogger Sara Davis decided to renovate her daughter’s bathroom, it was about more than pleasing a 7-year-old. The space, which wasn’t in terrible shape—it was just “very ’90s and bland,” she says—is shared by overnight guests, so it had to be welcoming to all. Plus, Sara wanted it to be something her daughter could grow into.
What if we told you there’s a new type of clothes dryer that uses half the energy of your current dryer and won’t eat every other sock? There is—it’s called a heat pump dryer. They’re relatively new, having first come onto the U.S. market in 2014, but are just…warming up…when it comes to savings.
At the end of a busy work week, there’s nothing as gratifying as a good night in. You’ve spent five days grinding, so you deserve the simple joy of enjoying your home and winding down for the weekend. Whether that’s a family movie night or some DIY spa time, the one promise you have to keep is to not worry about cleaning it up until tomorrow. Just submit to the R&R and know that a few swipes of a mop can handle it all the next morning.
College can be stressful (information overload is real), so it’s important to give yourself a space to unwind. Even though tiny rooms built with cinderblock walls and bunk beds aren’t exactly designed for calm, they can feel a lot more peaceful when everything is organized. Storing your stuff isn’t just about being neat. It’s a way to organize your life on your own terms so you can stay in control when the semester gets crazy.
