Small apartment therapy

Sarah and Greg did lots of things to this apartment to make it feel like their own, including painting a big green arch in the living room.

Name: Daniel and Diego Location: Palermo — Buenos Aires, Argentina Size: 590 square feet Years lived in: Owned, 12 years After living in Spain for 15 years, Daniel wanted to move back to Argentina. During a visit he found this apartment, fell in love with it, and began a long-distance restoration relationship that would last almost a year. Luckily, Daniel’s experience as an interior designer helped him sail through the process with ease.

Richard added so much personality and warmth to his rental, it’s kind of astounding. The totally fine but pretty sterile space was full of the standard rental woes; outdated overhead lighting, bland cabinets and a kitchen floor that has seen better days. With a mix of gifts, Craigslist and new purchases, Richard turned the bland apartment into a welcoming and charming home.

The renters of this 202-square-foot studio apartment inside a Victorian-era-house-turned-apartment-building in Louisville, Kentucky ditches conventional wisdom and opts for loud patterns and oversized art.

Name: Stephanie and my cat, MinaLocation: West Village — New York, New YorkType of home: ApartmentSize: 350ish square feetYears lived in: 2 years, renting Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Elegant, classic, warm, witty.What is your favorite room and why? The “living room”—I love the fireplace, the built-in bookcases, and the perfect nook for my couch, and the fact that it fits my massive marble coffee table (which I found for $50 on Craigslist!).

After moving, Samantha started with nothing, but furnished this whole apartment (hardware, lights, painting, installing shelves and art etc.) in about a month.

The kitchen is so dramatically different!

Kitchens always seem to look way bigger before you move in—but once you start importing all your pots, pans, dishes, and appliances, counter space starts looking cluttered. Next thing you know, there’s still not enough real estate to chop an onion and cool off a casserole simultaneously. Luckily, there are plenty of other surfaces in your kitchen just waiting to be exploited—and you won’t even have to knock out a wall.

This home was an entry in the 2023 Small/Cool Contest!