Studio Apartment with Period Details
When designer Jean Liu was the tender age of 22, she made a savvy investment: the purchase of a studio apartment in a Gilded Age manor that was originally built for newspaper baron Joseph Pulitzer. With the spectacular details still intact, all Liu needed to do, really, was a “fluff and a buff.” But she also needed to ensure that the one-room space worked like a Swiss army knife while maintaining a chic and relaxing atmosphere for herself and for guests. Screens, she said, help her create privacy, while furniture that has multiple functions (a table that doubles as both a nightstand and side table, for instance) frees up space. “This might be random, but I’ve found managing cords running throughout the apartment and having consistent lighting temperatures in a small space can make a huge difference,” she adds. “Make cords be as invisible as possible; make sure all the bulbs in the apartment are the same color temperature, and you’re well on your way to making the space feel even bigger than it is.”
Maximalist Yet Mini Pied-à-Terre
Hostess-with-the-mostest Rebecca Gardner describes her Manhattan pied-à-terre as “the size of a nipple”—but that doesn’t stop her from entertaining or decorating with her signature maximalist panache. To accommodate her frequent dinner parties, she’ll unfold this table—never mind that it’s in her bedroom. Pro tip: If you’re short on space, find foldable furnishings that you can stow away when not in use.
Art-Filled Studio Apartment
Nobody puts baby in a corner…except when baby is a custom blue velvet sofa. In designer Charlie Ferrer’s Manhattan studio apartment, a curved sofa tucks conveniently into a nook in the small living room while a cocktail table, in turn, nests into the sofa. This space-saving layout allows for unencumbered views of the charing fireplace. Shelving that traces the perimeter of the room, meanwhile, draws the eye upward while allowing Ferrer to display his collections.
Bedroom Niche Studio Apartment
This pad clocks in at just 575 square feet. Yet advertising exec Robert Row wanted his Big Apple pad to feel like “a bungalow in the city.” It was a tall order, but he managed to achieve just that with a sexy mix of furnishings and antiques. But the cleverest solution might just be the “bedroom,” which takes up a niche near the windows. Rowe elevated the bed on a platform so that it felt like its own discrete space. “People sitting on the sofa always ask where the bedroom is because they don’t even see the bed,” he told us. “Their eyes just fly right over to the window.”
Eclectic Studio Apartment
Can a tiny footprint work with a magpie’s proclivity for collecting? It can if you’re designer William Cullum and his partner, Jeffrey Rhodes, whose New York studio is a maximalist’s dream. “If we love it, we make it work,” Cullum told us. Here, the combined living room and lounge got a coat of “a beautiful frothy lilac,” and the pair piled on antiques and patterns from there. One space-saving trick? Consider a canopy bed. That way, when guests are over, you can simply conceal your “bedroom” by drawing the curtains.
Neutral Oasis Studio Apartment
There are so many small-space lessons to be learned in this neutral oasis of a studio apartment designed for a New York theater director. The designers at Studio Kenyon first unified the scheme in a soothing palette of beiges, creams, and browns. Then they chose furniture to maximize the floor plan, like the corner banquette that serves as the “dining room” and a daybed that provides extra seating and a place for guests to crash in the “living room.” Studio Kenyon tucked the bedroom away behind a glass partition, which the designers softened with a dramatic curtain. Showtime!
Working Overtime Studio Apartment
Small-space dwellers who need a WFH setup needn’t work in their bed all day (though, hey, we’re not judging). With the right amount of spatial finagling, you can fit a small desk into a studio apartment. Ferrer was lucky enough to have a preexisting nook, but you can achieve the same with a narrow desk, small lamp, and overhead shelving for stashing away books or office supplies. Bonus points for a striking accent wall, which, in the case of Ferrer’s apartment, makes this small office feel like a chic den.
Double-Duty Living Room Studio Apartment
No niche? No problem. In Rowe’s New York City apartment, the “office” simply pushes up against the living room sofa. Stacks of books and flower arrangements make it feel like a chic console table, while a lamp—conveniently—lights both the desk and those curled up on the couch.
Space-Saving Apartment
OK, this 490-square-foot apartment is technically a one-bedroom, but there are myriad ideas to steal from this multipurpose space, thanks to designer Nina Barnieh-Blair. The living area, for instance, also serves as the homeowner’s yoga studio, but—with a small pink loveseat and small side tables—it can be reconfigured in a snap. The bedroom just beyond is concealed with transparent doors, giving the owner privacy when guests visits. Pro tip: A single statement artwork can help to unify your color palette and draw the eye upward.
Minimalist Studio Apartment
Never discount the power of a partition in your studio space. This 700-square-foot apartment in Italy already featured great bones and plenty of light—it just needed some spatial differentiation. Here architect and furniture designer Alessandro Preda designed a sheet-rock partition to conceal the bed. She stopped short of extending it to the ceiling to allow the sunshine to permeate. Don’t have the budget (or super) to allow for architectural elements? Go for a pretty screen.
Anna Fixsen, Deputy Digital Editor at ELLE DECOR, focuses on how to share the best of the design world through in-depth reportage and online storytelling. Prior to joining the staff, she has held positions at Architectural Digest, Metropolis, and Architectural Record magazines. elledecor.com
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