I received a letter yesterday from Apartment Therapy’s Small Cool Contestant, Ilene asking me to have a look at her fabulously tiny New York City apartment.

Some things I like about the space is the dedication to a theme, in this case, updated retro ’60’s and uses secondhand furniture to do the job rather than expensive new lookalikes. Also, the chairs are on swivel bases which allow for quick configuration changes depending on immediate needs. The use of vertical space is prevalent throughout and the bedroom is kept simple with a large bed as the centerpiece, flanked by gorgeous pendant lamps.

I did a bit of an email interview with Ilene to find out about her experience with small spaces.

How did you come to be living in your small apartment? Was it for economic reasons? Location?
Well, it is NYC.  The apt. originally was a friend’s and so came to me waaaay cheap, that was when there was bathtub in the kitchen and a step-up toilet/watercloset!!

Was it difficult for you to live there when you started or have you always lived in small spaces? if you previously lived in a larger space, could you talk a little about downsizing?

Small apt living teaches one the art of letting go.  The most difficult part was having family members die and inheriting their  houses full of things.  Rotating possessions or giving things to friends helps.  There is so much emotionally invested in “stuff” that letting go can be very painful.

If you have any tips on clever storage ideas you’re using in your apartment, my readers would love it!

The best is i designed this very much like a boat.  My under desk storage helps tremendously–that’s where suitcases and the like are stored. Also going vertical–everything is built up to the ceiling to take advantage of that. Originally I knocked down walls but found without a wall the space was much smaller.  A wall provides scale and reference that oddly enlarges the space.

The furniture looks like it might be secondhand/recycled. Is it?

Bought the chairs from Las Venus downtown and reupholstered, couch bought at vintage shop & had new cushions made
The dresser is a sweet story.  Belonged to my great-aunt, but her apartment was emptied out while i was working out of town.  Came back and was by my favorite thrift and started talking to the folks there, saying “wow that looks so familiar”, and of course it was all her’s.  They let me take it all back!! I just paid for the moving guys!

And did I mention that the TV is on a cantilever bracket so it can be adjusted to any angle, even to watch from bed!!
And as for the desk, it had to be free floating, no legs, because of the storage below so I built it into the window!
Last thing, is the desk chair, because of the window height, is adjustable from normal to counter height.

Take a look at Apartment Therapy and, if you like Ilene’s apartment, please be sure to give a thumbs up! The contest runs until May 4th.

Do you live in a small apartment or house and would like to be interviewed for tinymine? Give me a shout. I’d love to talk about your space!

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