Mimi's Luxe Urban Family Lodge
House Tour
Name: Mimi Lettunich and her son Bennett Raymond
Location: Portland Heights — Portland, Oregon
Size: 6,000 square feet
Years lived in: 10 — owned
The 1954 modern ranch home owned by Mimi Lettunich is the ultimate urban family lodge. She shares her home with her son Bennett and (part-time) with boyfriend Kris Wigger and his son Jaxen. Nestled in the Southwest hills of the Portland Heights neighborhood, 10 minutes from downtown Portland, Mimi's home is a chic (and still comfortably modern) space inspired by her love of the Northwest and her enthusiasm for entertaining her extended family and many friends year-round.
Phil & Hali's Quintessential Loft
House Tour
Name: Hali & Philip Durham
Profession: Architect - www.studiodurham.com
Location: Soulard — St. Louis, MO
Size: overall building 9,600 square feet, Residence 5,400 square feet
Years lived in: 7 — owned
It never hurts to be an award-winning architect. Most people in Saint Louis pass decrepit warehouses for years, writing them off as mere evidence of urban blight. When Phil Durham was looking for a live/work space, he reached into his own back pocket for the vision and skill to do the job.
Donna & Lyla's Tiled Wonder
House Tour
Name: Donna Mingo, Lyla Turner
Location: South St. Louis, Missouri
Size: 1850 square feet
Years lived in: 2 years — owned
Cheerful yellow tile greets you in the entryway of Donna and Lyla's Saint Louis home. It's a fitting introduction to a house filled with both color and decorative original details, but the real show stopper is in the kitchen. The room's walls and ceiling are covered with a milky green glass tile called Vitrolite. Once common, the material was eventually supplanted by modern materials, and is no longer manufactured. Here, it curves around walls, arches over doorways, and creates a remarkable and memorable effect.
Bill Goes All Black
House Tour
Name: Bill Indursky
Location: Chelsea — New York, New York
Size: 350 square feet
Years lived in: 17 — owned
Paint it black? Only a true design maverick like Bill Indursky would have the courage to paint a tiny studio such a rebel color. But Bill is a confident character. He's the man behind VandM.com, the site that has been taking on 1stdibs. Take a look at his fearless and fabulous apartment.
Annie & Paul Build a Home in Sync
House Tour
Name: Annie and Paul
Location: Upper West Side — New York, New York
Size: 390 square feet — 1 bedroom
Years lived in: 2½ — rented
"We both roll with the same taste," explain Annie and Paul when I ask if it was hard to design their first home together. Architects who met while learning their trade, Annie and Paul had each lived, previously, with roommates whose priorities diverged from home making.
Four People (and a Dog) Living in 180 Square Feet
House Tour
Name: Tammy, John, Sam, Will, and Dobbs
Location: Gulf Islands, British Columbia
Size: 180 square feet
Years lived in: One (mostly on weekends)
Before I get started with this tour, I cannot emphasize this enough: My husband and I are not rich and we are not particularly handy. Heck, we're not even all that smart. This latter fact was probably the driver behind why two people with little money and even fewer skills would even attempt to build a cabin on an isolated island with no amenities. But armed with a hacked $25 shed plan and an incredibly generous friend with actual skills, we gave it a shot. Here's how it turned out.
Brad, Lis & Meade's Light-Filled Bungalow
House Tour
Name: Brad Trost, Elisabeth Charman & Meade
Location: Portland, Oregon
Size: 1,685 Square Feet
Years lived in: 6
The traditional Portland bungalow is a dark, cozy habitat that many in the area are familiar with. Not the case with this delightful home. It's got all the charming elements required of a bungalow, dark wood molding, nice built-ins, heaps of character... and it happens to have lots of windows to brighten up the mix. A perfect environment for this creative family.
Mike & Maddie's Sweet Nothings
House Tour
Name: Mike & Maddie Witter
Location: Upper West Side, NYC
Size: under 500 square feet
Years lived in: 2
This couple of acclaimed public school educators have learned a thing or two themselves during the process of decorating their small bi-level apartment. Because of their high marks in our Small Cool Contest, we decided to get a closer look at this charming home.
LJ Wraps Up
House Tour
Name: LJ, Elena and Teo
Location: Downtown Brooklyn
Size: 550 square feet studio
Years lived in: 5 years
Long-time Apartment Therapy fans may recall LJ's impressive work in progress! Well, LJ finally finished and it looks incredible!
Nathan & Hannah's Mid-Century Modern Mission
House Tour
Name: Nathan & Hannah (Foxy, our long-haired Chihuahua)
Location: St. Louis, Missouri
Size: 1362 square feet
Years lived in: 5
Eero Saarinen's Gateway Arch is the tip of the mid-century iceburg in the Saint Louis area. Case in point: Tucked in among more expected suburban homes, is the gem of Ridgewood, a time capsule of a subdivision, peppered with modern ranch homes built as affordable and efficient homes in the the 50s. Despite their smallish footprints, these homes were built to maximize sense of space through vaulted ceilings, tall windows, and open floor plans. At the time, they represented a new way of thinking, the likes of which were featured in Better Homes and Gardens.
