apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Name: Anne Barrett and Todd Dundon, architects and owners of 30E Design
Location: Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts
Size: 1600 sq/ft 2 floor condo
Years lived in: 4

It wasn't long ago that we brought you into the unforgettable condo of Hannah Barrett and Laurel Sparks. We promised that we'd deliver you part 2 of this tour: the unit upstairs from Hannah and Laurel, designed and occupied by architects Anne Barrett and Todd Dundon. (Hannah and Anne are sisters; phenomenally creative and gifted ones, at that.) Anne and Todd, owners of 30e, a successful architecture and furniture design firm, infused their 2 story condo with a fabulous combination of modernity and reverence for the home's history...

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Name: L and E
Location: Beacon Hill, Boston
Size: 400 sq/ft
Years lived in: Rented 1.5 years

Beacon Hill may be a historic neighborhood but peak peek inside any one of its beautiful doors and you're just as likely to find a college student's dorm room as you are a luxurious townhouse. In fact, most Beacon Hill residents — like L and E — live somewhere in between. Their luxury is the rich location, and their interior is a budget-friendly mix of somethings new, somethings used and some things IKEA...

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This house tour is definitely a departure from the modern, hipster, or minimalist homes we often see on Apartment Therapy. We happened upon this irresistible Gloucester, MA cottage yesterday while visiting a new client of our design business. We rarely experience we'd-trade-homes-with-you-in-a-heartbeat envy but let's just say we awoke this morning daydreaming about this cottage. Peek inside at this quintessentially New England seaside home that blends amazing sunlight, spirit-easing vistas, and an eclectic, unintentionally hip, lived-in style built over 89 years of life...

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Name: Caitlin
Location: Beacon Hill in Boston, MA
Size: 330 sq/ft Studio
Years lived in: 1 year

Beacon Hill is a 19th Century neighborhood barely one-half mile square with over 10,000 residents and an entire University inside of it. Living amongst cobblestone sidewalks barely wide enough for one person and streets built for horse-drawn carriages in one of its many tiny apartments is a true test for living small. Caitlin's affectionally named "compartment" is a wonderful glimpse inside this unique Boston neighborhood...

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Name: Hannah Barrett and Laurel Sparks
Location: Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts
Size: 1500 square feet
Years lived in: almost 4 years

Hannah Barrett and Laurel Sparks' townhouse condo had no chance but to be a smashing success of a space. Here are the ingredients to their fabulous recipe: 1) One super talented, creative couple, Laurel and Hannah, both respected artists; 2) An equally talented architect / designer sister and brother-in-law duo who live in the upstairs condo; 3) One gut renovation of an 1859 single family townhouse into two 2-floor condos. The result is an amazing, refreshing space that lingers in your mind for a long time to come...

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Name: Katie and Joe
Location: Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts
Size: 1600 sq/ft
Years lived in: owned since 2004

Boston's housing stock is brimming with fantastic double and triple-decker homes that have been converted into single-floor condos. Our friends Katie and Joe's condo is a refreshing departure from this standard, instead spanning three lovely floors and feeling more like a single family home than a condo. The set-up is indeed unique...

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Name: Melinda
Location: Quincy, Massachusetts
Size: 863 sq/ft
Years lived in: 2.5 years

We live in a great old brownstone apartment building so we hate to complain, but we secretly dream of the day when we can enjoy a vast open floor plan. Until then we'll just admire Melinda's loft in a renovated factory building in Quincy, Massachusetts — just a few minutes south of downtown Boston — with its soaring ceilings, open layout and infinite wall space to experiment with color...

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Name: Steve

Location: Boston, MA

Size: 693 sq/ft

Years lived in: Rented for 7 years, Owned for 3 years

For those who aren't familiar with Boston's North End, affectionately known as "Little Italy", it's the city's oldest neighborhood and one of the most vibrant and intimate neighborhoods in Beantown. We've always wanted to step foot inside more North End apartments, so we were delighted to have the opportunity to tour Steve's remodeled North End treasure...

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This is from our Boston finalist, Kyle. Comment away!

Name: Kyle
Location: Jamaica Plain, MA
Size: 1000 sf
Own/Rent: Own

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I've been a serial room-rearranger since I was old enough to wobble. I'm not talking about a few times a year or even once a month. My home can look radically different from week to week. My dog used to get startled when he noticed that he was dozing on a couch that was moving from one side of the room to the other. Not anymore; the little cleopatra doesn't even wake up...

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This is from our Boston finalist, Melissa. Comment away!

Name: Stephen Gross
Location: South End, Boston
Own/Rent: Owned and run as a B&B

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The Clarendon Square Inn is part home, part home away from home. In 1994, owner, Stephen, spent 11 months personally designing, renovating, and decorating a single family brownstone in the South End. We were so inspired by the transformation we had to share it with AT. We spoke to Stephen to gain insight on his experience and design sense, and find out what has been drawing people from all over the world to his B&B for the past 14 years...

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This is from our Boston finalist, Jeanine. Comment away!

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I’m going to get it from you guys, but this House Tour is of my house. Believe me, its not that I think my house is the best I can come up with, but my friend Deborah is out of town, Dorinda has to work, and Camilla says I can’t photograph her house until she does something about the kitchen.

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