HOUSE BEAUTIFUL | A New York City Apartment Chock Full of Ingenious Storage Lessons

“When Laurie Blumenfeld-Russo’s client—who also happens to be a childhood friend—found her dream apartment, the designer admits ‘it was a bit scary.’ But, like all good creatives, they could see the good bones underneath the dark, dated finishes and bland open layout. So, Blumenfeld-Russo set about turning what had once been a relatively un-designed bachelor pad into her friend’s dream home. Her secret weapon? Storage—and lots of it.

‘She had a two-bedroom before she bought this one-bedroom,’ the designer explains. ‘I think square-footage wise, had a more open feeling to it—but she was losing that second room. So one of the goals was just to be as creative as possible with storage.’

Throughout the home, Blumenfeld-Russo turned to storage solutions not only as places to stash stuff, but as a means of defining distinct rooms within an open living/dining layout and cramped kitchen and bathroom. ‘We ended up creating a really specific and custom apartment,’ she says.” – BY HADLEY KELLER, House Beautiful