WHAT OUR CLIENT WANTED – With their son pursuing a master’s degree in New York City, a California couple decided to purchase a 500-square-foot studio apartment in Manhattan—and wanted the space to serve a dual purpose: To provide a quiet environment for their son to study, away from the hustle and bustle of the dorms, as well as act as a pied-à-terre for when they visited.
After buying the space “sight unseen,” they reached out to Mimi Fong at Luminosus Designs to completely renovate and fully furnish the apartment. The clients wanted it to be able to accommodate two overnight guests and include a living area, a study, and a dining area with seating for up to six adults.
“Since this was a large open space, all the areas needed to flow from one to another and have coherence visually,” says Mimi. So rather than setting up rigid divisions, Mimi opted for a fluid and flexible arrangement, particularly when it came to the layout and design of the furniture.
In the living area, Mimi added a very comfortable sleeper sofa for overnight guests, made with a custom fabric that is sure to withstand many years of use. In front of the sofa, she added two lightweight cubes that act as both a coffee table for daily use and as nightstands for when the sleeper is open.
Similarly, in the dining area, Mimi chose a table in which two leaves can be added. Nestled against a wall, it seats up to four on an everyday basis—and once the leaves are installed, can be rotated to easily accommodate six people. Even the LED pendant light above the table is designed to work within the space: It swivels, so it can be positioned to match whichever way the table is laid out. Across from the dining area, Mimi set up a study space, complete with a desk, comfortable chair, and shelving.
When it came to the kitchen, Mimi transformed the awkward layout into a highly functional galley kitchen. She maximized both the counter and cabinet space, utilizing as much of it as possible. (For instance, a shallow 6-inch deep space is used as a pantry cabinet to store spices and other small items.) She also installed high-end designer appliances, which provide great functionality in spaces with a smaller footprint.
With most appliances clad in matching cabinet panels, the kitchen is now sleek and clutter-free.
The bathroom was also completely renovated. Mimi replaced an old tub with a step-in shower to create a visually larger space and extended the vanity counter into the shower area to serve as a ledge for small bath items. (There’s an in-shower niche as well.) A tall, in-wall cabinet provides storage for toiletry and linen items in addition to a standard medicine cabinet.
Throughout the process, Mimi communicated with her clients via video calls and Zoom meetings and regularly sent progress photos to keep them updated on how things were going.
And when they visited the apartment for the first time after the renovation was complete and all the furniture delivered, they couldn’t believe how incredible it all turned out. As the happy clients put it, “We knew the project was coming together well through photos and videos, but we were simply blown away by it in person!”
