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Chef and writer Lily Starbuck has made a 500-square-foot Brooklyn rental her home after initially planning to stay temporarily. She and her father added custom open shelving, while Starbuck skipped furniture such as dressers and a media console to keep the compact apartment feeling more spacious.
Chef and writer Lily Starbuck has spent a year and a half turning a 500-square-foot Brooklyn rental that was meant to be temporary into a home, using custom open shelving and forgoing furniture such as dressers and a media console. In an Apartment Therapy home tour, she said the choices helped the small apartment feel more spacious while giving her a different kind of storage.
Starbuck initially moved into the third-floor apartment as a stop between selling her business on Fishers Island, New York, and a planned move to Ireland. The arrangement has lasted a year and a half, and she told Apartment Therapy she does not plan to leave soon. The apartment also has family ties: her mother owns the building, and Starbuck grew up in the unit where her mother still lives.
Rather than simply move in, Starbuck said she spent three straight months working on the rental. She described light renovations that included painting and installing new lights and sinks. She and her father also built custom open shelving that extends through much of the apartment. The source report says the wood came from a friend’s parents in SoHo and had been reused by Starbuck in five apartments.
Starbuck said she prefers open shelving, although she kept the kitchen’s existing closed cabinets. She is currently recording a cooking show in the kitchen, according to the tour. The reported design approach also leaves out conventional pieces, including a media console below the television and dressers. The source does not provide a detailed floor plan or a full inventory of where each item is stored.
Storage Without Bulky Furniture
The tour offers a specific example of how a renter can arrange a small home around open shelving rather than standard storage furniture. Removing a dresser or media console can free floor area, while shelving makes storage visible and accessible. Starbuck told Apartment Therapy that these choices helped her 500-square-foot apartment feel more spacious; that is her account of the result, not a measured comparison of usable space.
The story may be useful to readers working with limited square footage because it focuses on changes made within an existing rental, including paint, lighting, sinks and shelving. It also illustrates the tradeoff: open storage can make objects part of a room’s visual landscape, while closed furniture can conceal them. Starbuck’s preference is personal, and the report does not establish that the same approach works for every household or layout.
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A Temporary Move Became Home
Starbuck expected the apartment to be a short-term landing place between major life changes. Instead, the family connection and the chance to make changes helped the rental become a longer-term home. She said she grew up in the building, while friends had previously lived in this apartment.
Before moving to Brooklyn, Starbuck lived in a 310-square-foot cottage. She told Apartment Therapy that friends worried the larger apartment would feel tight, but she found 500 square feet comparatively spacious. That comparison reflects her experience and helps explain why she was comfortable taking a less conventional approach to furniture and storage.
The source is an Apartment Therapy home tour, not a renovation-cost report or a general design study. It identifies Benjamin Moore’s White Dove as the paint color but does not provide a full budget, dimensions for the shelving, or technical details about how it was installed.
“I never thought in a million years I would move into this apartment, and when I did move in, it was supposed to be for a transition period.”
— Lily Starbuck, speaking to Apartment Therapy
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Costs and Storage Details Missing
The Apartment Therapy report does not state how much the work cost, whether the landlord approved each alteration, or whether the shelving can be removed or reused in this apartment. It also does not give measurements, a detailed layout, or a room-by-room account of how Starbuck stores clothing and media equipment without conventional furniture.
The article describes the home as feeling more spacious, but provides no objective measurement of the effect. It is also unclear whether Starbuck’s longer stay will change her plans; the report says she does not expect to leave soon, but does not give a future move date.
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No Further Renovation Plans Reported
Starbuck is continuing to live in the apartment and, according to the tour, is recording a cooking show in its kitchen. The source does not announce a new renovation, a planned move, or another project milestone. Any further updates would depend on Starbuck’s plans and whether she shares additional details about the apartment.
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Key Questions
Who lives in the Brooklyn apartment?
Lily Starbuck, a chef and writer, lives in the rental. Her mother owns the building, and Starbuck grew up in another unit there.
How large is the apartment?
The Apartment Therapy tour lists the home as 500 square feet. Starbuck previously lived in a 310-square-foot cottage and told the publication that the Brooklyn apartment felt comparatively spacious.
What furniture did Starbuck skip?
The report says she opted out of conventional pieces including dressers and a media console beneath the television. It does not list every item she owns or explain where all belongings are stored.
What changes did she make to the rental?
Starbuck said she spent three months on light renovations, including painting and installing new lights and sinks. She and her father also made custom open shelving that runs through much of the apartment.
Is Starbuck planning to move?
She told Apartment Therapy she does not plan to leave soon, after living there for a year and a half. The report gives no specific future moving date.
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