How to Decorate Your Home Like a Manhattan Apartment

Maremagnum/Getty Images

For decades, on-screen Manhattan apartments have been depicted as large, lofty, bright spaces—much to the disdain of real-life New Yorkers, who know that Ted and Marshall from "How I Met Your Mother" would never be able to afford a two-bedroom with a fireplace on the Upper West Side. Carrie Bradshaw was somehow able to live in a comfortable, Upper East Side one-bedroom—complete with walk-in closet—on a writer’s salary in "Sex and The City," which also left many heads scratching. Suffice to say, New York City apartments have not always been portrayed accurately in television and movies.

But New Yorkers are adept at making even the tiniest of spaces look elegant and chic. Since most Manhattan apartments tend to err on the small side, light color schemes are often used to help enhance the appearance of space. Since most of us don’t have gardens, incorporating plants and flowers are a great way to (literally) liven up the atmosphere.

While opulent, over-the top-penthouses—like those seen in shows like "Gossip Girl"—most certainly still exist, there’s been a rising trend of Scandinavian-inspired minimalism in recent years (this could be, in part, thanks to Ikea—the average New Yorker’s furniture brand of choice). But the city’s most beloved home furnishing stores—like ABC Carpet & Home—have been continuously delivering sophisticated, artisan-made home goods for decades, resulting in a very specific, Manhattan-chic look: austere furniture, modern art, leafy plants, white marble, and lots of luxurious little accents.

So browse through our expertly curated gallery, below, to help get you one step closer to living out your New York City apartment fantasy.

Start Slideshow