Nate Berkus's Manhattan Home

Nate updated his kitchen with a French limestone-topped bar (made out of an old conference table from his former Chicago office), 1950s bar stools from Center44, a stainless steel backsplash and a new coat of paint on the existing cabinets.

The paint is a high-gloss blue-black, the same color that's on every door in the apartment. "That adds architectural interest to a space this small," he says.

Then, Nate replaced the cabinets' knobs with small brass latches that he found in Greece. "That was a beautiful detail for me that changed the entire feeling of the apartment," he says.

To save space, Nate bought a refrigerator that fits under the counter and slides out like a drawer.