Best of Manhattan: The Upper West Side

Our favorite projects nestled between the Hudson River and Central Park West

Once home to Nora Ephron, John Lennon, and countless other writers, artists, and musicians, the Upper West Side boasts a lively history that’s been captured in a myriad of films and immortalized in books. Broadway runs through it, and landmarks like the Apthorp, the Dakota, and Lincoln Center lend their impressive architecture to the texture of the neighborhood. The brownstone-lined blocks are quiet in the early mornings and evenings, making it an ideal spot for city dwellers seeking solitude. Join us as we take a look at some of the Sweeten renovations in the neighborhood.

As an Upper West Sider, Christine guided her apartment search by one very important piece of criteria: the new place could be no more than 10 blocks from Zabar’s! Unfortunately, the right location came with outdated finishes and peeling paint. Sweeten entered the picture, helping Christine renovate the kitchen and outfit the rest of the apartment with built-ins in every room to store her massive collection of books and artwork, adding character to the space.

A bigger home was just what Sophia and Leon needed when they decided to grow their family. The apartment they found on the Upper West Side had been laid out like a rabbit warren, and although the latest arrival to their family was tiny, the space would have to fit the three of them comfortably for years to come. Taking down the walls and connecting the kitchen to both the living and dining rooms gave the family plenty of room to spread out. The decision to go open-plan also came with the added bonus of improving the flow of natural light throughout the space.

Lindsay and Tim landed on Central Park West when it came time to purchase their first home together. The apartment had plenty of square footage, but the rooms felt dark and cramped. Restructuring the layout to join the kitchen with the dining room created the perfect spot to host dinner parties, while classic finishes and a muted palette throughout paid homage to the apartment’s prewar roots.

Preparing for a baby meant shuffling the floor plan of Karen and Kevin’s Upper West Side apartment to fit a nursery and a kid-friendly bathroom. The small dining area at the end of the kitchen was sealed off and transformed into the baby’s room. In the bathroom, the grimy tiling was replaced with crisp white subway tile and the bulky bath was swapped out for a new, standard-sized tub, making room for an open console vanity and a basket of bathtime essentials.

Heather loved everything about her Upper West Side apartment except the galley kitchen, which was functional but felt like cooking inside of a shoebox. Her Sweeten renovation opened up the kitchen to the dining room, converting the half wall into a peninsula with deep storage drawers on one side and bar seating on the other. The transformation was just what she needed to take the space from just another place in the world to her home sweet home.

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Take a tour of the best Sweeten renovations in Queens and Prospect Heights, Brooklyn.

Refer your renovating friends to Sweeten and you’ll both receive a $250 Visa gift card when they sign a contract with a Sweeten general contractor.

Sweeten handpicks the best general contractors to match each project’s location, budget, and scope, helping until project completion. Follow the blog for renovation ideas and inspiration and when you’re ready to renovate, start your renovation on Sweeten.

A post from originally from Sweeten