"Living small in New York becomes an exercise in craftiness, and discovering multiple uses for a surface."

"What others may see as deprivation, Mr. Moore and others have reframed as pride, with Shaker-like design values of simplicity and utility."

But not necessarily Shaker celibacy. In 2009, Kittie Lonsdale, a small-space designer, left behind a 4,500-square-foot home in Dallas and moved herself, her business and her “microsize dog,” a 10-pound Shih Tzu whose raincoats, treats, leads and sleeping box “take up more real estate than anything else,” into a 225-square-foot studio in Tudor City. Ten days a month, her husband joins her from Dallas, the headquarters for his private investment firm.

The linked NYT article is by Jan Hoffman (our favorite NYT writer).