The big apple comes to Brighouse

Natalie Carroll and her partner Matt Goodridge are regular visitors to the Big Apple and have brought back mementoes from their transatlantic trips.

The wooden letters that spell out "Home" are from the NYC branch of Urban Outfitters and there are lots of pictures of the city taken by professional photographer Matt.

"We go out once or twice a year to visit my twin brother who lives there, which is great because we have somewhere to stay," says Natalie, who adds: "It's an incredible place, everything is so fast moving and the shopping is great. We love Urban Outfitters over there because it has slightly different stock to the British branches and we like visiting the Designers Market in SoHo, the Anthropologie store and Crate and Barrel."

Brighouse may be far more sedate, but Natalie and Matt chose to live in the town for its old-fashioned charm and good transport links to her job in Bradford.

Natalie, a creative development manager at Hallmark in Bradford, initially moved there to rent an apartment in a mill conversion, but when Matt joined her they decided to buy after flats once owned by investors came up for sale during the credit crunch.

Their newly-built two-bedroom penthouse has a double height living space plus a bathroom and bedroom on the ground floor with a large master bedroom and en-suite on the first floor.

It had barely been lived in and so gave them a blank canvas.

"When it was first sold it was 250,000 but we got it for less. It was such a good deal. It didn't need much decorating, just a lick of paint and a clean. We know it hadn't been lived in much because the oven hadn't been used. It still had the plastic wrapping on the shelves inside.

"The best bit was moving. All we had to do was bring everything up in the lift," says Matt, who works for Set View in Bradford.

Natalie adds: "We'd looked at houses but the lifestyle here suited us. There's a gym and pool and the location is good with easy access to everywhere including Manchester and Leeds.

Decorating the apartment to their taste took just four days with the help of their parents, who turned up with toolboxes and plenty of patience to build flat pack furniture from Ikea. Natalie and Matt put together the sectional sofa that came flat packed from internet shop Nabru.

They left the walls white, but the neutral backdrop is brightened with wall stickers from Rockett St George and Matt's photographs from their travels in Europe and the States. The focal point though is the view out of the enormous French doors, which is framed with a pair of curtains made from Ikea fabric.

The curtains were a challenge to hang as the windows are five metres high. Tall ladders and a head for heights were also required to put up the wooden chandeliers – a 5 bargain from Urban Outfitters.

The dining table was another budget buy, this time from Tesco. "We like bargain shopping both in shop sales and online," says Natalie. "Tesco might not be the first place you'd look for a dining table, but they have one or two pieces that are quite contemporary and well-priced."

The kitchen was put in by the developer but now has added colour thanks to pieces by Natalie's friend Rachael Taylor. Surface pattern designer Rachael has created mugs, tea towels and a painting for the kitchen. Her work also features in the master bedroom suite which covers all of the first floor and overlooks the living area via a glass balcony.

"It's an unusual arrangement but we like the open plan aspect and it means we can see the view through the living room window from the bedroom," says Natalie.

She and Matt plan to buy a larger, more conventional property soon, not least because Natalie is running out of wardrobe space for her huge collection of clothes. "Apartment has been great but we'll probably buy a house next year and it will probably be in Brighouse," she says. "It's a great place to live. It's got a good community, some very good restaurants and independent shops."

Natalie and Matt's Favourite Homeware Shops: (UK)

Rachael Taylor Designs – for pictures and homeware with fantastic prints – www.rachaeltaylordesigns.co.uk

The Home, Salts Mill, Saltaire – for fantastic products and displays, especially at Christmas. www.thehomeonline.co.uk

Rockett St George for interesting home accessories and stickers www.rockettstgeorge.co.uk

Nabru for reasonably priced sofas www.nabru.co.uk

Heal's www.heals.co.uk; Habitat www.habitat.co.uk, Ikea www.ikea.com and John Lewis www.johnlewis.com for homeware

Plumo – for Scandinavian design www.plumo.com

Notonthehighstreet – for unusual, interesting pieces by designer makers www.notonthehighstreet.com

Urban Outfitters for fashion and homeware, Albion Street Leeds www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk

New York

Designers Market, Soho

Anthropologie, Rockefeller Plaza, Manhattan for homeware and fashion (now has branches in London and sells from www.anthropolgie.eu)

Crate and Barrel, Madison Avenue, Manhattan, for homeware www.crateandbarrel.com

YP MAG 16/10/10