In 5 months of travelling, is my favourite place we have stayed and I would highly recommend it if you are looking for a place in Rio . The minute we walked in it felt homely. We had a very warm welcome from Ricardo.
The style of the apartment is bohemian arty. The open terrace has awesome views over the city. We stayed with our 2 kids age 6 and 9 who also loved it so much they didn't want to leave the place - maybe something to do with the box full of random dressing up items and musical instruments and other curiosities.
The area felt to us to be completely safe - though some guide books / taxi drivers say otherwise. The area generally is up and coming / arty with lots of great restaurants and interesting souvenir shops selling more than the usual souvenir tat. There is an art market in Santa Teresa every 2 weeks on a Sunday.