The Tower House is made up of tiny houses, clustered at the southern end of the property and clad in white steel panels and western red cedar shingles. Spinning off the living room on the north side of the main house, the children’s study sits separate from the other pavilions. On its upper level, Oxley netting forms a web on which the kids and their friends can sit and read with views of the leafy street and garden.

Austin architect J.C. Schmeil converted his family's 1935 bungalow into a spacious modern family home on a modest budget and with tons of ingenuity. A dormer on the south side of the house contains two bedrooms. One of the bedrooms features a reading loft carved out of the attic space above the dining room. The intersection of the gabled roof and the shed dormers allowed us to wrap large windows around each corner, taking advantage of the "borrowed landscape"—treetop views that root the house to its site.

Architect Christi Azevedo, along with homeowners Lorena Siminovich and Esteban Kerner, transformed this 1,485-square-foot, multilevel, mid-century maze into a modern and efficient family home in just three months. “It was the craziest frickin’ thing,” laughs Azevedo. “It was like a Tetris game, putting it all together, trying to squeak out space wherever we could.” Purchased as if straight out of 1955, the home is now the ideal small space for Siminovich and Kerner to raise their young daughter, Matilda.

Worms! Kids love 'em.

The kids room is outfitted with built-in bunk beds.

The upper two levels of the home are set back from the street, increasing privacy and allowing light to flow uninhibited from the front clerestory window into the communal living spaces. On the top floor, the children's bedrooms are strategically veiled from the street by the slatted reflector screen.

“Having nice design is great, but how can you support the ways you want to live?” says Adair. She and Kopp did the same discovery process as their clients to help push them into purpose. “It was so helpful in figuring out how to shape the moments we wanted.”

Overhead, a 102-square-foot skylight fills the interior with daylight that streams through the catamaran net, where Ulla lounges.

Encourage your imaginative niece, nephew, neighbor, sibling, or child to grow their creativity and curiosity with these fun-filled gifts.

Have your children help you go through their book collections and pick out what books they haven't read yet. If you are able to safely leave your home, you can coordinate curbside dropoff book exchanges with friends.

In a couple’s Mexico City apartment designed by David Levy of Flexform, a Murano chandelier hangs above a marble-topped dining table from the showroom.

The Antonio Citterio walnut-back Morgan chairs are also from Flexform.

It's a great time to let kids be a part of the decision-making, if that is age-appropriate, and help set a schedule. Give your child a chance to take the reins and engage in child-led learning.

The architects’ two young children occupy this bright bedroom, furnished with Ikea beds. Another custom lamp illuminates the space.

"We really love to cook and much of our home life revolves around our kitchen. When we have friends over it’s great to buzz around here; it’s almost like a cooking show. We’re a very equal couple. We wanted the kitchen island to be a single form that we could both use. We can both cook and we can both wash the dishes. The whole thing is really easy to clean as it’s just one main surface that you can wipe down. So the preparation surfaces, the hob [cooktop], and the sink are accessible from both sides. It’s a simple, fun, form-follows-function principle: Store, wash, prepare, cook, eat."

Debbi Gibbs’s son Blake had one primary design requirement: bunk beds. Specifically, he wanted "two sets of single bunks, one on each side, with a bridge over the top." Gibbs says the Venetian-style arched bridge connecting the two beds exceeded her expectations: "I was expecting a flat platform, but our builder decided to take Blake’s request (to connect them) and made him his very own Bridge of Sighs."

Getting the hammock installed posed a bit of a challenge. Adair and Kopp found it tough to find a company to help with executing their idea. “It’s interesting to know that if you want to do something with a little bit of risk, it really takes some convincing,” says Adair. With the help of a U.S.-based company that dealt with large-scale net facilities, they got a group together and lashed the whole perimeter to create a safe, sturdy, supportive weaving.

In the second bedroom, an IKEA bed and West Elm rug bring a sense of playfulness, complemented by a pendant light from Muuto.

John Issa of Perimeter Architects oversaw the creation of the rope room in this Wicker Park abode, which belongs to client Brian Littleton—a bachelor with a young niece and nephew. "It posed tons of challenges," he recalls. "Designing with a material that has slack is more math than I care to tackle."

In the cockpit of their imaginary rocket ship, the kids tinker with a dashboard of dials, levers, and knobs assembled by artist Christophe Gauspohl.

Kids' Bunk Room

The vacation complex is designed to promote an easy flow between the two families' spaces, which include guest cabins and a shared porch for hanging out and eating.

Upstairs, each daughter’s bedroom was designed as a sanctuary, with cozy touches like Simon Key Bertman quilts and cushions. The bed and Pile bedside table by Jessica Signell Knutsson sit on top of a Carpet Honeycomb by designer Maria Löw.

Opposite the master bedroom on the top floor lies the sunny kids’ bedroom. A double-sided wardrobe provides storage, and functionally divides two separate sleeping areas. Further storage is placed along the window wall that faces the backyard.

Takuma strikes a pose from the loft lookout as seen from the second floor. The loft is used for storage as well as a place for some peace and quiet.

Nate’s Bedroom Now three, Nate occupies coveted corner real estate in a third-floor room with a treetop-level view. “It’s a great space,” Casale says, “although it is the noisiest room in the house because of the street. But by now he’s so used to sleeping through all of the sounds, I don’t think it bothers him.” The brightness of the space is enhanced by an accent wall coated in fire engine–red chalkboard paint (Benjamin Moore Natura flat-finish paint in Vermillion mixed with unsanded grout) that Nate can scribble on—as soon as his parents get around to telling him that it’s allowed. A matching red pendant lamp from the Soho shop Kiosk hangs above a six-foot-tall teepee by Dexton Kids.

Designed for an artist and entrepreneur client, this guest house features lots of light, access to the outdoors, and an industrial vibe.

Kids Temporary Tattoo Kit by Tattly $15.00 From monsters and robots to treats and circus animals, Tattly makes a variety of non-toxic temporary tattoo sets printed with vegetable-based ink.

A small Eames Wire-base table provides the perfect dining space for son, Paul.

Deep, earthy greens like olive and wasabi were popular during the 1960s. Relentless Olive (SW 6425) from Sherwin Williams and Green Root (8334) from Jotun capture these shades well.