How to: Designing for Warm Weather

Architect Gerald Parsonson  designed his New Zealand beach house to best take advantage of the site rather than strictly capitalize on views. The combined open-plan kitchen, living, and dining area opens on to the beach with sliding doors that add ease and ventilation. Photo by Matthew Williams

Although columns and pilotis can serve as important structural elements, they aren't always necessary in a design and the uninterrupted view without them is stunning, such as in this home in Maui, Hawaii. Photo by Cristóbal Palma

White plaster and layers of white linens help a house feel cooler in the summer and also imbue the space with a warm weather aesthetic. Click to see more of this Italian home by designer Paola Navone. Photo by Wichmann + Bendtsen.

Among the first Passive Houses in France, this farmhouse by Karawitz Architecture has stunning bamboo covers on all four sides, its lattice making up a striking set of adjustable screens that allow the residents to modify the facade to suit the weather. The architects tested a host of materials, but bamboo had the aesthetic and green cred they were after. Photo by Nicholas Calcott.

With the roof angled at 43 degrees, the architects lined the southern slant of the house with solar panels to collect as many rays as possible. Karanesheva and Witzmann started with four, but then added 23 more, all by Systaïc; the company gave them a deal since theirs was its first installation in France. The panels now collect far more energy than the home actually needs, a precious resource that the pair sells back to the power company. systaic.com Photo by Nicholas Calcott

In a summer house for a family in Skåne, Sweden, the original washing house that connected to the main house was in such bad shape that it had to be demolished. LASC "reincarnated" it as a spacious bathhouse, complete with a tub‐with-a-­view and a heated concrete window bench. Photo by Laura Stamer.