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Our Favorite Dwellings of 2011

On the last day of the year, we look back at 2011's ten issues to select a few (but not all!) of our favorite stories. These homes, designed by innovative, passionate people from all over the globe, are a testament to what's possible in the modern world. We can't wait for what's yet to be discovered in 2012.

A New Slant
In Seattle, where others saw only a severe slope and lack of municipal hookups, one couple spotted their ticket to their dream home.
Seattle, Washington
Just Redo It
What do you get when you give a couple of designers unlimited creative license on a very limited budget? For Andrew Dunbar and Zoee Astrakhan, the possibilities were limitless.
San Francisco, California
Kind of New
For Brussels-based furniture designer Christiane Högner, inspiration comes less from glossy design mags than the castoffs she finds on the streets of Belgium.
Brussels, Belgium
Dance Dance Renovation
The first time Houston-based architectural designer Barbara Hill set foot inside what would become her future second house, a 100-year-old adobe in Marfa, Texas, she found a cramped warren of rooms…
Marfa, Texas
All Together Now
When Svetlin Krastev and Dessi Nikolova had their second child, they saw two options: Go broke buying a bigger apartment, or renovate their existing 620-square-foot home.
New York, New York
A Platform for Living
Setsumasa and Mami Kobayashi’s weekend retreat, two and a half hours northwest of Tokyo, is “an arresting concept,” photographer Dean Kaufman says, who documented the singular…
Kawakami Village, Japan
Long Island Found
When the Fisher family’s 1960s Long Island beach bungalow started to crumble, they sought an architect who’d preserve the home’s humble roots and mellow vibe, while subtly…
Amagansett, New York
A Well-Grafted Home
Working creatively to meet strict preservation codes, architect Roberto de Leon affixes a modern annex onto a historic Louisville house.
Louisville, Kentucky
All We Need
This pair of handy Portlanders doesn’t crave any more of Oregon’s territory than what’s taken up by their 704-square-foot home, hard-working garden, and smartly designed outdoor…
Portland, Oregon
A Simple Plan
A Marmol Radziner–designed prefab house, trucked onto a remote Northern California site, takes the pain out of the construction process.
Ukiah, California
Arch Support
Layer by layer, a crumbling 18th-century flat in the middle of Barcelona finds new life at the hands of architect Benedetta Tagliabue.
Barcelona, Spain