A couple enlist Butler Armsden Architects and Leverone Design to reimagine their home as a multigenerational meeting point. In 1963, landscape designer Lawrence Halprin devised a master plan for a community that would live in harmony with the natural environment. The resulting Sea Ranch, which stretches 10 miles along the Pacific coastline in Sonoma County, California, is characterized by timber-frame, wood-clad structures that are in dialogue with the local climate and terrain. Sited on a bluff within this pioneering community is the vacation home of a lawyer couple. After purchasing the residence in 2007, they lived in the home as it was for four years, even keeping the previous owners’ furniture. Envisioning a retreat that would accommodate their extended family and guests, they then recruited Butler Armsden Architects and Leverone Design to help guide the project.

Sleeping nooks that look like the grooves in a block of cheese.

Sketch of Soma Water

A passage between the walls for hide and seek.

The master suite was fashioned from the house’s original garage in a 1970s renovation.

"4x4," S2 Architecture This modernist cube by S2 Architecture features transparent Plexiglas windows that emit a warm glow from the interior.

In need of more room for their growing brood, Eric and Emma Gimon, with Luc, Paul, baby Louise, and their dog, Nefi, asked for a private space to accompany the house designed for Eric’s great-aunt.

Judin was fascinated by the abandoned gas station ever since he first discovered it in 1992. At the time, it had been unused for seven years. He finally purchased it in 2005 and transformed it into a one-of-a-kind residence.

The Andersen Architectural Collection’s Eagle windows and doors provide the panes and passageways of the home.

White brick exterior of Goddard and Mandolene’s home post renovation.

Foyer

In 1950, architect Chalfont Head designed The French Residence in Fillmore, California, for Dr. William French and his family. The redwood-clad home sits on a spacious lot, surrounded by neighboring midcentury abodes. Upon arrival, the gravel driveway opens to a motor court and a two-car garage.

In the bedroom, a 1930s painting by French artist Louis Parrens hangs above a vintage nightstand with a Lampe Gras light, designed in 1921 by Bernard-Albin Gras. The bed is dressed with Merci linens.

Even in Ella’s room, Ikea chairs and bed mingle with a restored Bertoia child’s chair.

The family’s two cats, Baron and Jula.

Upstairs, the clutter-free bedrooms of Segal’s teenagers reflect their father’s less-is-more ethos.

Low-maintenance, sustainable materials were favored throughout the house. Striking orange Pirelli studded rubber floors were chosen for the main bathroom. Clean white fixtures and black shower cladding complete the graphic space.

Leo Marmol and Alisa Becket enjoy one of their home’s many outdoor spaces.

An archival photo shows the interior of the detached studio with drafting tables awash in light through the enormous skylight above.

Built in the early 60s, the separate concrete-and-glass studio echoes the original home.

Dulkinys uses the remote-controlled mountaineer’s harness to peruse the two-story bookshelf.

The butterfly-roof pavilion by architects Kate Simonen, Benjamin Parco, and Phil Kaefer connects to the low-slung home Joseph Esherick designed in 1954 via two covered walkways and an open-air tearoom. All three structures sit lightly on the landscape designed by Lawrence Halprin and updated over 50 years later by Gary Roth, a former employee.

Architect Craig Steely designed this house for himself, his wife Cathy Liu, a painter, and their son, Zane, that looks out to the Pacific Ocean from a lava flow on the big island of Hawaii.

A late-1950s set of sofa and chairs inherited from Gaffney’s granny warm up the living room, as do the stove from Charnwood and the coffee table the couple bought from Habitat for their first flat.

Djeribi’s studio.

The house is located on a 25-acre site. It sat unsold on the property for two years before the couple discovered it.

San Francisco in the 1950s.

Griffin’s room, which is exactly the same size as his brother’s, gets good light from the backyard.

Textured concrete walls are a signature of Cho’s work.