The renovation of a 2,000-square-foot property updates a century-old design for a family of four. "We placed the kitchen at the center of the house to link with the dining room and the outdoor space," Moreau says. In the kitchen, a Wolf oven brings out the silver details in Coit’s Bianco Cararra backsplash and island. Hee bar stools by Hay are lined under the island.

A salvaged 19th-century soaking tub wrapped in stainless steel is topped by Hudson Reed faucets.

This 19th-century New York factory houses the apartment of Brandon and Amy Phillips as well as the workshop for their company, Miles & May Furniture Works.

Keeping the original mottled, worn-brick walls and outfitting the kitchen with their own custom cabinetry were among this couple’s cost-saving measures.

The bathroom evokes the building’s industrial bones. The pendant light is from Ikea, and the towel racks are repurposed train car luggage racks. The Carrara tiles are mismatched seconds. “It works if you let yourself not try to fix it,” says Brandon.

For a steeply sloping backyard in San Francisco, he devised this all-in-one wooden wall, which provides seating, a fountain that helps block out highway noise, and, at the top of the steps, a lookout point that offers a view on the surrounding neighborhood.

The renovated house is outfitted with a sauna.

The kitchen features a distinctive cantilevered countertop.

A new staircase turns a corner at the large stone chimney, an element of the original house that the designers were careful to preserve.

The spacious kitchen makes it ideal for entertaining.

A clear railing follows the stairs to the second floor.

The architecture firm Open Form and the interior design firm Clairoux collaborated on this modern update of a 1950s-era house in Laval, Quebec, north of Montreal.

The architects and interior designers did away with the home's cramped, darkened layout and recast the interior as an open space defined by clean lines.

A before shot of the bathroom.

In the guest bathroom, Givone installed a hand-chiseled sink made of 17th-century marble quarried from the hills outside of Rome.

The innovative Wireless M Lamp was inspired by miners’ lamps of the 19th century. Designed by British designer David Irwin for Juniper, the M Lamp is a portable task lamp that is designed to complement a modern lifestyle. The powerful LED lamp is rechargeable, and can be used as a table or desk lamp, and be carried from room to room. A great gift for any design seeker, the Wireless M Lamp is a distinctive and smart light source.

Lyng Hansen steamed and framed remnants of 19th-century wallpaper found during the renovation.

A family of cost-conscious Hamburgers converted a kitschy turn-of-the-century villa into a high-design home with a strict budget in place. To unite the quaint masonry of the original villa with the squat, ugly add-on built flush against it, the architects decided to paint the old-fashioned facade graphite gray and then covered the box next door in plain, light-colored larch. Photo by Mark Seelen.

Stainless steel was selected for the kitchen countertops, and the pair relied on a local industrial sheet metal fabricator to help them prepare the material for residential application. The mix of warm and cool adds depth and dimension to the space.

Back StoriedWithout altering its turn-of-the-20th-century facade, architect Christopher Polly transformed the rear of this Newtown, Australia, home from bleak to bright. We originally ran this Houses We Love in our February 2012 issue.

Greenery bursts out to the street from the side yard of Paul Bernier and Joëlle Thibault’s home.

A door frame was preserved as "a sculptural memory piece," Sara Imhoff says, after a wall separating the old kitchen from a small dining room was demolished. The countertops and backsplash are by Caesarstone.

This view shows how the space was previously divided.

The apartment originally crammed four closed rooms and a kitchen and bathroom into 1,000 square feet. After the renovation, it had only one bedroom and a large, open kitchen.

“We didn’t go out and buy a living room collection,” Sofie explains. “In our home, we tried to avoid trends. The furniture we have are things we have collected over many, many years.” Vintage Eames for Herman Miller lounge chair; Isamu Nuguchi table; and Rocking elephant by Rocking Zoo.

The owners’ goal was to transform the 19th-century building into a bold single-family residence. Historical architectural details were made modern with a striking black facade, while inside, a flexible living space that opens into an exterior garden enables a simplified lifestyle.

Light from a new skylight pours into the home's entryway and living room. Steel columns and beams were added for structural reinforcement, and the couple left all beams, old and new, exposed.

"I always wanted to have my very own yellow brick road," says Viviana de Loera, whose favorite part of the home is the playful staircase. The original stairs and handrail were preserved in the renovation.

In the living room, and throughout the home, recessed "book nooks" are used to provide space-saving storage. The only seating in the room is a sleek black faux leather and steel daybed, fabricated by Montreal-based Surface Jalouse. Walls were removed to cohesively unite the living space and kitchen.

Brandon and Amy set up different workstations in the living area.

Rustic meets modern in this bedroom, where white track lighting beautifully illuminates a black wall and serves as accent lighting for vintage wall art.

Architect Alexandre Blouin designed a rectangular staircase at the center of this house, positioning it beneath an operable skylight that draws in sunshine that otherwise would have struggled to penetrate the core of the building, which is 50 feet deep.

In the guest bedroom, a painting by Monique Crine hangs on the original brick wall above a Miles & May bed and side table. The rug is from ABC Carpet & Home.

By foregoing a fixed dining table in favor of a large American walnut wood countertop by Cuisine Elysee, the couple is able to enjoy a open space with a clear view of the back of the house and the garden terrace outside.

251, Picture from hotel Nobis at Norrmalmstorg/ Stockholm