The Pardee House in Midland is an example of Dow's work with the unit blocks that would define much of his early career.
The original layout was very much of the time: a perfect midcentury modern flow, with a closed-off kitchen and a fire put in the floor. “They were cool but impractical spaces,” says Schaer.
Candour is a prefab building system and a tool to customize building components within that system—including walls, floors, facades, and roofs—with a proprietary CAD plug-in. Users of the software can draft a design, determine if it’s feasible, and price it all in one day. Designs are built at Candour’s manufacturing facility in Sunshine, Melbourne.
Set in Portland, Oregon, this dwelling was designed by TVA Architects founder Robert Thompson, who also envisioned the nearby Nike World Headquarters.
The Garduno-Heiser House above Silver Lake has a daring cantilever, vintage tile, and original walnut cabinetry.
The Mod series offers four pre-designed floor plans, ranging from 3- to 4- bedroom modular homes with 2 or 2.5 bathrooms.
Suzanne and Brooks Kelley at the back of their 1,100-square-foot guest cottage.
“From anywhere in the house, you have a sense of the outdoors,” says Melonie, “and yet it’s very private.” Ikegami agrees. “The building was really about the landscape—it can dissolve into the background,” he says. In the master bedroom, Japanese Tansu chests from the couple’s previous home flank a Duxiana bed. The full-height windows and swing door are from Western Window Systems.
The hot tub is a highlight of the home. “It was worth the investment,” says Kara. “Especially late at night when you can see the stars.”
The rear deck overlooking the backyard offers an idyllic setting for entertaining.
Floor Plan of Galeo Pavilion by Stanaćev Granados
After renting in San Francisco for a decade, DIY couple Molly Fiffer and Jeff Waldman bought 10 acres in the Santa Cruz Mountains, where the pair and their friends built a cabin compound complete with sheds, tree decks, a pavilion, a wood-fired hot tub, an outhouse, and an outdoor shower. The cabin is made from locally sourced, rough-sawn redwood, which the couple stained with nontoxic Eco Wood Treatment to give the panels an aged appearance and a dark patina.
The home is currently being rented out to recoup some building costs, and the owners are considering a permanent move after their daughter leaves for college.
Base models of Dvele homes start at $250 per square foot, and range in size — the company wants its sustainable structures to be flexible to either small or large footprints.
The home enjoys a connection with the surrounding landscape with views from every room that invite the 100-acre site into the interior. “The framed views from each room are a source of pride for us,” says architect Meelena Oleksiuk Turkel. “They illustrate the way in which we design for a specific site, bringing the outdoors into the home and making the most of what the homeowners love about their land.”
