The nonprefab place where architect Jennifer Siegel lays her head is a perpetual work in progress.
Most of the plants in the garden are grown from cuttings imported from Mexico. “I have a trailer down in Baja,” Siegal reports. “It’s a total ad-hoc situation: no electricity, an outdoor shower, an outhouse. It’s a level above camping.”
A custom table surrounded by NET’s Museo chairs and poplar stools provides a space for the Sarmiento Tovo boys, Manuel, 5, and Julián, 3, to play with the toys their mother makes.
The main living area is flanked by green spaces, with custom sliding doors made from materials sourced from a metal warehouse. The ceiling is corrugated sheet metal, a “common and cheap but noble” construction material, Teresa says.
A LEED Platinum status house retrofitted by Kaufmann.
The outdoor living room serves as both a counterpoint and extension of the interior, with amenities that include a Gandia Blasco dining table and bench, a Lynx grill, and a custom concrete fire pit designed by Kathleen Ferguson; it sits atop a bed of crushed white rock. A built-in bench runs along the length of the courtyard.
Intimately intertwined with the jungle’s natural density, Mashpi Lodge is an immensely serene, deeply immersive experience in the heart of an otherwise treacherous land. It’s hard to believe the whitewashed stone structure was erected to stand tall amidst conditions that are constantly damp.
Make sure to chat with the other members of your household to decide what exactly you're hoping to gain from working with a professional for your garden. What are your main goals and visions?
It was the surf and the artsy vibe that attracted Eric Grunbaum to Venice Beach, California, 18 years ago. An avid surfer and creative director for an advertising agency, he thrives on lively environs. So it’s no surprise that he turned to the Los Angeles–based architect Barbara Bestor to design a house for him near the Pacific. Bestor, the chair of graduate studies at Woodbury University School of Architecture, has a formidable reputation in Southern California for her bohemian modernism, and for Grunbaum, she created a 2,000–square-foot, three-bedroom, three-bath home that harbors a traditional sensibility with a contemporary heart. From the deck off the master bedroom, Grunbaum looks across his front yard. Bestor designed the second story to float over the ground “like a cloud.” Grunbaum guides us on a tour of his modern surf shack.
Renovating the old mill was a family effort, and Blee called on his sister Kate, a textile designer based in London, to lend a helping hand with the tile work. Kate's repertoire also extends to building installations, including a ceramic wall in the City and Islington Center for Lifelong Learning in North London. "She had several boxes left over," Blee recalls, "which meant another opportunity to use something that was lying around." The tiles, with finishes ranging from heavy glazes to matte coats, offered textural variety, which brother and sister used to "play around with the idea of reflection from the roof light."
Thankfully, the house came with many of its furnishings, including a 1940s Florence Knoll sofa, an Elliptical table by Charles and Ray Eames, a George Nelson tripod floor lamp, and a Breuer-designed Long chair. A pair of Barcelona chairs by Mies van der Rohe replaced two Arne Norell Sirocco armchairs.
The magic wall-disappearing act is accomplished by means of sliding glass panels, which the family tends to leave open almost year-round. Miharu Higashibata says she feels the new home has strengthened the family bond through shared activities like cooking and gardening.
The prohibitive cost of outfitting the structure with radiant heat led Dunbar and Astrakhan to pull down the solid south-facing rear wall for additional sunlight and solar gain.
A section of the facade—a cross between a shoji screen and a barn door—slides open. Planter boxes contain edible varieties that fuel Mary’s culinary explorations.
Architects Sara and Jeremy Imhoff and their son Jonah use the renovated kitchen in their 1918 bungalow in Seattle's Fremont neighborhood.
An imaginary axis divides the floor plan down the middle, with the open plan living room and kitchen to the south and three bedrooms to the north. In the dining area, a freestanding island hides appliances and piping while also providing counter space. Floor-to-ceiling windows make the outside deck and garden feel like an extension of the interior.
The double-height living area features unfinished plywood cladding treated with linseed oil.
Large gum trees offer a natural barrier for the house. Harkness designed the house's footprint in order to minimize the effect on tree roots. “The retained trees offer a sense of layering and age that new vegetation won’t be able to for a long time,” Harkness says.