A+B HOME

Architect Gregory Phillips retained the old-world charm of original features like the black-and-white floor tiles (seen here in the entryway) and views of the garden from the front door. Photo by Richard Powers.

On the first floor, a 1950s chaise longue awaits its next owner.

Formerly an office building with a dark basement, the structure—reminiscent of the Flatiron building in New York—was updated with a curved window on the street level, as well as a perforated white acrylic panel that allows light to enter the house.

Outside... the preteen cutting garden. Always foraging for goodies to use in my arrangements.

Our bedroom is quiet and relaxing. Our sanctuary.

A white undermount sink and a matte black faucet are functional, refined elements.

Lewis draws back the curtains to reveal her “No Ordinary Kitchen.” True to her style, she chose a muted material palette to create a comforting and relaxed kitchen environment, from the white oak floors to the polished marble countertop on the island. Oil-rubbed bronze cabinet hardware provides a pop of contrast while stainless steel appliances by Signature Kitchen Suite make a sleek aesthetic statement.

The roughly 5,000-square-foot Lens House renovation, which was finished in 2012 and just won a 2014 RIBA National Award, required six years, major remedial work on the roof and walls, approval from the planning committee, and even a sign-off from a horticulturalist to guarantee the backyard excavation didn't interfere with a walnut tree. "These things aren’t for people who are in a hurry," says architect Alison Brooks. The focus is the ten-sided trapezoidal office addition. "It wraps itself around the house with a completely different set of rules than the Victorian building," she says.

The switchback stairs create a circulation pattern that, according to Bangia, is "noticeably different than what you would find in a typical Brooklyn town house." She adds, "It lends an element of surprise when moving between floors, and a dynamic spatial sense of expansion and contraction.”

In São Paulo, Reinaldo and Piti Cóser kept green in mind when designing their deck. Here, Sophia Cóser talks to sister Helena and mother Piti through a wide, low-slung window typical of architect Marcio Kogan. Photo by: Crisobal Palma

The rear of the house features Victorian brick, a modern extension, and Velfac windows. Landscape designer Matthew Wright was inspired by the art of Henri Rousseau when choosing plants to set amid the garden’s Dorset pebbles.

The kitchen island is a mahogany museum display case containing the clients’ inherited snuff-box collection. Now topped with salvaged iroko hardwood from a school science laboratory, it has also been adapted to hold a sink and washer.

Corporate high-flyers and admitted neat freaks Bruce Thatcher and Kirsty Leighton couldn’t handle the chaos anymore. Read more about this Victorian terrace in London here.

Kaffeine Tozer refurbished the interior and exterior of this tiny retail space in Fitzrovia, preserving the existing shopfront and painting it jet-black.

The courtyard holds outdoor seating and a fire pit. Ett Hem’s chefs grill here for the evening meals.

In the formal dining area, guests are invited to make themselves at home. The floor-to-ceiling bookcases create an intimate dining experience, which sits under original decorative ceiling details.