Inspiration

She used cedar planks from Lowe's and stained them to match the vanity and other wood elements in the room. “We sealed the cedar planks with tung oil, and after a year it's held up wonderfully against water seepage,” says Bertolini

The kitchen is now part of the large open living space. The 1960s Hygena formica cabinets in Polyester Pumpkin were a vintage find. The white pendants are from IKEA and the blue is from Habitat.

A series of French doors extends the interior living spaces to the deck and meadow beyond.

About 100 miles southwest of Mexico City, nine black concrete blocks in a forest clearing make up one family's holiday home. Designed by Fernanda Canales with landscaping by Claudia Rodríguez, Casa Bruma makes elegant use of a construction material that's commonplace in Latin America

An 8-kW solar array powers the majority of the home's annual energy use, while a five-ton geothermal system provides mechanical heating and cooling. A 30,000-gallon rainwater collection system feeds the home with 200 gallons of purified water daily.

Instead of installing rooftop solar panels, Alqadi and his friend and partner in the venture, Hillary Flur, built a “solar tree” to provide energy.

Two fin-like, metal-clad walls rise from the crown of the hill to support a three-story plywood box suspended a full story above grade.

A clean-lined bathroom of stone and concrete.

Composed of overlapping cubes of different sizes, the Gjøvik house by Danish firm Norm Architects gracefully embraces its hillside terrain—naturally blending in with its stunning surroundings near Mjøsa Lake an hour north of Oslo.

The floor-to-ceiling windows give dramatic proportions and a sweeping view of the city.

The Shayan House takes full advantage of its canyon site.

Make sure your kitchen fits seamlessly with the rest of your home. A good entertaining space should have a look that's consistent with the overall design, so use finishings, colors, and other elements that compliment the rest of the space.

Separating the living room from a smaller seating area is a polished concrete courtyard that can be used for quiet reading or shaded play on hot days. “[It] has become the focus of family life,” Trimble says.

Looking into the warm, brightly lit house at night offers a different kind of view, one that charmingly recalls the cutaway dioramas in Wes Anderson’s films.