ADU

The 452 sq. ft. home includes a covered porch for additional living space.

Designer and dressmaker Kristie Wolfe built this tiny off-grid getaway on the Big Island for just $11,000. It operates on solar panels, a rooftop rainwater catchment system and a toilet-sink combo that sends used water from the sink to the flusher.

Avava Prefab Tiny House has brought design and drafting solutions to Hawaii homeowners, real estate investors, and contractors.

The couple embraced simplicity and efficiency in the new kitchenette. Cabinets along with the countertop, sink, and faucet are all from IKEA. A collection of artworks and collectibles on the shelving are from Aaron Murray, Penny Plavidal, Brian Green, Cynthia Mulcahy, Camp Bosworth, and Hailey Vick.

Whitewashed pine walls and an exposed pine ceiling help soften the space, while artworks and vintage finds give it life. The black and white drawing is by Adam himself, and the couple found the hanging tumbleweed in a fence somewhere between Marfa and El Paso.

Bathroom

After - rear windows

Ash lives in the detached backyard unit and has comfortably hosted 10 people in the space.

The main living space was previously two separate volumes with different floor and ceiling heights. To make the queen-size Murphy bed clear the kitchen cabinets, Ash had to cut a curve into the corner of the mattress.

The bathroom vanity, with a countertop made of Pacifica millennial pink retro mix terrazzo from Concrete Collaborative, was one of the most complex parts of the project. “Curved forms are a lot of work,” Ash says. The designer’s inspiration for the curved motif and color palette came from an antique stained glass window.

Floor plan of Northwood ADU by T+E+A+M in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Stop Making Sense ADU by Bunch Design floor plan

Hexagonal tiles in the ADU bathroom have patterns borrowed from mid-century modern design.

A kitchenette in the ADU is matte black with shelves matching the walls to recess into the background.

Thompson, a founding principal of Assembledge+, had recently participated in a Los Angeles Magazine project to imagine solutions for those who lack housing in the city. Their notion was for public agencies to subsidize building ADUs in backyards along alleyways, dovetailing with existing alley revitalization initiatives

“I wanted something bold and fresh,” Augustin says of the unit’s citrus-inspired front door, painted Tangerine Dream by Dunn Edwards. The door is flanked by horizontal Redwood slats and gray acrylic stucco.

Ladera Heights ADU by DNA Architecture + Design