Exterior

To allude to the nearby ocean, the architects designed a seaweed patterned for the interior of the garage door (seen here raised). It successfully reads like a leather padded wall and makes “the cube” feel that much more customized.

The yard doubles as the retention area for the monsoon rainstorms as well as a place for the homeowners to play

Photographer: Art Gray

“When I come home, this is like a sanctuary. I open up the doors and sit outside and read, or work around the house,” says resident Colleen Nusinow.

The Opdahl House, designed by Edward Killingsworth for Richard and Joyce Opdahl, is located on the island of Naples, in Long Beach, California, and the design responds to the constraints imposed by the compact site.Unlike the neighbors, whose homes unflinchingly abut their property lines, Killingsworth set the Opdahl House 42 feet back from the street, dedicating half of the lot to a dramatic entryway that includes a carport, garden, and reflecting pool. The effect is one of entering a private sanctuary.

Florida couple John Pirman and Steve Tetreault built a new house inspired by the Sarasota School. Today’s FEMA codes required a plinth to lift the house five-and-a-half feet above grade and a roof that can withstand hurricane wind loads, making it a challenge to re-create the lightness of midcentury design, Pirman says.

Usha and Mike Kreaden had a virtually blank slate when it came to the garden outside the 1958 Joseph Eichler house that they bought in Silicon Valley two decades ago.

Murren chose maintenance-free materials, such as Stepstone precast concrete pavers for exterior decks and river-rock-covered flat roofs. He recalls his neighbors’ astonishment and delight when “we went from a giant hole in the ground to a two-story house in just four days.”

Cutouts in the concrete slab floor allow for an indoor forest of taro, fig, and bamboo—and a subsurface drain connected to a perforated underground pipe slowly filters out excess moisture to the groundwater. The cabinets were custom designed by Nick Damner, while the refrigerator and dishwasher are by Thermador.

Originally built in the 1980s by architect Ray Kappe, the Manhattan Beach home of Matt Jacobson and Kristopher Dukes is anchored by a sweeping circular gesture.

In seaside Tuscany, Italian architecture firm FABBRICANOVE realized a villa that embraces modern lines and the mild climate.

The unadorned street-facing facade of the house belies the light, open, tranquil space inside.

Trowbridge leads the way to the geometric fire pit with built-in benches, the ideal spot for an evening cocktail or s'mores roast.

Two landscape design experts, Charlotte Frieze and Judy Kameon will share their favorite outdoor rooms with the Dwell on Design audience, including those featured in their books. Frieze, the former garden editor at House & Garden, is the author of Private Paradise: Contemporary American Gardens. Kameon, the principal at Elysian landscapes, is the author of Gardens Are for Living: Design Inspiration for Outdoor Spaces. Photo courtesy of Elysian Landscapes.

A gravel path leads to a guesthouse, where Trainor supplemented an existing garden of yuccas and palm trees with succulent aeoniums and flowering euphorbias.

The outdoor shower situated off of the master bedroom is enclosed to offer privacy and features a courtyard garden. Michael Arp of Lanoha Nurseries designed the house's landscaping.

Sliding doors on either side of the living room and along the kitchen open all the way, allowing the breeze from the canyon to spin right through the house.

The courtyard deck is also made of tallowwood, a native eucalyptus. White mahogany—a dense timber that is termite resistant—clads the exterior. The sustainably sourced timbers are also fire resistant, a crucial feature in Australia in light of frequent drought and resulting forest fires.

The geometric addition, with its cedar rain screen, is joined at the hip with the more traditional residence.