Farmhouse

The second-floor office is housed inside a rounded rectangle of concrete that the architect inserted on top of the old farmhouse.

Seen from a distance, the farmhouse has a time-honored quality, though it’s still clearly a product of the 21st century.

The main entrance is on the house’s south side. It leads to a central hall from which all sections of the home are accessible.

The architect chose granite for the house’s base, zinc for its roof, and Scandinavian pinewood for cladding—all materials that complement the nearby gray stone building.

Four distinct structures make up the house. Their design echoes the shape of an older, gabled-roof building already on site. “We considered the neighboring construction quite interesting in terms of scale and layout,” de Carvalho says. “Due to the proximity, we felt the necessity to integrate it in the design.”

In the existing house, the wood beams were hidden under sheetrock and wallpaper. "I exposed them all, but I didn't let that dictate where the new walls would go," Givone says. "I let the beams fall where they may."

A glass-lined shower with a Hudson Reed showerhead adds a modern touch to the second-floor bathroom. A pane of privacy glass lets natural light enter the room.

The updated kitchen is outfitted with stainless steel appliances, including a Bosch range, a Fisher & Paykel refrigerator, and a Frigidaire range hood. The faucet is Hudson Reed.

The new custom kitchen is situated in the original structure. The window is a new commercial unit with an operable frameless center pane and was set so that the countertop could tuck right underneath it to create a 1/4-inch shadow line.

The Floating Farmhouse’s semitransparent addition has a roofline that matches the pitch of the original 1820s farmhouse. A porch, tucked under the side eaves, is cantilevered over a stream that runs through the property. Ikea loungers are illuminated from the interior by commercial gymnasium lights repurposed as pendant lamps.

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Monory’s friends, the Leclercs, join her for an alfresco meal on the patio. They’re seated at a custom-made table on Fermob’s Luxembourg chairs.

Michèle Monory’s Chinon farmhouse is an idyllic getaway from her home basein Paris. After she inherited the property and centuries-old structure from her father, she hired Matali Crasset, who runs a cutting-edge architecture and design firm, to update the living spaces.

"It only cost about $48,000 to build, which was incredibly cheap," says Turner of the Stealth Barn. "We got the Timber Frame Company to supply the shell, then we clad it and fitted out the interior and windows ourselves. The idea was to take the archetypal black tar-painted agricultural building and make an almost childlike icon of that."

A Renovated Farmhouse in Denmark: This beautiful renovation has a classic Scandinavian feel and soft, but simple color scheme. From The Style Files.

Rent a Belgian Farm: Because who wouldn’t want to vacation in this lovely place? The Heerlijkheid van Marrem farm is available to rent in Wevelgem, East Flanders. From Remodelista.

For the bedroom, the designer selected a bed by Muji and floor lamps by Lightyears.

“When you’re working on something inexpensive and then decide you don’t like it, fine. You’re not tearing down millions of kroners worth of work.” —Mette Lyng Hansen