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The airy kitchen includes the original cabinetry and built-ins designed by Paul McCobb. Bright closet doors provide plenty of storage, as well as a playful splash of color.

The historic Frost House features bold, primary colors that accentuate its geometric form.

The bathrooms at Ace Hotel Toronto are airy and bright, with artful accents such as copper-framed mirrors over the vanity.

With a minimal and understated look, this floating staircase and landing design evokes a less-is-more philosophy and architectural style. Architect Carlo Gaspari converted a former knife-making workshop in Abruzzo, Italy, into a sophisticated residential property. The design pays homage to the home’s name—Casa del Ferro (the Iron House)—by using iron within the interior design, such as the staircase.

The project team stripped the house to its framing and foundation to upgrade the systems and add insulation, keeping the original exterior detailing intact. When they discovered that a spacer in the triple-pane windows they’d selected contained an LBC “Red List” material, the manufacturer, Unilux, changed the product to comply with LBC guidelines.

The home’s two levels used to be connected only by an external staircase. The architects reorganized the floor plan to insert a new indoor stair, which is bordered by a screen of steel cables grounded in stones the couple collected on their beach. The columnar lantern is by Stefan Gulassa, a local artist who made many of the home’s light fixtures.

The couple chose partially open shelving in the kitchen. “We’re not minimalists, and we wanted to display different objects we’ve collected,” Vincent says. The cabinetry, conceived as freestanding pieces of furniture, turned out even better than they had imagined. The dining chairs are from Ikea and the appliances are by KitchenAid.

Amanda Gunawan of OWIU Design turns a cookie-cutter space into an Asian-inflected haven with an industrial edge.

“We were working with a casa chorizo, which is a distinctly Argentinean type,” says Giusto. The equivalent of a tenement, these buildings, which date mostly from the turn of the 20th century, were designed to house multiple families in separate rooms with a shared bathroom.

Pale hardwood floors complement pared-back wall tones in mushroom and off-white.