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The new loft runs the entire expanse of one side of the house. Ruffin wanted the cross-braces at the ceiling peak visible, as well as the patina on the new wood. “We left all the stamps on the lumber to just let it be really honest,” says Ruffin.

Now a one-bedroom, it flexes from family home to makerspace with ease.

The renovated interior offers unobstructed views and a clean, minimal backdrop for Rick and Lucy's bespoke collection of furniture, art, and decor.

The house retained its same basic form in front, part of a lush West Seattle neighborhood.

The 750-square-foot accessory dwelling unit (ADU) that Bo Sundius and Hisako Ichiki of BunchADU designed in Los Angeles’s Atwater Village is filled with bright colors that help to designate the spaces within the small backyard home.

Uruguay’s beach towns dot the Atlantic coast northeast of the capital, Montevideo, becoming less crowded and developed the farther up you go. The second floor of Sticotti’s house floats above its neighbors to take in views of the ocean a couple of blocks away. It’s capped by a roof deck that the architect says is “great for watching fireworks.”

The kitchen doors allow for a connection to the balcony garden while cooking, an aspect that the architect believes is often overlooked. “The light-filled living areas bring the outside in, with the kitchen garden bed creating a feeling of being in the garden whilst cooking and preparing meals,” say the clients.

The central living and dining space extends outside in all directions to a private rear courtyard and a wrap-around verandah.

Although The Goat Heads are mostly clad in metal, it’s the plastic panel walls at the entries that really shine. “In the evening they act like lanterns and animate the courtyards,” says Rogers. Their glow is tempered by the concrete breeze-block walls. “It was important that the units weren’t too bright—part of the beauty out here is the sky at night.”

As part of the renovation, they extended the rear of the bottom two floors—their apartment—by 10 feet. The extension not only gave the couple more room but also created a terrace for their tenants above.

Why Now, More Than Ever, the ADU Is the Future of Home: Whether it serves as an investment, backyard office, or intergenerational housing, the accessory dwelling unit (ADU) has never made more sense.

In Darby, Montana, just steps from the Bitterroot River, John Shoemaker and Greg Case built a home base for their fly-fishing group vacations.

The cabin has charcoal-colored metal siding and a punchy yellow-green front door for contrast.