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Renovated on a budget of approximately $100 per square foot, this 1,000-square-foot Brooklyn loft in a 1947 chocolate factory is an honest celebration of affordable materials. New Affiliates transformed the formerly dark and cluttered space into a warm, light-filled home that smartly fits two sleeping areas, a bathroom, a study, a new kitchen, and a living/dining area without losing the loft’s airy and open feel. The key to the project’s success was leaving materials and elements exposed—from the pine plywood used for the walls, panels, and cabinets to the existing pair of three-and-a-half-foot-wide Art Moderne columns that were painted white and integrated into the design, rather than hidden.

Remo Kommnick and Emi Moore wanted a minimalist home that could blend with its site in rural Virginia. “We had to keep things really simple,” says architect Patrick Farley. The cabin is clad in stained western red cedar, and its form is inspired by shelters on the nearby Appalachian Trail.

The main deck of the Sento is level with the ledge, resulting in an eye level view of the ocean. The elevated site also offers privacy to those soaking, as they are not immediately visible from either trail. “There’s time to cover up as you hear someone approaching,” Shaw says.

There is a private outdoor shower with an ocean view outside the primary bathroom.

The children’s sleeping loft has corner windows with water views, as well as two playful openings that overlook their parents’ bed.

A narrow partition wall provides some separation for the bed in the Near Cabin.

The living room’s wood-burning fireplace has a concrete hearth that wraps the chimney and runs under the windows, acting as seating, a plant ledge, and creating a spot to store logs, all of which are harvested from the site.

Poured polished concrete floors, plaster walls, and the pine ceiling with hemlock beams infuse subtle interest and warmth. The bend in the gathering pavilion follows the site’s topography.

Glass doors enclose the dining area so that it can be opened up to the terrace in warmer months, and the seascape is still a part of the interior in the cooler weather when the doors are closed.

Beyond the new addition, the undertaking also improved the existing 1980s brown brick home—reconfiguring the living, kitchen, and dining areas.

Solomon Troupe Architects designed this 430-square-foot backyard bedroom suite for the owners to retreat to when their family comes to visit.

In the living area, existing built-in seating is complemented by Mies van der Rohe lounge chairs and custom coffee tables by Michael James Moran.

The concrete-and-steel home by Faulkner Architects gives one family a refined escape in the mountains of Northern California.

She continues, “Four gable-roof buildings complement the centrally located library, each one solving its own specific part of the program in accordance with the adjoining section: The east building is for cooking and gardening; the south building is for arts and crafts; the west building houses law, science, and music; and the north building, accommodating the areas for rest and recovery, contains meditation and self development. Linking the volumes together—thematically as well as systematically—the library functions as the core and the bloodstream of the project.

Floor plan of Frederick Residence by Andrew Frederick