Favorites

The terrace attached to the primary bedroom overlooks the home's fenced-in backyard.

Keep founders Austin and Kotono Watanabe revived a compact home in Minneapolis with a dazzling kitchen, an all-electric upgrade, and a clerestory “scoop.”

The new prefab unit is located just a few meters from the main home—a thatched-roof cottage that dates back to the 1950s. “The dark color of the cladding blends into the dark hedges in the garden, so the unit doesn’t attract too much attention,” says Vriesema.

Whether it’s cross-country skiing in the winter or trail running in the summer, the 330-foot home’s minimalist design encourages Catherine to be outside in the surrounding landscape throughout the year.

In Portland, Oregon, a culinary couple called on architect Michael Howells to raise the roof, revamp the floor plan, and spice up the kitchen.

The couple took advantage of numerous municipal programs when landscaping the backyard. Mandy recently completed a free course through LADWP, who also promotes resources for the SoCal Turf Replacement Program, to become a certified California Native Plant Landscape: “There is an amazing amount of knowledge and resources for transitioning yards with more native/drought-tolerant plants through LADWP and the Theodore Payne Foundation,” says Mandy.

Custom cabinets in a mix of white oak and lacquered paint join Miele appliances and a honed quartz countertop.

The rebuilt “Idea House,” designed by Holly Freres and David Horning of JHL design. The driveway is permeable to encourage good drainage: crushed granite gravel is installed over a stabilization mat. James Hardie exterior siding is painted in Benjamin Moore ‘White Dove,’ with reclaimed wood used for the entry and garage.

Crawford taught himself how to reface the brick fireplace façade, using a creamy-colored, thin set brick. “It was his first time using a tile saw or laying brick, but his meticulous precision paid off,” says Devlin.

This dreamy, glass bedroom by the lake was created as an early prototype for the prefabricated greenhouse/she kits known as the Kekkilä Green Sheds.

The corner window offers an off-centre view of the garden, while the corner window seat has an elevated position over the garden. “The window seat cantilevers the main line of the house in both directions, emphasising the effortless nature of the corner itself,” explains architect Simon Feneley. “With no corner post, the structure was detailed with the structural engineer to achieve a feeling of lightness and to keep all timber sections as slender as possible.”