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Guests gather outside one of three new buildings designed by architecture firm Fala for Fools’ Valley, a co-living space set in a valley 40 minutes from Lisbon. Renting rooms for short or extended stays and offering workshops and events as well as a quiet place to work, the compound is the brainchild of British philosopher/lawyer Chris Wray and Russian entrepreneur Liza Simonova.

Amanda made all the tiles for the new kitchen backsplash. In total, she crafted more than 1,000 tiles in her studio. Amanda's ceramic sculptures are also placed around the home.

Handmade terra-cotta floor tiles from Onsite Supply + Design line the shared bath. The Vixel wall tiles are from Artedomus, and below the custom shelf is a Vitra Butterfly stool by Sori Yanagi.

"We added a different finish to every function," explains Otten. "In this way, we tried to suggest that the different parts of the kitchen are dating from different building periods and the construction had been growing continuously."

The kitchen is streamlined and modern, with a black seamless backsplash, a minimalist faucet, and a wood-clad vent hood.

"Often, architects tend to think that if they use a lot of expensive materials such as marble, they make a good design. I also like to work with nice natural materials but mostly I have to deal with limited budgets. So we first consider a good functioning design in the existing interior. Afterward, we see what materials we can add to give a certain character to the project within the budget of the client. But bespoke furniture never comes cheap. In this case, for example, we used the 3mm thick peg-board, glued on black MDF and then painted it."

The custom cabinetry is by Big Branch Woodworking, and the counters are Dekton Uyuni with a 4mm thickness. The wall sconce is the Lexi small in Ocean Blue by Cedar & Moss.

The top floor of Detroit’s Michigan Central Station is being converted into a Nomad Hotel, which is slated to open in 2027.

After expanding their farmhouse, rural Illinois Daniel Payette and Jessica Merchant called on Converge Architecture to help them design a space that’s “more than just a car-hole.”

Dan and Jessica eventually hope to add rain barrels to capture water for use in irrigating their garden.

In many of the home's corners, cracks appeared in the new concrete flooring once it was poured, including in this spot in the living room. Tajima and Bradley filled the cracks with grout and then gilded each of those grout lines to give the look and feel of kintsugi.

"The diagonal void is designed as a stepping park to give the living areas the dynamics of a natural space," says Vo.

“It shows how circular materials can slot seamlessly into contemporary design,” says McMahon of the decision to use sustainable K-Briq masonry units in the Subaru Cocoon Garden.

This room between two interior courtyards was designed as a screened porch. “Courtyards are a good solution for the climate in San Antonio,” says English. “[They] serve as collectors of cool air.”

Glass walls bookend the kitchen/living area on the entry level, connecting the space to a patio and terrace.

In New York about two hours north of New York City, architecture and interiors firm BarlisWedlick created an eclectic compound designed to suit a client with an idiosyncratic wish list. In the kitchen, a custom Stickbulb LED lamp hangs above a kitchen island topped by concrete from Get Real Surfaces. The cabinets and island feature a modern version of a traditional board and batten siding that are given an even more contemporary feel with the concrete countertop.