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In the main bath, a wall of Heath Ceramics tile joins a terrazzo floor from Ann Sacks.

Spanish firm Gon Architects and designer Ana Torres renovated this 69-foot-long Madrid flat to include a yellow-tiled bathroom, salmon-hued bedroom reading nook, and bright-blue kitchen stand. The home’s colorful corners are tied together by white passages and subtle wood floors.

Los Angeles–based design firm ORA built this family home in the Mar Vista suburb with two separate buildings: a long, linear home “shaped like a boomerang,” and a bright-red accessory dwelling unit. In the main house, a soothing material palette composed of concrete floors, white walls, and wood is punctuated by spots of color, such as the teal tile backsplash and salmon-toned cabinet in the kitchen, or the sunshine-yellow vanity in one of the bathrooms.

Rain shower

The master bathroom has a floor-to-ceiling windowed corner that holds a Belle freestanding tub by Progetto and in-wall fixtures by Copper Bath.

Enormous windows allow light to flood the interior, while carefully framed views of the garden blur the boundaries between interior and exterior. The deep concrete bathtub in the downstairs bathroom, for example, offers views of both internal and external gardens.

Natural light is an important factor in creating biophilic spaces. The primary bathroom of this house in Venice, California, sits deep in the plan but has three sources of natural light—a skylight, small window, and translucent glass wall shared with the kitchen.

Powder Room

Ben Allen renovated this old Victorian in London using a rainbow of colored concrete. One of the new bathrooms is cast in mossy green with an arch motif that appears throughout the home.

Using wood pallets, a common shipping material, is a cost-effective (and, if they're reused, also eco-friendly) solution for a low-lying mattress that doesn't sit directly on the floor. Its wood construction pairs well with just about any color palette, and it can also be painted.

Jim Olson's #cabin at Longbranch Washington #olsonkundig

The ever-changing, lush wooded surroundings of Minnesota, such as those experienced at this 8,000-square-foot Type Variant House outside of Minneapolis designed by Coen and Partners, are right near the small town of New Richland.

Set on an east-west axis, the home stays cool with shading south-facing glass, minimal west-facing glass, and operable windows that allow for natural ventilation. Energy recovery ventilators also bring fresh air into the home.

Originally built in 1974 as a kit home, this A-frame cabin was saved from ruins by an ambitious couple who temporarily turned it into a home for five.

In the tiny town of Auvilliers, France, architect Jean-Baptiste Barache designed an elegant cedar-shingled home with an A-frame construction.