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Herron Horton Architects converted a garage into a place for kids to study and play.

Barache describes the metal roof as essentially a deformed plane, placing an apple beneath a sheet of paper to demonstrate his point. He chose zinc for its malleability and the high level of the craftspeople who work with it.

"Our many ideas were floating around the mountain, and we needed someone to bring them down and turn them into reality,

Exposed beams stretch across the main level, connecting the living areas and kitchen.

RES4’s modular approach provides a Brooklyn family with a beautiful weatherproof retreat on Long Island. Designed as a hybrid between a double-wide and a courtyard house, the 1,650-square-foot North Fork Bay House was prefabricated off-site as two modules. In addition to time and cost savings, prefabrication helped address the restricted building site, which has a very long and narrow footprint limited by FEMA setback regulations and zoning laws.

Beth Malloy and her son, Zach, and daughter-in-law, Beth Anderson, have built one of the first additional dwelling units in Chicago since the city began allowing them again in 2020. They pooled their resources to purchase a home and built a coach house at the rear.

The east wall is covered in full-height cabinets by Crafted Wild that anchor the room and conceal daily items.

Textured porcelain tile by Terratinta Ceramiche changes throughout the day, thanks to a skylight in the bathroom.

On the main level, a wood-burning fireplace sits between two arched doorways in the open-plan kitchen, dining, and living areas.

The kitchen is a balance of woods and stone, with marble on the large island and Naica quartzite in a leathered finish on the perimeter counters and backsplash. The stove hood is a custom plaster finish: “I was constantly looking for ways to add softness,” says interior designer Holly Waterfield.

The kitchen’s large island is the heart of the home, bringing guests and family together. “The kids love prepping food, coloring, and just chatting with us,” says Leah. “At all times in the day, if someone is in the kitchen, the little ones will gather at the island and get involved in whatever we are doing. It’s sweet that they love being with us in these moments.”

On a rustic strip of coastline near Puerto Escondido, Mexico, S-AR designed a beach getaway with an open concrete grid that frames its natural surroundings.

Floor Plan of Custom Beach House by Nordic Office of Architecture

The original home was converted into a bedroom level, and given a second-story addition and roof deck. The dark exterior color, a charcoal-eggplant hue, lets the landscape colors stand out in contrast. “The existing house roof became the roof deck,” says Rogers. “And then I just shifted over the addition so that it floated over the landscape.”

Steve and Margaret Cegelski, a retired couple who invented a popular tire sealant, welcome guests to their Santa Barbara County home nearly every weekend for hiking, surfing, and horseback riding. Overnight visitors stay in the new guesthouse designed by Dan Weber of Anacapa Architecture and Steve Willson of Willson Design; the builder was Curtis Homes, and the structural engineer was Ashley & Vance Engineering. A green roof helps the structure disappear into the site high above the Pacific. “We wanted to capture the quality of the setting, but with minimal impact on the land,” says Weber.