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For this mudroom, designer Sarah Latham mixed a black, stainless-steel finish on the exterior with a white bronze dark finish inside.

The cabin's mudroom also houses a wood storage facility to help keep the fire burning on cold Norwegian nights.

A live edge bench, harvested from the site, balances the carved door of the bathroom on the opposite end of the entry/mudroom.

Architect Will Winkelman and landscape architect Todd Richardson collaborated with client JT Bullitt to design a house that blends into its surroundings in Steuben, Maine. The green roof gives the impression that "the ground just jumped onto the roof," Richardson says.

Sævik compares her house to a contemplative hideout. “It’s very quiet,” she says. “You can concentrate and let thoughts fly.” Her favorite summer pastimes include reading, painting, drawing, yoga, and “just sitting and feeling the forest,” she says.

One of the main goals of the construction was to do as little harm as possible to the existing environment, which includes waterways that salmon depend upon. Herrin and his team created a garden roof that covers the full extent of the home to meet this objective. “This helps control storm water runoff and also replaces lost insect habitat—insects being a critical food source for juvenile salmon,” he says.

Andrew Simpson Architects built the floors, walls, stairs, and cabinetry out of hoop pine plywood. Plywood panels salvaged from the client’s former art installation were used to line the ceiling.

The cabin structure and arches are made of locally sourced poplar plywood. The design team selected this material because of its fast-growing characteristics and wide availability in the Netherlands. "Because they grow fast, there is a lot of water in the tree," add the architects. "During drying, this water is replaced by air—that’s why this wood insulates, and therefore feels warm and pleasant (it is the same wood type used for making clogs). The wood does not splinter, and it is non-toxic."

Located in a forested, countryside area near a lake and vegetable garden, the cabin was designed by São Paulo architect Silvia Acar as a simple space for sleeping, cooking, and reconnecting with nature.

To keep costs low, architect Mark Fullagar fitted this compact cabin with hollow-insulated plywood panels that lend warmth and texture to the interior.

Alexandre Delaunay of Sabo Project helped Romain and Aurélie Fliedel renovate a 1,650-square-foot duplex when the couple were expecting their first child. Custom plywood cabinets and shelves line the dining area, which includes a table and chairs by Hay.

Unpainted plywood wraps all around the living areas to give the interior "a warmth and texture that interacts beautifully with the external Blackbutt timber," says Jackson. "It has a robust , durable, and tactile quality that sits well with the internal concrete floors."

Stevie works from a built-in L-shaped desk. The marker board is also a much-used feature.

The Nook

The new breakfast nook pairs a custom bench and table, both manufactured by Maneuverworks and surrounded by DWR Valencia chairs. Above are a Flos wall sconce and Schoolhouse Electric Luna pendant light