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Twelve electrically heated windows pierce the facade, framing views of the surrounding forest and fields.

A new cedar and glass dining pavilion extends through the back of a weekend retreat in rural Ontario designed by architect Brian O'Brian for Ben Sykes and Erin Connor. The 19th-century timber and stone structure, formerly a one-room schoolhouse, proved to be the perfect palimpsest for a modern intervention.

A Cove 5 metal fireplace from Charnwood warms up the 215-square-foot cabin.

Outside, a large 15-foot awning allows the family to enjoy outdoor living.

Originally intended as a play structure for the couple's daughter, the tea house instead became an office, stocked with Charles and Ray Eames-designed furniture in honor of the nearby Eames House.

Landscape designer Grits Runis of Landshape designed the area around the cabins, planting a terraced garden that provides herbs for making tea.

The cabins and sauna that architect Zane Tetere-Sulce designed for the Ziedlejas Wellness Resort are clad with Cor-Ten steel and glass.

The couple built the cabin in Poland and eventually moved it to near the shore of Packer Lake in Austria.

The Trues host parties in the glass-walled structure, located steps from their vacation home, or they escape to it to catch some rays and read a book. Bill reclines on cushions hidden under the reclaimed-fir floorboards that are propped up with Sugatsune hinges.

Stained cedar, ipe, and concrete form the palette of this modern, verdant 2,500-square-foot home in Kansas City. Indigenous wildflowers and native grasses grow on top of the structure; this planted roof also helps insulate the home and limited its energy needs.

On the outskirts of Austin, Texas, author Chris Brown and his dog Katsu head to the river; the path was once a dumping ground on top of a long-defunct underground oil pipeline. The green roof was conceptualized by John Hart Asher of the Ecosystem Design Group at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin.

With its stucco facade and steel-framed, arched windows, Plaster Fun House is an architectural anomaly amidst the cottages and 1960s brick residences of Torrensville in South Australia.

Questions from your contractor mean that they have taken the time to review the construction documents or drawings and scope of work.

The more planning you do and the fewer changes you make, the higher chance you have of staying within your budget. Take the time to figure out what the scope of the project is and get a sense of how much work is needed so that you can make educated decisions when presented with options.

Now, an eight-foot sliding door brings light into the kitchen and enables fluid movement between inside and out. The wider steps can serve as seats during a party, and they make for a graceful transition to the yard.

In the Norwegian town of Larvik in Vestfold County, Oslo-based practice Lund Hagem Architects renovated a summer cabin on a rocky terrain with generous outdoor patios that take advantage of dramatic coastal views.

Designed by José Guedes Cruz, César Marques, and Marco Marinho of the Portugal-based firm Guedes Cruz Architects, The Wall House is laid out in an open-box plan, and is fitted with plenty of glass windows to enhance the synergy between its interior and exterior spaces.