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The rooftop terrace overhangs the ground floor terrace, creating a covered outdoor area that is sheltered from the elements.

A Saikai Kaico Japanese enamel kettle and hand thrown dishes by David Green Ceramics sit proudly in the galley kitchen.

Life for the couple centers on an open kitchen-dining-living area. Nautical references are kept to a minimum, but a few touches nod toward the home’s habitat. A Rais wood-burning stove recalls a ship’s furnace; soft green and blue fiberglass Eames chairs echo the color of the sea, which is a constant presence thanks to floor-to-ceiling glass doors. The custom dining table sits beneath a sculptural Titania pendant by Alberto Meda. Their yellow Labrador, Buster, rests next to a Hay sofa.

The design of this Australian houseboat features a soft, modern color palette. Here, light sage laminate kitchen cabinets are paired with leather recessed pulls.

“I wanted to change the kitchen,” Lyndsay says. “The cabinetry was too dark, so we wanted to lighten it up. At first, it was an orange wood—and we ended up painting it white to achieve this.”

The curved roof, a play off the hull of a ship, was inspired by a previous Atelier SAD home project in the Czech town of Liberec. Jerry Koza, along with engineer Tomas Kalhous and architect Adam Jirkal, spent years finding the right location and obtaining permissions. After the rigid approval process, they’re finally able to showcase the flexibility of the concept, which can range from a one-person dwelling to a family-sized float with a 1,076-square-foot floor plan and a 538-square-foot terrace.

A team from the University of Coimbra in Portugal designed 'Floatwing'

Cedar slats mark the facade of the Worple's lakefront vacation home in Ontario.

Eivind Bøhn’s cabin on the outskirts of Hardangervidda National Park is a modern update of the classic Norwegian hytte. The design, by Snøhetta architect Øystein Tveter, features a sod-covered roof that blends with the grassy hillside in warmer months.

A marble plinth filled with sand elevates the house, while also creating drywells to accept stormwater runoff.

Here is the lovely home at dusk.

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