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"The owner wanted the front door to match the same yellow of Caterpillar, the heavy machinery company,

This 4,080-square-foot house in Shoreline, Wahington was a former adult living facility, that has since been converted into a single-family home by Seattle firm SHED Architecture & Design. “The wall of glazing facing towards the West is still one of the most striking elements of the house,” says designer Rebecca Marsh, so it was key that any redesign maintain its integrity.

ESCAPE's new line of all-electric tiny homes are finished with white birch flooring, walls, and ceilings. The pale wood tone offers a fresh aesthetic that ties to nature.

"The color palette is really us,

Nive buys loads of fresh produce and wanted a place to store it that was accessible and uncluttered, so the team provided these open shelves.

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.

The bedrooms are lit by clerestory windows for privacy from the more public side of the plot.

The asymmetrical window frames curates the view through the window of the master bedroom.

No whiteware here. In this moody apartment in Berlin, multi-toned charcoal gray subway tiles make up the backsplash, which contrasts with the pop of rosy color on the kitchen cabinets.

The house meets LBC standards for net-positive water, on-site water treatment, and net-positive energy. To create a closed-loop system, potable water (blue) is collected via the rooftop and stored in an underground fiberglass cistern that holds 10,000 gallons. “In three weeks in January this year, we captured enough water for six months of use in the house,” says Todd. That rainwater is purified via a filtration system in the lower-level mechanical room before reaching faucets. A septic tank outfitted with a textile filter scrubs gray water and blackwater (orange) for non-potable use, such as irrigation. An array of 42 solar panels supplies 105 percent of the property’s power needs (yellow), and two wall-mounted batteries store backup power.

Todd Vogel and Karen Hust renovated their waterfront home on Bainbridge Island, Washington, in accordance with the energy and environmental standards of the Living Building Challenge.

A new wood-panel wall is a focal point in the open layout. The original white oak floors were also refinished.

Stairs run up the south side of the cabin to the new deck, which sits atop the dining addition and is accessible from the primary suite. “The couple can go from the lake right up to their bathroom,” Sutherland says.