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After: "I think the design on the facade of our shophouse suits us. We tend to prefer simple and understated designs," says Kelvin on the shophouse's facade that is less elaborate than some others in the area.

Adding storage under the new stair maximizes the kitchen's footprint. Hemlock wood on the stair was stained to complement the casework. The faucet is from Brizo and the green backsplash tile is Heath.

Extra-wide concrete pillars help to support the studio at its core.

Moss-covered rocks and twisted tree trunks give the landscape a fairyland-like quality.

The house, painted in "Poppyseed

When the team presented the plans to the neighborhood historical society for approval, “everyone was thrilled,” says Martin Locraft, a member of the architecture team.

Apart from cabins, saunas, and outdoor showers, Iglucraft has also used their hallmark structure to make offices, bars, and detached bathrooms. If none of these quite fit your needs, Iglucraft invites inquiries about bespoke projects.

For a family of four, Ueda Design Studio restores the luminous-yet-drafty midcentury home of Alden Mason with warm materials and sensible restraint.

The exterior was kept mostly the same, with wood siding throughout.

In Portland, Oregon, a culinary couple called on architect Michael Howells to raise the roof, revamp the floor plan, and spice up the kitchen.

Low-lying furniture and art makes the high-ceilinged living room appear even bigger. Most of the furnishings were sourced secondhand, though the hanging lamp is a DIY Nick made by fusing two paper shades together.

Another money-saving choice was changing the driveway from a stone paver driveway to poured concrete. The roof is designed to collect rainwater, which travels through a set of pipes for storage in a 39,000-gallon cistern behind the house.

László Moholy-Nagy

The new prefab unit is located just a few meters from the main home—a thatched-roof cottage that dates back to the 1950s. “The dark color of the cladding blends into the dark hedges in the garden, so the unit doesn’t attract too much attention,” says Vriesema.

Niki Weber and J.P. Guiseppi were booted from their rental in Venice, California, with only a month’s notice. In the frantic search that followed, the pair bought the first property they visited: a hillside residence in the Silver Lake neighborhood of L.A. The plot had enough space down slope to install an ADU. Putting their hard years of renting to good effect, the pair hired Cover, a Los Angeles-based start-up specializing in prefab backyard homes, to build the rental they wish they had lived in as tenants.

The gallery has a new whitewashed pine roof that covers the main villa, which includes two one-bed suites and one of the property’s three and a half kitchens. “We think it was a little church before,” says architect Yashar Yektajo. The brick was stripped of plaster from a prior renovation. “It was completely rotten because there’s so much humidity here,” he adds. “Now the brick can breathe, and the whitewash brings it together.” Pinto, one of the couple’s two dogs, rests under a coffee table Ernesto and Ellen designed. The gallery is lined with original arches that lead to the courtyard.