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The renovation introduced a new deck, and opened up the living and kitchen areas. “The home is ‘so Warrandyte,’” says builder Hamish White. “It has a great connection with the outdoors, views of trees from most windows, and a homely and familiar feel which makes it really comfortable to be in.”

Lauren and Brittan Ellingson, the owners of Notice Snowboards, a custom snowboard and wakesurf company in Whitefish, Montana, approached Workaday Design and builder Mindful Designs to concoct a new lake home for their family. The brief was, perhaps unsurprisingly, focused on getting the family outdoors as much as possible.

Jorge’s parents’ house is across the patio. “We believe we’re onto something here in terms of a societal shift,” says Jorge. “Not everyone wants to live in an apartment or condo. They can live in a home that’s part of a family compound.”

Anchoring a multi-family property in Chula Vista is a 1,200-square-foot garage that Ramiro Losada-Amor of Modern Granny Flat transformed into an ADU for Jorge Cuevas Antillón and Ruben Martínez. The garage door is from Coastal Garage Doors.

Classic Ceramics wall tiles are combined with Caroma Cube ceramic basins in the bathrooms.

A profile views shows off various storage arrangements inside the approximately 36-foot-long and 13-foot-tall structure.

Inside, an open living area sits opposite the kitchen. Tall ceilings and multiple windows make the space feel larger than its actual compact size.

A closer look at the kitchen shows the central countertop that doubles as a dining area.

Lined up vertically, the thin slats of acoya wood on the building’s exterior have the look of a traditional bamboo mat.

“We learned that in a home this size, every design decision needs to contribute both functionally and aesthetically to the space,” Robinson says. “The details matter even more when every inch is significant, so we got creative with how to make the most out of everything.” Polished quartzite countertops, Leicht cabinetry, and a backsplash of back-painted glass make the kitchen feel luxurious.

The open living space is full of natural light with vaulted ceilings that heighten the space. White walls provide the perfect backdrop for the designers’ bold palette of colors and materials.

A hammock on the deck, where the wood is laid in a chevron pattern, gives the feeling of being suspended among the treetops.

"I wanted a simpler, more contemplative life," says Stephen Proctor, who left Nashville to continue work as a visual artist from the remote Pacific Northwest. But after being targeted by a hard-nosed permitting official, he faced too many unknowns, ultimately deciding to sell the home. "I didn't want to fight them or have to blaze a new trail—that’s not why I got into the tiny home thing," he says.

Webster Wilson designed this backyard ADU in Portland, Oregon, as a retirement home for a grandmother with visiting grandchildren. It’s clad in white-stained tongue-and-groove cedar.

Bifold windows and doors open the cabin to the great outdoors, for when you want to enjoy al fresco entertaining.

The home spreads out from a courtyard garden in a shape that resembles a hand traced on a sheet of paper. The structure of each “finger” nods to the traditional gable-sided barns that dot the area.