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Reconstructed by Kip Mesirow, the renowned local builder behind Berkeley’s famed Chez Panisse restaurant, the 1,736-square-foot residence features handmade copper light fixtures and a natural, stained-wood palette.

Architect Line Solgaard, founder of the eponymous Oslo- and Fredrikstad-based firm, designed a getaway for her family in the place where she grew up. Untreated, exposed concrete pairs with cedar cladding; custom, oak-paneled ceilings; and a glass roof in the center of the home that opens like a sunroof for natural ventilation.

A dramatic landscape demands a dramatic building. Southwest facing deck of Starship House

Inspired by the idea of a living organism, Madeiguincho designed a 188-square-foot cabin that collects, stores, and reuses rainwater and produces food and energy.

Although the home's historic front facade needed to be preserved, the back of the residence was ripe for a remodel. The architects cladded the exterior in eastern cedar. The wood is offset with large expanses of glass, as well as yellow accents to add a playful atmosphere.

Originally built in 1925, the multi-level home is centrally located in the Ivy Hill district, offering close proximity to Lake Merritt and Downtown Oakland, as well as the Glen View, Grand Lake, and Lakeshore neighborhoods.

The founder of Polly Harbison Design transformed the 1940s home where her sister, Margot, resides with her family to include a new kitchen, a bedroom with an outdoor shower, and wide-open garden views. In the main communal areas, floor-to-ceiling glass doors and wooden screens slide open completely, allowing Margot, Ewen, and their three daughters to get fresh air.

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.”

Pink marble is unexpected, but adds the touch of warmth every kitchen needs.

In the living room, ethereal white curtains soften the severity of the concrete walls.

A geometric, peach-colored tile in the master bathroom adds a joyful jolt to the home. The walnut cabinetry is an ode to the home's mid-century roots.

Photo: Willem-Dirk du Toit

The V-shaped structure delineates the subtle junction between the living and sleeping zones. Floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors frame vistas of lush vegetation and rugged cliffs, while opening directly to the decked patio.

The clients are a husband and wife with grown children who no longer live at home. The husband is a psychoanalyst, and the wife is a history teacher at a middle school in São Paulo. During construction of the home, very little earthwork was needed, as the residence nestles into the sloped site to preserve the flat part of the site for a garden of native trees and shrubs.