Loft

The staircase leads to the living area upstairs.

Warm Front Auckland’s climate is relatively mild, but Davor and Abbe decided not to scrimp on insulation, installing fiberglass batts with R-values above building code requirements in the ceiling and the walls. This, combined with the home’s concrete floor (with standard polystyrene insulation) that retains solar heat, means Davor and Abbe only use their New Zealand–made wood-burning Warmington Studio fireplace in the coldest months. warmington.co.nz All of the Lights Davor and Abbe created their striking living-room lights—colored cords with exposed bulbs—by calling on a number of different suppliers to put together a look that suits their home’s pared-down aesthetic. The cord for their electrical cables is from Frinab in Sweden, and they teamed the lights with stainless-steel switch plates by Forbes & Lomax sourced through Abbe’s site, Piper Traders. frinab.se forbesandlomax.com pipertraders.co.nz

The residents now occupy two floors of the same West Village apartment where the previously lived below. A cantilevered staircase connects the two levels. Photo by Howie Guja Styling by Gorilla Styling

The stairs up to the loft were a happy mistake, the result of an errant delivery of the wrong type of plywood. The improvised staircase was one of many on-the-fly creations that made this such an exciting project, according to Langston-Jones.

When not in use as the headboard, the large redwood slab folds down to become a desk.

Modern Loft with Designer Halfpipe (Los Angeles, USA) While the colorful, green-and-pink accents in this mid-century styled loft demand attention, it’s hard for any furniture to overshadow the working half-pipe in the center of the 1,500-square-foot loft in Boyle Heights. While the outdoor patio and BBQ, accessible by a large roll-up door, strongly suggests grilling and evenings drinks al fresco, you may want to bring your deck just in case. Listing at LA - Large Creative Skate Loft!

Designer Paola Navone transformed a 200-year-old factory in Umbria into an inviting home for Andrea Falkner-Campi and her husband. Once a tobacco-drying plant, and before that a silkworm farm, the home sits 90 miles north of Rome.

The Tower House is made up of tiny houses, clustered at the southern end of the property and clad in white steel panels and western red cedar shingles. Spinning off the living room on the north side of the main house, the children’s study sits separate from the other pavilions. On its upper level, Oxley netting forms a web on which the kids and their friends can sit and read with views of the leafy street and garden.

Concrete stairs leading up to a sleeping loft are illuminated with wall sconces.

Indoor Sunbathing“In the morning, the eastern light comes into the small terrace by the kitchen,” De Smedt says. “If I have work to do at home, which I do a lot, I’ll sit at the dining table and just look out. And in the summer, I’m out on the terrace. On clear nights, I’ll head upstairs. There’s a skylight and you can see the stars. Even in the city, you totally can! The skylight really changes the condition of the interior. If you light that gap in the evening from the outside, it’s as if there is daylight.” The Inconstant Gardener“I have a lot of cacti, which is probably because I don’t have a green thumb,” admits De Smedt of his sculptural flora. Inspired perhaps by his neighbors’ greenhouse just across from his patio, the architect’s next project for the apartment involves turning the terrace into something of an oasis—as long as the plants are hardy. “I have an idea to grow some ivy.”

Futuristic floating stairs lead to the loft’s mezzanine. Throughout the lower level, natural stone was chosen for the flooring, laid at an irregular angle to add visual interest.

This open-concept Amsterdam loft features soaring 15-foot ceilings, an Eames lounge chair and ottoman, and a Jielde light. Throughout the home, Standard Studio architects Wouter Slot and Jurjen van Hulzen favored raw materials, including concrete, oiled oak, and hot-rolled steel, all of which complemented the original space's industrial feel. Tucked smartly underneath the loft, a compact home office features functional built-in shelving and an Eames DSR chair.

Connected to the kitchen by a flight of stairs, the bar features cohesive custom fittings and furniture by Eginstill. Each living area flows freely into the next, in effort to “make the space as open as possible, just like it used to be when it was a sugar refinery” says van Hulzen. “We wanted to [return] the building to its old glory.”