Renovations

The upstairs showers are particularly ingenious: Operable skylights loom above, and perforated, galvanized-steel platforms open up to spacious, sunken bathtubs.

For this tiny house in the Belgian forest, a little extra square footage comes in the form of a glassed-in addition with a stellar view. The added space is home to an office.

Agustín Hernandez's home office.

Regain focus and boost your productivity—here, we walk you through seven steps to soundproofing your home office.

Rocks that were unearthed while digging the foundation make up the hardscape in the rear, beyond the open porch. “It’s one of my favorite parts of the house,” says resident Laura Sohn. Sanders Pace Architecture finished the exterior in western red cedar treated with Sikkens Cetol.

Johnsen oriented the building vertically to minimize the amount of grading and landscaping necessary for construction.

The 1,500-square-foot cabin merges traditional and modern, and the couple's mutual desire to balance comfort with the bare necessities, living lightly on the land while fully engaging with their surroundings. Photo by Shai Gil.

“There had been two or three primitive cabins on the property in the past, which resulted in a clearing that we utilized for the site,” Joseph Herrin says. “This allowed us to avoid any further tree removal for construction, and provided an opportunity to begin to restore that portion of the property with native landscaping.”

The House for a Musher is all about taking advantage of its hilltop site. The courtyard in the front has vast views and the house itself is oriented toward the surrounding landscape.

The hideaway grows darker as residents move through the space toward the bedroom. The only light in the sleeping space enters indirectly from the nearby glass façade, as well as from a small ventilation window in the northern corner.

The house's ceiling was hewn from Douglas fir, which gives off a warm glow. The rafters were designed to emulate the look of strong ceiling beams.

The house is divided into three sections connected by a series of outdoor galleries. “When I walk from one room to another, I have to go outdoors and feel the weather and nature—rain, cold, and sun,” says Sævik. Instead of emphasizing the expansive panorama of oak, pine, and aspen trees, the house frames select views—a move inspired by Japanese design.

superrkül dubbed this project the Stealth Cabin because it's hidden in the landscape and will continue to recede in view over time. Photo by Shai Gil.

“They wanted the new cabin to make a ‘L’ shape with the older cabin, but I convinced them to mimic the old cabin on the opposite side,” architect D’Arcy Jones says. “So the new site has two buildings across from each other, like an equal sign.” Birch trees grow between the cabins in a shared courtyard.