Small Spaces

Tucked away from street view, the OCM House runs east to west to optimize north-facing views of the lawn and garden. The home is designed to embrace the outdoors and is within walking distance of rivers and beautiful beaches.

The exterior of the home showcases its measured simplicity. "It looks like it lands lightly on the ground,

The back patio and fire-pit area are central entertaining spaces. When the weather is nice, homeowner Joan and Ken wheel their dining room table outside for parties and dinners with friends. The fire pit was built using a steel cut-off from a natural gas tank.

The winglike dips in the roofline situate and hold the house against the region’s brutal winds. As the outdoor chairs attest, lifestyles here pass easily between inside and out; a long hike and a good swim are always just steps away

Borrassá by Peris + Toral Arquitectes holds 54 social housing units in Barcelona’s Besòs district.

Client, Marianne, and architect, Binke Lendhardt, one of the founders of Crossboundaries, met in Beijing 15 years ago through mutual friends. When she bought the boat, Marianne wanted to bridge Eastern and Western concepts of design and so approached Crossboundaries. In keeping with this approach, the boat is named Fàng Sōng 放松—which translates from Chinese into “Relax!”—representing a link to Marianne’s life and experiences in China.

“Where we let loose was on the window,” Matt says. “It’s an aluminium window frame, which is bushfire compliant and easy to install, but the way that we detailed it was about hiding the frame so that the eye is drawn into the space.”

A view of the sauna building before the patio and seating were constructed on the other side. The log cabins were constructed by a specialist company, and another builder helped with the interior walls. Jussi-Pekka and his father did all the other building and landscaping work, apart from the electrical and plumbing—often working 12-hour days.

Unsure of how to light under the loft, Monica turned to a friend from the gym who works in lighting design. He helped her with the design, the installation, and even gifted her materials.

Step by step, Georgina “Geo” Giner Gallardo and Zoe Barceló Vicedo converted a Lanzarote farm into a place to live, work, and surf.