Urban Colonial

Inspired by the small scale of Japanese residences—in particular, Makoto Masuzawa’s 1952 Minimum House—architect Andrew Simpson designed his own economical 538-square-foot home set into a wooded site in Island Bay, a coastal suburb outside Wellington, New Zealand.

These initiatives on state ballots will decide questions about rent control, property tax, and urban development.

Concerned about the chemicals involved in laminate flooring, the couple chose to leave the concrete slab, the foundation of the home, exposed, almost eliminating flooring expenses. A local craftsman made the windows, using Texas pine for framing. The floor-to-ceiling windows, Pavonetti says, reduces the couple's need for lights.

The exterior features vertical, untreated cedar panels. “We tried to use materials that are beautiful in their natural state without excessive treatment or finishing,” Pavonetti says.

The streamlined shape of the home kept slab, framing, and roofing costs down, Pavonetti explains. A barn red shade on the front door adds a touch of farmhouse whimsy to the modern structure.

This "local prefab" home on the Isle of Skye is made mostly from materials sourced in northern Scotland. The timber-framed model, meant to evoke the simple agrarian barns of the area, can be constructed on-site in as little as a day and is designed for affordability.

The two structures are in constant dialogue. Not only are their forms in sympathy, but as they're set at right angles to one another, they are rarely out of view.

The Shed - The construction method is an exercise in celebrating the logic and clarity of prefabrication. Conceived as a kit of parts, the elegant building’s steel frame combines modular wall components, roof trusses, and battens, all of which were assembled on site and clad with a rain-screen of White Oak taken from the property. #missouri