A collection of flea-market finds and personal keepsakes sit perched upon a shelf in Austin’s studio.

A couple takes a minimalist approach to their Brooklyn apartment, focusing on supple materials, subtle gradations of color, and custom finishes by local craftsmen. The Mandayam–Vohra family gathers under one of Workstead’s signature three-arm chandeliers, shown here in its horizontal configuration. Bartenschlager designed the white cabinets and is responsible for the walnut counters both on the kitchen island and near the stove.

At a design-focused mansion in Belgium, the soaring atrium is home to a jacaranda high board from the 1960s, a chrome and glass lamp from Italy, a black leather chair and footstool by Sergio Rodrigues, a Berber rug, and a pair of photographs by the Brazilian artist Luiz Braga.

2011: Peter Zumthor Wrapped in stark, black wood, Swiss architect Peter Zumthor’s Serpentine scheme presented a frame for Piet Oudolf’s lush garden, a use of color and space that manages to create a secret garden in an already outdoor space. Photograph © 2011 Walter Herfst

A home in Krisel's Kings Point development, an 11-acre site off of the Canyon Country Club golf course that was designed in the early 1960s.

Often a designer or client may start their search in an inspirational place like a showroom or a project they love and admire. Showrooms are spaces (and sometimes entire stores) that are used to display goods for sale by specific companies.

Power House High This structural reboot of a former power plant now has a much different purpose. Another post-industrial, LEED Platinum-certified showpiece, this century-old structure, which once housed rows of massive coal burners that provided all the power for Sears, Roebuck & Company's 55-acre corporate headquarters (as well as the air pressure for the pnuematic mail tubes), now boasts a pair of charter schools.

Ocotillo was placed in key areas as a great structural focal point.

Looking from the open-plan dining area, through the kitchen to to the new living space, one gets views of the tree canopy through a high-level band of frameless glazing.

ISAM with Amon Tobin (2011) V-Squared Labs and Leviathan created this cutting-edge concert setup, which surrounds the Brazilian-born producer and DJ with real-time projection mapping and generative imagery. Image courtesy of Calder Wilson

Hundreds attended the kick-off party at New Center Park for the inaugural Detroit Design Festival in 2011. Photo by Noah Stephens.

Riga High-Rises Z-Towers (NRJA, 2004-2015); Preses nams (Jānis Vilciņš, Ābrams Misulovins, 1978); Saules akmens (ZENICO PROJEKTS, TECTUM, 2002-2004). Photo by: Uldis Lukševics, NRJA

In Breezy Point, Queens, one of the communities hit hardest by Superstorm Sandy, Azaroff's +LAB architects raised a damaged home to avoid future floodwater.

The Lifted House has been used by the Department of City Planning as a case study for resilient renovations.

The open plan, high ceilings, and white walls all amplify the light that streams into the living room, accented with a Barcelona Couch by Mies van der Rohe for Knoll and two Blythe Pony Cube ottomans by Gus Design.

The defining feature of this lakeside cabin in northern Idaho is a 30-by-20-foot window wall that opens the living area to the surrounding lake and forest. Concrete blocks, steel, and plywood make up the simple palette of materials.

High windows on the east and west façades catch the sunrise and sunset, increasing light within the home. “They’re very simple and lo-fi,” Larsen says.

In Japan Style we explore the proliferation of Japanese design and how it's been folded into the story of modernism. Our cover story is actually in San Diego, and we hit a Japanese-inspired home in Edinburgh, Scotland too. Photo by: Daniel Hennessy

Untitled. From series "Funktionsorte," 2011.

Using i.design EFFIX, a high performance material conceived by Italcementi, Luca Galbusera designed a table centerpiece for outdoor use. Luca Galbusera, winner of the Concrete Design International Competition, will show work as part of Alessi's Design Lab exhibit at WantedDesign.

Inspiration for the new season, Garden Furniture 2011, shot by Petra Bindel for Elle Interior.

In our 2011 small spaces issue we checked out the home of a pair of design-savvy Portlanders. And in the cover story we check out a small New York spot remade with 36 commercial doors. Photo by: Nicholas Calcott

And don’t miss the inviting headquarters and shop of reigning royalty when it comes to fashionable Icelandic wool sweaters. They’re called Farmers Market, and their studio at the very end of the peninsula is worth the trek. Photo by: Tiffany Orvet

Dacor products suit tech-savvy home cooks. The Discovery Dual Range oven wirelessly connects to a tablet via the brand's iQ app for a customizable kitchen experience.

Tangent Vase by High Gloss, $90 Handmade to order in Brooklyn, this asymmetrical vase features a raw speckle and a luscious, almond-dipped glaze.

Plans for the QueensWay call for turning an inaccessible area at its northern end into a small park featuring a playground and rain gardens to reduce flooding in heavy rain.

At Elevation After hiking nearly 20km through steep terrain, Syangboche was a very welcome sight. I’ve experienced high-altitude hiking before when I summited Kilimanjaro, but in Mustang, with elevations reaching 15,000 feet, it was definitely a new and challenging experience. I often had to stop to catch my breath along the path.

An inaccessible, overgrown space on Yellowstone Boulevard could become an access point to the QueensWay, with seating, landscaped plantings, and a small play area and garden.

High Tide Shelving System.

Jeffrey Shumaker, chief urban designer for the New York City Department of City Planning, calls out the High Line, the wildly popular public park built on an elevated abandoned railway, as an example of cities seeing potential in underutilized spaces. "As delegations from other cities and countries visit the High Line, they always ask, 'How can we create our own High Line?' The answer I always give is the same: Think of something that's unique to your place, some place that's embedded in the fabric of your city that can have a similarly transformative effect," he says.

The viaduct between Atlantic and Liberty avenues in Ozone Park will feature new walkways, seating areas, and a bike bath.

A rendering of the QueensWay as it would appear near Metropolitan Avenue. Supporters say the QueensWay would provide safe walkways and bike paths for easier access to shopping areas and Forest Park, in addition to creating outdoor learning areas for three nearby schools.

Recreation areas would be added atop the QueensWay's elevated section, while pathways would connect commuters to the A subway line.

The QueensWay would run below grade for nearly a mile through Forest Park. Currently overgrown and unused, this section, called the ravine, would provide opportunities for year-round recreation.

Gunnar Knechtel Photography, Italy, Sicily, Town: Syracuse, Island of Ortigia. The house of Francesco Moncada.The market of Syracuse, photographed on the 27+28,12.2010 for Dwell Magazine