LAMAS filled out an existing niche in the thick wall of the sunroom with a custom built-in for vinyl.

Two art studios adjoin a central volume at this work/live residence built from terracreto (sustainable concrete), glass, and painted steel just outside of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Residents Austin and Lida Lowrey, retired design and museum professionals, collaborated with their two daughters—Sheridan, an artist, and Elizabeth, an architect—to design the structure as a place for creative contemplation.

The floor tiles are close matches to the originals, which had to be replaced after a pipe burst.

The concrete wall behind the porch provides a backdrop for the wood stove and privacy from the road.

The family room is situated at the apex of the house, with picturesque views that extend up the meticulously landscaped north slope. The concrete floor sits just low enough that the main elements of the scene—the succulent garden and large limestone ledges—are at eye level. A bank of NanaWall folding windows breaks up the fourth wall.

A bathroom is tucked beside the new sunroom behind the sliding barn door, which was found at Albany Architectural Salvage.

The screened porch functions as the building’s primary bedroom, creating a cabin-like experience.

The backyard sports a sequence of raised flower and vegetable beds and two green roofs—one atop the workshop and other atop the back entrance.

This room can be a family room, office, or guest suite. The flooring is the same throughout: Riva Floors, Engineered Wood Select Grade, in Crystal Thunder, and the couch is from Restoration Hardware. Unseen is the foosball and ping pong tables.

The sitting room.

Designed by Stockholm firm Waldemarson Berglund Arkitekter, this prefab artist studio called Ateljé 25 is shaped like a Monopoly house, serves as an artist’s studio and has simple plywood interiors and massive skylights.

Another view of the finished coop.

Helsinki architect Ville Hara and designer Linda Bergroth collaborated on a prefab shed-meets-sleeping cabin, which can be assembled with little else than a screwdriver. Bergroth, inspired by nomadic yurt dwellers, wanted an indoor/outdoor experience for her property in Finland.

The coffee table, red Memorex video ball TV, and red Mercer candlestick phone are all thrift store finds. The ceiling fan from Modern Fan Company is contemporary, but matches the retro aesthetic.

A spacious deck and large glass doors allow for seamless indoor/outdoor living.

The space is designed for easy indoor-outdoor access.

Architect Tamira Sawatzky used Ikea components—one-inch Lagan butcher block countertops and inexpensive Ekby Lerberg brackets—when designing the bookshelves along the living room wall in the home/studio he designed for himself and his wife in Toronto.

GrafoMap allows you to search around the world and apply a filter to the desired map. The result is a graphic poster ready to be hung up in your home.

View into the rooftop greenhouse with its outdoor kitchen and pedal bin from Vipp.

The residence receives all-day sun, which is particularly captivating when bathing the rooftop area in a late afternoon golden glow.

Jocie designed the custom built-in bench. A vintage Moroccan wedding blanket is paired with a vintage rug from Graham’s grandparents and two pillows from Block Shop Textiles.

An old unused garage in this San Francisco family home is turned into a “box suffused with light” just a short distance from the main house, where family members can escape to meditate, relax or get creative.

The new interior includes a meditation room with an Isamu Noguchi lamp, flooring made of tatami mats, and a Murphy bed for visitors.

The simple finishes provide a backdrop for the homeowners’ collection of carefully curated furnishings, many of which are vintage (and, yes, cozy). One partner is a graphic designer, and she brought her own strong design sensibilities to the project. “She likes contrast, black and white, and bold color,” says Cuppett.

For the time being, Cori does her painting in the dining room. “Eventually we’ll build a studio here,” she says. “But for now, because we eat outside most of the time, the dining room it is.”

Music is one of the family's passions, and this barn was built with family jam sessions in mind.

The meditation studio features a view of the property through black-stained slats.

Inspired by a French farmhouse, this rustic she shed features multi-pane French doors, exposed roof rafters and joists, and earthy terra cotta floor tiles. With its wide-plank wood cladding sitting on gray stone foundations, this shed looks as though it has been around for centuries, but also has a simple, modern sensibility.

Out in rural Oregon, a she shed was constructed almost entirely of old multi-pane windows that the owner was able to reuse from local construction projects. Since cross-ventilation was a priority, more than two-thirds of the windows can be opened. The wide-plank wood floors help continue to bring the outdoors in, and minimal interior furniture and finishes keep this space comfortable for meditation.

A covered walkway provides a sheltered passage between the main house and studio. The fire pit is used during social gatherings.

A baby-blue George Mulhauser Plycraft lounge chair and plants make this a cozy nook for reading and relaxing.

To the south, a small soaking pool sits outside Austin’s studio, where he’ll often lie and meditate: “I’m a great floater, and can look at the clouds for an hour everyday,” he says. The adjacent wall was coated with smooth sand plaster finish to accommodate video and film projections by night.

Work It “We wanted to open up the back of the house, but there’s nothing to look at,” says Dana. “So we decided to put something in our yard as a focal point, to create our own view.” The architects came up with a glass-walled studio, which Dana uses as her home office. The architects mounted a steel I-beam that spans the yard, with holes drilled at eight-inch intervals for maximum flexibility of use. Right now it’s used for Ikea play equipment, but later they plan to hang a hammock and a movie screen. ikea.com

The meditation room overlooks a nearby hilltop in one of the clients' favorite views, framed by floor-to-ceiling glass windows.

In the sunroom, Clara designed a custom bookcase to span the length of the space.