Here's a detail shot of the stool. The leather comes in four options—black, chocolate, tobacco, and saddle—and the brightly hued backing fabric comes in ten—sky, radish, egg yolk, cream, camel, charchol, sand, mocha, chocolate, and black.

I.M. Pei, Luce Memorial Chapel (1963) When architect I.M. Pei designed this chapel for Tunghai University in Taiwan, he had to take local conditions, like typhoons and earthquakes, into account. His plan, which, included a curved roof of glazed, diamond-shaped tiles and interior ribs of reinforced concrete that run like ribbons towards the cross mounted on the roof, was an elegant solution to the challenges of the local environment. Photo courtesy Valter Wei, Creative Commons

Architect Ulrich Hamann's rendering of the new addition to the Lenbachhaus Museum and Gallery; the Stadtische Galerie Im Lenbachhaus. Image courtesy of Lenbachhaus Gallery and Museum.

Broken, 2014. I.M. Pei's Fountain Place in Dallas, Texas, built in 1986. “He used angles, triangles, planes and prisms to create a seemingly impossible visual space with this building,” says Olic. “The view from the east makes the structure seem broken and folded down the middle.”

Because their loft is a rental, David and Im Schafer built everything to be removable.

"It is something that seems at home in the forest, but at the same time, it’s strikingly strange,” notes Kivi.

Inspirational spaces

Luce Memorial Chapel in Tunghai, Taiwan, 1963, by I.M. Pei.

Piet Hein Eek's wooden chairs add a touch of color to the monochromatic apartment. "I'm a fan of simple modern furniture, with a twist," says Carr. "I wanted to buy everything from Piet Hein Eek."

British artist Hannah Sawtell and technologist Avi Flombaum created sawbaum.com, where users can create visual collages using multiple vine streams. "We wanted it to look like a visual comic book, with overlapping panels," said Flombaum. "And we wanted it to be fun!" Photo courtesy Rhizome.

In the bathroom, they did "basically surface things," says Im.

“I don’t paint landscapes when I’m here because I can’t compete with the natural beauty,” says Yael.

A view into the airy, light-filled kitchen of 51 Nebraska by Todd Davis Architecture. The updated midcentury home pays homage to its roots.

“I studied architecture as an undergrad, and even though I’m in interiors now, that education of not overpopulating spaces, of letting the building be seamless, has always carried through for me,” says Caroline.

I'm not in the market for dolls these days, but I'll be damned if these plush gals from goodbyebluemonday weren't adorable.

One of the more understated of the series, I'm quite fond of the rough ropey texture against the leather.

Here's IM Pei's Meyerson Symphony Center done up for the holidays.

Since the photo shoot, the couple have placed a desk in the triangular window nook and use the perch as a workspace. “There’s just something about it that hugs you,” says Shelley. “I feel very focused and relaxed when I’m here.”

In this glass-enclosed master bedroom, a LC4 armchair faces the master bed. The moveable frame adjusts along the base, allowing the sitter to switch from upright to full recline, or lounge at a number of other sitting angles.

"I'm not trying to do anything new in my work," Spellman states. "I'm simply trying to do it in my own way, and I'm still figuring out what exactly 'my own way' is."

An aluminum bench harmonizes with the industrial nature of the galvanized-steel walls and the polished concrete floor.

Bestor consulting with her demolition crew, in her kitchen-to-be. I'm hoping to get Bestor blogging about her renovation on Dwell.com—so stay tuned for that!

I paint the bottom suspended magazine rack with a black matte paint. I sometimes paint with matte if it's what I have around and I'm going to varnish anyway.

Artist Christopher Florentino created this studio to be a source of inspiration. "This space is for me as an artist—to create in, to keep me inspired," he says. "I don’t think there are many spaces that have a Keith Haring and Shiro Kuramata chair in the same space. I’m trying to show who I am as a designer and as an artist."

Illustration Play 2 goes on sale September 6. For more information, visit victionary.com or gingkopress.com.

In the rear courtyard, Steve spent three days demolishing a rock grotto, which had been installed in the 1970s, with a jackhammer. Its boulders found new life as hardscaping near the pool. “I’m glad we could repurpose those boulders,” Jessy says, “I hate adding to landfill.”

I especially enjoyed the smaller tiles with the colorful, gasoline in water look to them, I'm sure they'd look beautiful in the sun.

Illustration via drawastickman.com.

The split-level roof deck was splendid. And the views of the city, which I'm taking in here, are pretty stellar too.

I’m not generally drawn to Piero Fornasetti’s designs but I did love these graphic suns from Ceramica Bardelli. The larger, Fornasettiana, is 8" x 8", and the smaller, from the Lunario Del Sole line, is 4” x 4”.

A couple enlist Butler Armsden Architects and Leverone Design to reimagine their home as a multigenerational meeting point. In 1963, landscape designer Lawrence Halprin devised a master plan for a community that would live in harmony with the natural environment. The resulting Sea Ranch, which stretches 10 miles along the Pacific coastline in Sonoma County, California, is characterized by timber-frame, wood-clad structures that are in dialogue with the local climate and terrain. Sited on a bluff within this pioneering community is the vacation home of a lawyer couple. After purchasing the residence in 2007, they lived in the home as it was for four years, even keeping the previous owners’ furniture. Envisioning a retreat that would accommodate their extended family and guests, they then recruited Butler Armsden Architects and Leverone Design to help guide the project.

Sleeping nooks that look like the grooves in a block of cheese.

Photo from blackandwtf.tumblr.com