Entrance to the VSA Partners office in Chicago. The branding firm was founded in 1982 by Robert Vogele and works with companies such as IBM and Harley-Davidson.

VSA Partners' office. Ikin noted plenty of trends in office layout during her time in Chicago, including the emphasis on smaller rooms for collaboration

VSA Partners's office. Ikin says the firm chose the space and let designers organically figure out the layout and workflow.

Purple thistles, California poppies, clover, and dandelions have all taken root in the roughly 10-inch-deep, lightweight humus and grape-husk soil in this 580-square-foot green roof. Designer Peter Liang says that he "wanted to plant a green roof for its thermal mass, but I wanted it to be as natural as possible."

Suzanne and Brooks Kelley at the back of their 1,100-square-foot guest cottage.

The owners toured this home, which surrounds a mature tipu tipu tree, while visiting relatives for the day. The brick is original to the 1947 construction.

Sliding doors by Quantum were made to look like the original panes that couldn't be saved, and they lead to a fire pit outside.

The view!

At the top of the stairwell, a sitting area is outfitted with a vintage Eames lounge, a large Jack Goldstein painting, and a 1970s light fixture found by Marcovitz in Paris.

The kitchen features a concrete island topped with marble. Deja-Vu stools by Naoto Fukasawa surround the island. A print by Guy Gormley, as well as a painting bought during holiday in St. Tropez, hang on the walls.

For the interior of the Stanwood residence, Logan returned to his minimalist palette of color and materials. The Stanwoods took particular zeal in furnishing the living area with a number of pieces from Limn in San Francisco, including a pair of B&B Italia chairs and a custom rug from Ligne Roset.

Take a look at some of the most exciting, sustainable buildings around the world, and you may notice something they have in common: green roofs, or rooftops covered with a thin layer of soil to allow for grasses and other low-lying plants to grow.

New Depths Inspired by a local winery, George Kyprianou wanted a glass top on his subterranean wine cellar. The interior is lit, casting soft light into the living space at night and revealing the 132-year-old stone foundation. The three-quarter-inch glass lid sits flush with the floorboards; it opens with an ingenious device that Kyprianou devised using a 12-volt air compressor and a remote-controlled switch. When you push the button, the glass lifts just enough to be removed by hand.

In the office are Metropolitan chairs by Jeffrey Bernett for B&B Italia. Most artwork hung throughout the house comes from Sette’s art gallery.

Light Box Peter created a simple uplight at the top of the wood box by wiring together energy-efficient fluorescent fixtures typically used under cabinets and countertops. “The cheaper magnetic models hum unacceptably loudly, so make sure you get the electronic ballast types,” he warns. He then painted the cavity white to reflect light and covered them with quarter-inch-thick acrylic from TAP Plastics. homedepot.com tapplastics.com

The view of Kapiti Island is fully revealed from the tower.

Chairs made from the seats of a Ferrari BB 512 face the tower’s large window, which overlooks the sea

The top container contains Wardell's office—and a "napping nook" above that.

In the dining area, a one-of-a-kind table with a reclaimed Carrara marble top by NET—themultidisciplinary design firm of architect Alejandro Sticotti, with whom Nicolas works—is surrounded by prototypes of the company’s Board chair. The family dog, China, sits on a floor made of travertine tiles.

The focus of the renovation was the kitchen, where the textures of tiles and brickwork play backdrop to considered, bespoke carpentry.

The architects added a small circular skylight to serve as a vertical focal point in the center of the fifth floor. The quarter-sawn white oak risers produce a beautiful rippled grain highlighted by the abundant natural light.

The Kelleys furnished the cottage with help from Suzanne’s daughter Betsy Burbank of Betsy Burbank Interiors. Classic modernist icons, such as a Saarinen Womb chair for Knoll, a Herman Miller Eames lounge chair, and an Eileen Grey E1027 side table look at home alongside present-day pieces such as an Encore sofa (which handily folds down into a sleeping surface) from Room & Board and a Doka rug designed and produced by Stephanie Odegard. The Wohlert pendant lights from Louis Poulsen were designed by Vilhelm Wohlert in 1959, but grouped as such, they appear distinctly contemporary.

A third-floor office, furnished with a Metropolitan chair by Jeffrey Bennett for B&B Italia, opens onto a deck that overlooks the backyard.

An Arco floor lamp from Flos arches over a Bend sofa by Patricia Urquiola for B&B Italia. A pair of Low Pad chairs by Jasper Morrison and a Sunset chair by Christophe Pillet, all for Cappellini, are arranged around a set of Pebble coffee tables by Ligne Roset.

An Alcova bed from B&B Italia dominates the master bedroom. A niche behind the bed holds Berenice wall lamps by Luceplan, and the walls are painted in Cornforth White and Charleston Gray from Farrow & Ball.

Unveiled at 2013 Salone del Mobile, the new Husk table by Patricia Urquiola for B&B Italia features a copper tray atop die-cast legs.

The yellow North Face tent looms over the top of the main building.

Yvette, Adrian, and their son Julian survey the view from the top-floor terrace. “I’ve never been fond of modernism—I find it cold,” Adrian admits. “But having this house, I have to say, it’s growing on me.”

Still, it’s possible to remove or relocate non-structural walls in a home with good bones.

The master bedroom occupies a private space on the top floor.

A Nelson jewelry cabinet and Massimo Vignelli lamp.

The Piranesian view upwards through the central stair to the top floor skylight.

Wes Mahony lounges on a Tufty-Time sofa by Patricia Urquiola for B&B Italia in the family room that architect Emily Jagoda created for his family in their tree-damaged garage in Santa Monica.

The Reel ottoman by B&B Italia is durable enough for outdoor use and refined enough for interiors.

Integral glass counter and sink top