A PK 22 Easy Chair by Poul Kjaerholm for Fritz Hansen adds a dash of yellow to the breakfast room.

It might not make you popular with your contractor, but for a more streamlined look, Chris recommends forgoing trim. "It lends a clean look with less visual clutter," the architect says. In their house, the doors, lights, cabinetry, and even wall sockets (all 22 by Bocci) are installed without trim. This allows the planar surfaces to recede and do their jobs without unnecessarily distracting the eye.

Abutting a costal reserve, the property has uninterrupted views of the Snowy River and surrounding wetlands

The curved blue kitchen larder has a projecting “nose” that illuminates the worktop and a mirrored eye that “winks” each time the door is opened.

The green backsplash tiles are vintage, reclaimed from another project.

The ladder-like staircase was designed as a modern, whimsical addition to an otherwise midcentury-focused design. "I use it as a drying rack,

Marble is a beautiful natural material—but one of our industry experts thought it received too much attention in 2022.

Bocci's 22 Series offers stealthy electrical, cable, USB, and phone outlets.

The three arms of the Apfel House stretch out to catch the best views of Ranco Lake and the Andes Mountains.

Mary and Kundan Bhullar built a shipshape country escape that sits lightly on the land in the Aravalli hills near Gurgaon, India.

The Armadillo is parked on a 1,000-square-foot lot that gives the couple ample outdoor space.

"Also check the basement for radon in the winter,” she says. “Radon levels tend to be higher when it’s cold, and if you have to trench the floor, it is better to do it before you fill your basement with stuff.”

Both cabins are elevated on wooden pillars about 260 feet above sea level.

The side walls have been treated as vertical extension of the horizontal surface of the garden, and are used for growing climbers such as jasmine, grapes, honeysuckle, raspberries, beans, peas, and even a climbing fig. Colorful bird’s houses and bug hotels are also mounted on the walls.

“Every time you challenge a basic assumption, there needs to be some method of expressing the fact that there’s new logic at work.”—Omer Arbel, creative director at Bocci

PeaceBOMB Bracelets by Article 22 "A22PeaceBomb3" $38.00 for three A special product with a special story. PeaceBOMB bracelets are crafted from the reclaimed metal of Vietnam-era bombs dropped on Laos during the United States' conflict in Indochina. Developed through a social enterprise that supports sustainable development through design thinking, its collaborators include Naphia spoon makers, Helvetas’s Rural Income Through Sustainable Energy Project and ARTICLE 22. These bracelets not only represent an opportunity for artisan families to generate income, but also tell a story about their makers and the legacies of a shared history. Buy the bombs back!"

Inspirational spaces

Since the home is something of a pied-à-terre for the clients, its design is geared more toward short-term stays than full-time living. That means spaces like the kitchen are set up for entertaining. Notice the curve on the cabinetry, counter, and backsplash, which is Calacatta Macchia Vecchia marble. All of the appliances are from Fisher & Paykel, and the wall sconce is a Gabriel Scott single Welles pendant in smoked glass and brushed brass.

A painting by Yael hangs near the Murphy bed in the make-shift guest sleeping quarters.

The D-Fin House gets its name from a loft space that projects from the main level like the skeg of a vintage surfboard. Owner Mitch Marks uses the area as an office. Steely designed the pine bookcase, and the Eames Group chair is from Herman Miller. A Haiku ceiling fan from Big Ass Fans ushers in fresh air and cool seaside breezes.

The living room is dubbed the "Ladies Who Lunch" room. Benjamin Moore’s Chippendale Rosetone covers the walls, in rich contrast to the preserved wood ceiling, and a medley of vintage furnishings fills out the space. The rug is from IKEA and the chandelier is Schoolhouse Electric.

The home features silent and cozy radiant floor heating—a very forward-thinking feature—and there is not a single heating vent or visible outlet in sight.

One of the home's bathrooms features wallpaper from Etsy retailer AwallonDesign.

The spaces are harmoniously linked by color and material palette. In the dining area, the round travertine table mirrors the paper lanterns by Isamu Noguchi suspended above, and vintage cane Cesca Chairs by Marcel Breuer completes the warm tableau.

The new addition is spanned by a sliding glass door to the kitchen, bringing in much more natural light and creating easy flow between inside and out. The owners especially appreciate how the new deck is at grade with the exterior door for a seamless transition, making the kitchen feel “a part of the garden,” says the homeowner.

The shower room and WC on the lower ground floor is accessed via the utility room, which also features counters by Smile Plastics.

The pink bench enclosure with blue upholstered cushions is a place for the family to nestle and relax. The large mint-green table in the dining area is from Artiform’s Palladio range, and the large yellow Strom jug was designed by Nicholai Wiigh Hansen for Raawii.

Anna and Jakob Busch enlist the help of loved ones to construct a spruce-wrapped tiny home for $35,000.

This kitchen features a sleek Henrybuilt kitchen system in white.

On a rocky bank, Hebra Arquitectos builds a breezy home that opens wide to nature.

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.

The kitchen island is nine-and-a-half feet long, made possible by knocking down non-load-bearing walls and enlarging the room’s footprint. The island is “much larger than what most people would do in that space, because it's not that large of a space, but knocking down those walls and going with a large island makes the kitchen feel a lot more grand,” says Devlin.