Vignettes show off what Aumas does best. In this one, he takes advantage of the apartment’s tall windows.

Just up a ladder is the green roof, which is planted with maintenance-free sedums and tall grasses near the patio that Monkman tends carefully.

The modern fireplace is located at the original chimney stack of the building. Robb Studio created a sculptural fireplace using exposed concrete, steel, and shou sugi ban wood for the hearth seat.

The door to Eoghan Mahony’s office is set on a caster and has a hinge that runs the entire ten-foot height.

Intended for a much bigger room in the family’s previous home, the bed was designed by Hill and is covered in Maharam fabric in a doily print called Intricate 001 Charcoal. The side tables are from West Elm, and the AJ table lamp is by Arne Jacobsen for Louis Poulsen.

McMinn, an architect, helps Soren construct a TinkerToy tower. The cowhide rug is from Perfect Leather Goods, and the Wassily Chair is by Marcel Breuer for Knoll.

Designed by Jagoda, the door swings open to fit in front of a bookshelf.

The combination of high ceilings and a cathedral-style design add character to the kitchen area. Photo by Mariko Reed.

The sofa is from Cantoni, the rug is from Restoration Hardware, and the Tolomeo floor lamp is by Michele De Lucchi for Artemide. The large windows in the background and throughout the house are from Western Window Systems.

Friederike Hamann (Berlin, Germany) Hollander was rarely surprised by people’s homes, and they rarely changed her image of who these friends are or would be. “There are all of these alarmist headlines about how people online aren't who they are in real life, that they ‘curate’ personas,” she says. “But we all curate in real life as well.”

To highlight the views and avoid clutter in a multipurpose space, the van Bolderen brothers, in cooperation with Originele Staat interior design firm, used stainless steel countertops and added screenprinted Dibond aluminum plates to the standard kitchen cabinetry. The window frames are by MHB.

"I won’t take the job if I can’t be real with myself in order to get it done," Hasui says.

The unusually tall shingles on the original house give it some of that Eastern feel, and Simonen, Parco, and Kaefer nodded to Esherick by giving the siding on the pavilion a similar horizontal orientation.

This tall hand-welded steel room divider can be used as either a room divider or bookcase. Having four fixed shelves at varying heights, this unit opens up space in any room and creates visual interest with its slim vertical supports.

The tall pilsner is a good two inches taller than the tulip stem, but features a slender body, set of two available for $24.90 here.

A view of Church and Jett's lush yard.

In the kitchen, custom walnut cabinetry and Caesarstone counters are paired with Bertoia stools and Ikea pendant lamps.

The small pool at the top of the landing provides the family with a place to cool off.

Drawing inspiration from the beauty of the natural world, the undulating shape of each Aalto vase alludes to the untamed shorelines of Finland's thousands of lakes. The fluid aesthetic reaffirms the deep connection between man and nature, while making a statement against the failure of industrial production to meet universal human needs. The Aalto Finlandia Vase is decidedly sculptural, making it as much a striking visual accent when left empty on a tabletop or shelf as when it is filled with freshly cut flowers. Each Aalto Vase is mouthblown in the Iittala glass factory and is designed to mimic the water that it contains, creating a distinctive and artistic accent piece.

A 24-foot-high cabinet that begins on the entrance plaza continues inside, running the length of the lobby. "The cabinets create a familiar atmosphere for everyone: a 'home away from home’ for our guests," Vermeulen says. "They're filled with art for inspiration, accessories from all over the world, books, TVs, and more." An Eames Elephant and La Chaise chair for Vitra provide one of the lobby's many seating spaces. Photo by Adrian Gaut.

In the hallway outside the bedroom, custom eight-foot-tall brich doors acutally pivot at their centerpoint.

Sunlight streams through tall glass panels into the kitchen and living area, while on the opposite wall, a high band of windows top built-in storage, a window seat, and a pizza oven. Photo by Ron Johnson.

A view of the exterior of the structure, showing the two families' separate living spaces anchored by a single broad porch.

The kitchen features a sink from Kohler, a faucet by Brizo, and a cooktop from Wolf. The tiles are by Everstone. Courtesy of Richard Leo Johnson / Atlantic Archives Inc.

Their parents’ seldom-needed stuff (luggage, winter clothes) is stashed in the higher cabinets. “Believe it or not, we have empty cabinets,” says Nikolova. “There’s space for everything.”

A tall steel gate grants entry to the courtyard.

Architects Jared Levy and Gordon Stott of Connect:Homes in Los Angeles will talk onstage about the prefab home they built for a client’s octogenarian mother in a third of the time—and at a third of the cost—of a conventionally built home. The project is featured in the June 2014 issue. Photo by Joe Fletcher.

Designing two narrow bathrooms–one with an encroaching concrete retaining wall—required major creativity. A wall-mounted Duravit Starck toilet was a big space saver, as was the four-foot-long Kohler soaking tub, a foot shorter than the standard size. duravit.com kohler.com ikea.com

Soaring ceilings and classic modern furniture define the interior spaces.

The Stance single control tall lavatory faucet by Kohler

The original Field Office.

A tall custom niche displays various tabletop items Sottsass designed for the brands Habitat, Memphis, Egizia, and Anthologie Quartett.

Scale was an important design factor. "We wanted it to be flexible," Laurie says. "It's scaled down for a child but is also tall enough so an adult can walk in it." The height between the floor of the lower platform and its ceiling is six feet—so taller adults do still need to duck slightly, but most can make it through. "Kids are small for a very short time and then they grow up and go to college and you're left with this structure," she says. "We wanted it to have a use after they're gone." Pictured here is Laurie and Peter's daughter Emily.Photograph courtesy of Laurie Stubb.

On the second floor, Larissa's office space looks over the workshop via a 20-foot-tall glass-enclosed shaft that lets lights in and accommodates behemoth projects.

Two branches of a 20-foot-tall poplar spiral around one another.