Link (Austin, United States) Coworking guru Liz Elam, who founded Link as well as the League of Extraordinary Coworking Spaces, designed this collaboration hub with focus and results in mind. While the shared area of the office (pictured above) exudes color and energy, and is rearranged every week to inject a bit of randomness, other workspaces remain subdued. Desks are perpendicular to the windows to reduce glare, walls are kept white, and Elam made sure different work styles were respected. Half the space features low ceilings and white noise for introverts, while a louder, more open section is tailored to extroverts.

Hubud (Bali, Indonesia) Some might say they’re ruining paradise by installing high-speed internet. But if you can manage work-life balance, the all-bamboo interior of Hubud in Bali might be the perfect place for a work vacation or extended sabbatical. Built with sustainable materials, such as ironwood, the office boasts an airy environment with views of a rice field and volcano that most start-ups can’t beat.

Mutinere (Paris, France) “Free Together,” the rallying cry of this hip Parisian space, is fitting considering the meaning its founders attach to coworking as a solution to radical shifts in the economy. Science played a massive role in the design, specifically a Harvard Review article positing that proximity, privacy, and permission were the core values any space meant to incubate innovation should follow. Library-like alcoves encourage focus and practically hush those entering, while the open central space, with a massive skylight, begs to be filled with conversation and collaboration. Co-founder Antoine van den Broek says the space was co-created with users, using a lot of recycled materials to send the message that "you can do it differently."

Makers (Seattle, United States) A setting for ex-Microsoft employees and contractors in the Seattle area, Makers sets a social tone with an open space adorned with high ceilings, brick walls, and cement floors. The refurbished interior of this historic building boasts numerous upcycled features, such as desks made from an old middle school gym floor and sliding doors crafted from bleacher boards, that add up to a relaxed, open environment.

Studioverket (Stockholm, Sweden) This former strip club got a hip renovation by designers Per & Toki, featuring air bubble-patterned concrete walls and hanging gardens. The dark and shady entrance now leads to a light-infused workspace and music studio.

Laptop (Paris, France) Pauline Thomas, the founder of this creative homeroom in the Jourdain quarter, purposely bucked the sleek and sci-fi trend in favor of keeping the character and vintage charm of this former print shop. Flashes of blue, green, yellow, and red, along with work from local artists, contrast the dark, tailor-made desks from carpenter David Martin. “I wanted a serene and cozy place that gives people the mental space to find inspiration,” she says.

Their creative confections may ruin our diets, but we’re happy to be their taste testers anytime.

A 500-square-foot outdoor space with a grill, a table, and a hammock sits just off the entrance level of the townhouse, offering extra room for dining, relaxing, and entertaining. The corner couch is a custom piece inspired by the large cushions of Moroccan sofas. The Fermob table is paired with Hay Hee dining chairs by Hay.

A sliding barn door accesses the bathroom, where the Jungbauers installed a compost toilet and low-flow fixtures for the sink and the shower.

Sophia and Henry relax in the open-plan living area of their tiny home with their dog Cora, a Labrador retriever and Siberian husky mix.

NeueHouse (New York, United States) Housed within a renovated industrial space, NeueHouse incorporates touches from hospitality design to bring a clubbier edge to coworking. According to architect David Rockwell, he wanted to create a space that encouraged unlikely encounters. One of the centerpieces is a pier zone on the ground floor anchored in Spanish steps. Serving as a resting place during the day and amphitheater seating for events during the evening, it provides a crossroads for entrepreneurs to network and meet.

Davor (with his wife, Abbe, and son, August) designed the main living and dining pavilion as a double-height space to increase its perceived volume, and added high cubbies for extra storage.

The glass-enclosed master bedroom floats above the corrugated, oxidized steel exterior.

Wood decking extends out to the yard.

Amending Meeuwissen’s early request for an open bathroom space, the architects devised a more private chamber with an overhead skylight and walls in stone tile from Intercodam Tegels.

This dreamy, glass bedroom by the lake was created as an early prototype for the prefabricated greenhouse/she kits known as the Kekkilä Green Sheds.

A guest bedroom, with furniture from Room & Board, overlooks the bridge above the dining courtyard. The home’s landscape architecture is by Ventura, California–based Jack Kiesel. Photo by Coral von Zumwalt.

After - living room (Rubio monocoat floors, Chantilly lace walls, used fireplace)

A small, dilapidated 10' x 12' neighboring structure was brought back to life and is now used as an art studio and guest cottage with a Murphy bed. In total, the property can sleep 10 people comfortably.

Marco V. Morelli says his Studio Shed is the perfect refuge. “It’s changed my life for the better,” he says. “I’ve gotten so much more work done, and I think my marital relations are much better because I have a place of my own.”

The bi-level car barn, a spare, timber-clad structure with an A-frame roof, nods to traditional farmhouses, but is “sleek and contemporary in spirit,” says Geremia. Inspired by an old photo of a porcelain farmhouse sink, it features polished concrete floors.

Despite its small footprint, the flexible, multi-purpose space includes bike storage and a niche for storing weights.

Inside, playful pillows can be rearranged in any manner, and are often used as mock beds for relaxing and looking at the canopies above.

Working with his colleagues at Austin Maynard Architects, architect Andrew Maynard added a 184-square-foot, sun-saturated greenhouse extension to his existing 364-square-foot home, and the new space serves as an office for him and his team.

Fir plywood from Freres Lumber joins IKEA cabinets. The figure painting is by Dylan Dean.

The home’s Noh stage is constructed of hinoki cypress. On the back wall, Kagami-ita—which literally translates to “mirror board”—is a polished board on which the sacred pine tree is depicted. “It serves as an echo board for the sound on the stage, and is known as the large pine tree that first catches the eye upon entering the Noh theater,” says architect Takanori Maita.

Although Wakebayashi is not a professional Noh actor, he performs in front of an audience once or twice a year. For these performances, his preparation goes beyond memorizing lyrics and choreography—he sometimes even visits temples and locations where the story is set. “I need to understand the contents of the Noh play, which is how the main character feels, and the background of the story including history,” says Wakebayashi.

Grind (Chicago, United States) This Chicago workspace shed the drop ceilings and depressing decorations of its former life as a title insurance company to blossom into a coworking hotspot. Benjamin Dyett, co-founder of Grind, which also runs similar spaces in New York, says his team wanted to create a “frictionless workspace” and built an array of desks and conference rooms to accommodate different work styles, all buffered by a sound attenuation system that improves focus. A 22-foot-high ceiling, massive windows and an internal mezzanine provide an airy, open environment, while custom light fixtures from Brooklyn’s MESH Architecture and a chandelier/art installation by RND, made of old phone receivers and staplers recovered from the office’s previous incarnation, provide visual inspiration when minds wander.

A double-height space encompasses the kitchen, dining and living area, and features 36-feet-wide glass doors that pocket into southern and northern walls.

Of the seven steps in Michael Pozner’s not-quite-500-square-foot aerie in Greenwich Village, five contain drawers. His small set of table and chairs is from CB2.

By creating a desk out of roof beams, this home office perfectly integrates into an open-plan renovation of a Northern Italian farmhouse.

Once a dilapidated garage, this flexible garden studio in Seattle now serves as an all-weather hub for Ella Dillon, and her 10-year-old daughter, Isabelle. After moving into the Craftsman-style home in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood in 2006, Ella was ready to expand into the garden studio—envisioning it as a place for Isabelle to do arts and crafts, for friends and family to gather—and as additional storage for games, gardening tools, and exercise equipment.

The original run-down shed wasn’t very functional: The roof leaked, the carpet had sprouted mold, and the narrow quarters were sectioned off as two parking spots and two office spaces. So Ella engaged Mutuus Studio to help figure out an optimal design for the 360-square-foot shed—one that would encompass garden shed, exercise room, office, playroom, and outdoor dining space all while staying within a modest budget of less than $40,000.