When Belgian fashion retailer Nathalie Vandemoortele was seeking a new nest for her brood, she stumbled upon a fortresslike house in the countryside designed in 1972 by a pair of Ghent architects, Johan Raman and Fritz Schaffrath. While the Brutalist concrete architecture and petite but lush gardens suited her tastes to a tee, the interiors needed a few updates.

A new office sits at the front of the house, and its moody walls and bookshelves contrast the other rooms' mostly light and neutral palette.

Tracy Beckmann and Ryan Trowbridge spent four years shopping for furnishings, fixtures, and lighting to outfit the guest rooms, sourcing steel hardware in Hong Kong, vintage lighting in Italy and France, and many mid-century pieces in their backyard, aka Palm Springs’s renowned vintage shops.

Chickens foraging in an enclosed garden with vertical planters.

Completed in May 2018, the Crossfield Street House is the residence of architect Jonathan Pile, his wife Katherine, and their five-year-old son.

In this updated 1950s Portland home, a light gray Neo sofa by Bensen harmonizes with warm wooden walls, ceilings, and floors, as well as a red-and-mustard-yellow vintage rug.

Finds included Bertoia barstools, a J. Wade Beam coffee table, and a chrome Thonet-inspired chair in Unit One and a Warren Platner coffee table and chair in Unit Four.

The box-shaped extension plays off the familiar farmhouse typology, creating a series of intriguing contrasts.

Each of the four units has a private patio.

The open observatory.

A painting by Ginger’s grandmother hangs above a midcentury dining set Ginger found on Craigslist.

A modular shelf system by Alu provides a more sculptural take on the classic bathroom vanity in this Toronto home.

Resident Misha Bukowski plays with young Zachary in the walkway between the renovated buildings. The new units are clad in stained local cedar.

To maximize guests’ experience of Lautner’s legendary approach to daylight, Beckmann and Trowbridge forewent blinds or curtains on the windows and glazed walls, offering guests sleeping masks instead.

The eat-in kitchen features poured-in-place concrete countertops and redwood wall paneling.

Linda Taalman and Alan Koch, of Taalman Koch Architects, completed work on their glass iT House, a lovely, minimal home that tests the limits of living lightly on the land in the desert near Joshua Tree National Park. The bath and basin in the bathroom are by Duravit, and the orange wall is by Three Form.

Detail of the kitchen

Vattefall by Bornstein Lyckefors The title of this Brutalist-esque concept is a play on words, combining the Swedish name for waterfall and the name of the government official who came up with the idea for these 25-square-meter buildings.

“Your first impression is that the house is very closed,” says David Barragán of the building he designed with Jose María Sáez in Quito, Ecuador. Stacked concrete forms, developed by Barragán and Sáez and used as planters along the front facade, offer privacy and integrate the building with the site.

In the Dolomite mountains, an angular copper-clad apartment building echoes the topography of its site. Photos by Hertha Hurnaus

Martens in his famous blue coat.

The sleeping cubbies lie beneath the walkway connecting front and back units. Cedar decking and soffit add warmth and texture to the transitional space.

A look at the small reading nook located on the level between the bedroom and ground floor.

During the worst of the recession, companies looked to DIY and low-cost creativity to innovate. One company to jump aboard the creative revamp bandwagon is the notoriously cheap Motel 6 chain. The pillar of downmarket roadside accommodations, Motel 6 is reskinning their shabby (and not chic) interiors to give them a touch of modern minimalism and an air of modest luxury. Check out the changes here.

"City | Inventory"

Corner of a building in Berlin, Germany.

Building Codes: Whether you are planning a renovation or building from the ground up, arm yourself with the knowledge that will help you navigate endless meetings and negotiations. Illustration by Andy Rementer

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

Building and stairwell in Essen, Germany.

Architect Michael Cobb used Douglas fir harvested from the site throughout the house, such as on a sliding door outfitted with Swiss Rod SS hardware from the Real Carriage Door Company.

This sleeping area includes a bookshelf and sconce.

Although initially established in the German town of Weimar, the Bauhaus relocated to the industrial city of Dessau. This building, constructed by Staatliches Bauhaus founder and director Walter Gropius, was the second home of the renowned school.

San Francisco’s Barbary Coast Library: When the Gold Rush was at its high, Barbary Coast (now enveloped in historic Jackson Square) was the illicit place-to-be. Now, designer Ken Fulk has crafted the design for a members-only social club called The Battery in the historic Musto building. From: California Home + Design. Photo by Joe Fletcher

Alvin Huang, who leads SDA/Synthesis Design and runs the Architectural Association Visiting School Los Angeles (AAVSLA), will share how he uses novel architectural materials and the concept behind such proposed projects as the Shanghai Wuzhou International Plaza (pictured). He'll be joined by USC professor Doris Sung to discuss how technology can improve building science, making for smarter structures.