Strong lines on the floor and the walls reinforce the notion of old and new.

As the facade of a Bates Masi-designed home in Water Mill, New York, rises from eight to 14 feet high, the mahogany planks subtly widen. “It was quite a demand to make of the contractor,” architect Paul Masi says. “But the design was so much about traveling through the site and weaving [the house] together with the deck.”

In the kitchen, the cabinetry is walnut veneer with a weathered finish applied by cabinetmaker David Rogers. “The process involved sanding and rubbing in stain as well as adding a clear finish,” project architect Eero Puurunen says.

The New Old Light by Taiwanese design trio Lin YiHsien, Shih HsiaoChun, and Yeh TingWei is two lights in one—when one pulls the paper portion down from the wood shade, a soft glow morphs into a direct spotlight. The piece is meant to suggest the interplay between simple and complex forms, Eastern and Western style, and old and new aesthetics.

The home is embedded in a hillside with five feet of soil above it. In addition to blending the structure into the landscape, the surrounding earth provides natural insulation.

The outdoor room is backed by a gabion wall made of stone. Rainwater runs off the roofs into a channel before being funneled through pipes concealed within it to an underground concrete tank.

The architects felt that a strong vertical addition would draw extra attention to the original house’s strong horizontal character. The tower itself is a reinterpretation of an A-frame from another Strenger house five doors down.

Consider this lively bathroom that sits within a recently completed waterfront home in Bridgehampton, New York. Situated on two-and-a-half acres of land with 360-degree views of the nearby bay and ocean, it's covered with brightly colored floor-to-ceiling tiles that reflect the shades of the neighboring water. One step through the sliding glass doors and you’ll find yourself on an open terrace.

“The house’s narrow footprint works for us in terms of maximum exposure to the lake,” says Gibbs (shown here with son Blake and dog Max on the shore of Lake Iosco). Glass walls and doors by Andersen also mean that Gibbs can keep a close eye on Blake when he’s playing in the yard. A plinth of reused bedrock found on the property has become an unintended place for active play.

“When I first thought of moving to Harlem, I looked at a map,” says Ryall. “The island’s about 210 blocks long, I’m near 110th Street—I thought, ‘It’s right in the center of Manhattan.’”

Here's what you need to know before undergoing a building project with a contractor but no architect.

When not in use during winter, the tub is hidden from the home’s view. The entrance has a sheltered overhang for car parking.

The Austin house in London offers a bit of shade to the residents via a perforated steel canopy. The kitchen steps down to the garden.

The trick with the Dick/Ellery house was opening the back while retaining the Victorian structure.

The Wadham house is in Bristol, England and boasts a reflective aluminum facade.

The Langermann house in Wimbledon has a black box addition to a 1960s bungalow.

The Jindal Pavilion was built behind an Edwardian house in Barnes, London.

The Black house in Hertfordshire was an 80's cul-de-sac house in which Archer aimed to add more living space while preserving the bucolic views.

The laneway house features Kentwood engineered-wood floors, Cascadia windows, and aluminum-bar grating. The Eames DAX chair is vintage.

Tom Givone's current weekend abode, nicknamed the Floating Farmhouse, is—so far—his capstone project, a synthesis of personal taste, material experimentation, and historically sensitive restoration: a living laboratory for how to bring the vernacular past into the present.

Overhead cabinets now can be easily swung open for ease of access. The kitchens are priced at IKEA’s usual retails. A 10 by 10 foot kitchen fitted with Sektion cabinets will range from around $1,300 to $2,200, excluding appliances.

To deter all bird collisions, his home’s Ornilux windows use a specialized inner coating to reflect ultraviolet light visible to the birds but invisible to the human eye.

Built in 1985 by architects Jeter, Cook and Jepsen, this mid-century modern home enjoys thrilling views of Lords Cove, Calves Island and the Connecticut river through brilliant glass walls. Sprawling almost 6,000 square feet, this is a truly exceptional residence with a wide array of amenities.

Black and white kitchen tiles add visual interest to this stunning modern kitchen by IKEA.

Eastern white pine finished with Monocoat white oil by Rubio clads the interior, while slatted wood accents the space and screens pipes and ducts.

The home doesn't hide its extensive renovations: with all-new windows, installed to maximize both views and solar exposure, it is quite visible where old meets new.

Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler Bleecker 80” Sofa This angular sofa has a sturdy, kiln-dried hardwood frame covered in a deep-gray herringbone fabric.

Design by Conran Tufted Wool Square Rug Gun-tufted in a soft, sage-green yarn, this wool rug features a textured, raised freeform circle gesture. The contemporary design includes skid-resistant backing.

Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler Bleecker Nesting Tables Crafted from engineered wood, a colorful set of three nesting tables adds a sense of fun to your space.

Happy Chic by Jonathan Adler Bleecker 63" TV Cabinet With cutouts for cable management, the Bleeker media cabinet features tapered legs, shaped pulls, and a solid ash and pine frame.