Large clerestory windows face the street at the Higashibatas’ house in Tokyo, optimizing both privacy and natural light within.

The engawa deck is a traditional Japanese feature. It's a place where guests are often greeted to sit with a casual cup of tea. The David and Mayuko also uses it as a viewing porch toward the back yard for when the kids play in the grass.

At the client’s request the kitchen contains neither upper cabinets (Shino can’t reach them) nor an oven (they only used the old one once—to reheat a pizza). A modular Roche Bobois Mah Jong sofa adds a decorative flourish to the living area while maintaining as low a profile as the traditional Japanese furniture.

Texas. The Cricket Trailer, made in Houston, can sleep up to two adults and two children. With integrated fresh water and greywater tanks along with a water heater, campers can live off-the-grid in the easily towable unit.

The top of the house is dedicated to a dining area and a kitchen outfitted with steel-topped cabinets from Sanwa Company. Read more about this dimensional three-storied Japanese home here.

The brand presented products both new and old in a series of room-like vignettes.

A. Industrial cranes inspired the Hensen chair by Jos Kranen and Johannes Gille for New Duivendrecht. B. Sjoerd Jonkers uses upcycled cotton castoffs from the textile industry in the hand-crocheted Clew pouffe. C. A runaway success for the manufacturer is the wood, steel, and concrete Barrel lamp designed by Nieuwe Heren.

The couple asked for a “no maintenance, not low maintenance” backyard. However, Shino tends to “Carlsbad's largest public bathroom for cats” (otherwise known as their Japanese-style rock garden) about once a month. Don't miss a word of Dwell! Download our FREE app from iTunes, friend us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter!

100 Things Wallpaper by Makelike. Screen printed in Portland by a multi-disciplinary collective that specializes in graphic and pattern design and art direction.

The back of the house has sliding doors that open far enough to expose the entire livingroom to the families' back yard.

The family sits around, and under in the case of four-year-old Kaz’ma, the sunken table for a snack. Makiko made the covers of the mats her mother sent from Japan by hand. The black lamp is from Ikea.

Snuggle up on the couch with a graphic quilt from Louise Gray. Made of 100 percent cotton and featuring a neutral palette of light grey, charcoal, and black, this throw quilt has generous size. Each quilt is hand-assembled and hand-stitched by artisans in the United States.

Picture Book Library in Iwaki City, Japan-Built in 2005, the Picture Book Museum gave the preschoolers of Iwaki, Fukushima, a space to call their own. Turned off by the shhh-ing atmosphere of traditional libraries, the Picture Book Library's founder gave architect Tadao Ando free rein to create a space that would be inviting for children. His only order was to make sure the covers of the books were visible. The glass-walled and vibrant end result was celebrated as a new paradigm in educational spaces in Japan, and as an architectural masterpiece. Photo: Ken Lee 2010

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.

Here's the cover of Osman's new book.

The resident, a Tokyo transplant, commissioned architect Tadashi Murai to create a fully-equipped structure that comes with its own power, heating and cooling, water, and waste-disposal systems.

Detail of the kitchen counter.

Based in Swaziland, Quazi Design started as a jewelry maker in 2009, and now produces home accessories and furniture. Whether bowls, pendants, or pillows, all of the studio's designs are made out of paper.

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.

The Lais designed their house to be theirs forever. As such, they were able to make design moves that made sense for themselves but that wouldn't have high resale value, like the Japanese-style master bathroom in the middle of the second floor instead of off of the master bedroom. The traditional setup features bath stools from Muji for washing off.

By knocking down walls, Dominguez was able to open the previously cramped kitchen and add extra cabinetry and counter space. He was also able to make room for a peninsula with a waterfall edge.

Nakada works from an Alvar Aalto table in the living and dining area, adjacent to the kitchen. He saved on some elements, such as the plywood cabinetry, and splurged on others, such as the Finn Juhl chairs and Vilhelm Lauritzen lamp. A skylight beneath the angled roof allows in a sliver of constantly changing light.

The kitchen’s original galley layout was retained, and the walls and utilities were kept in place.

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

A glowing home in Japan has milky-white, one-and-a-half-inch plastic sheets wrapped around the exterior to let in light and provide insulation.

Takuma strikes a pose from the loft lookout as seen from the second floor. The loft is used for storage as well as a place for some peace and quiet.

The long, lean Kobayashi complex includes a bathroom and storage room in the structure on the far right.

Keeping everything in its place is critical in this tiny home. Shelving designed by Kirkpatrick helps immensely. He's also designed the coffee table; the couch was picked up at a second-hand store. The vaporproof ceiling light is from RAB lighting.