Gray-purple iron railings, a fuchsia and green wooden entry, and garage doors provide contrast to the white walls of this Santa Barbara home. Photo by Steven Holmes.

Built-ins reduce the need for furniture.

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!

Alex enjoys a sun-filled breakfast at the built-in dining table and bench, one of many space-saving designs.

Anne Suttles waters the bamboo muhly, palo verde, strawberry tree, and magic carpet thyme thriving in their Austin yard.

A tight construction budget informed the choices Sean Guess made as he designed a house for a couple in Austin, Texas. Budget-minded materials, like the James Hardie fiber-cement siding, helped hold construction costs to $130 per square foot. Sherwin-Williams’s Cyberspace hue colors the exterior and Parakeet coats the custom kitchen cabinets by Austin Wood Works. The planter is made from Cor-Ten steel.

Paul finds a hiding place amongst the bedroom built-ins.

Inside the sleeping cabin, a fireplace built of local granite marks the midpoint between two bedrooms and a bathroom. The floors and walls are wrapped in warm-hued Douglas fir.

The unit can be configured to allow room for meal preparation around a built-in kitchen.

On one side of the house, a white central staircase leads to a split-level landing the Robertsons call "the reading room." "We needed a place to hang out and for the kids to read," explains owner Vivi Nguyen-Robertson. Awaiting the birth of the couple's son, she relaxes in a built-in reading nook in the library.

Elsewhere, the blocks accommodate other uses, like support for a built-in table and benches in the kitchen and a rooftop observatory (next slide) for watching the sun set over the Ilaló volcano.

During the renovation, Grimley and Smith added built-in storage to keep clutter in check.

The guesthouse has similar built-ins and is outfitted with a reproduction rotating sconce by Serge Mouille and rugs by Stephanie Odegard.

These wood-wrapped spaces take oriented strand board to new heights.

The dining room leads onto a terrace with a built-in concrete table and barbecue that are original to Raman and Schaffrath’s design. A pair of Hardoy butterfly chairs from Knoll are positioned by the pond.

Our kids are our future—teach them to be conscientious and kind to Mother Earth with these sweet, informative children’s books.

The custom island also features a cut-out shelf.

Concrete was chosen for both structural and finish material throughout much of the home, for its aesthetic, functional, and budgetary appeal. The polished concrete floors in the bedroom complement the birch bed and cabinetry. The home provides living space for the couple, two kids, one dog, and two cats.

Kaz-ma holds up the charred post while the rest of the family attends to affairs at the sunken table.

They used a deep-black hue for the room’s cabinetry and built-in desk.

The opposite wall of the kitchen features built-in Siemens appliances and concealed storage. The custom INTERIOR-iD cabinets feature mitered doors, and brass trim, which passes fluidly around the edge of the doors, terminating at the back wall.

Plenty of CES attention was devoted to LG's new "ultra premium" appliance line, Signature, but the company also unveiled an upgrade to Styler, a wardrobe-like, steam-based clothes management system that removes oder and wrinkles without using harmful chemicals. The new, larger model can clean six garments in as little as 20 minutes.

Rice surfs the net at the built-in desk.

Style: "#1"

The sunken bathtub in George Nakashima’s Sanso Villa mimics the shape of a swimming pool on the grounds. His daughter, Mira Nakashima, took over the studio after his death and now lives and works on the property. “A Japanese garden often has a central pond derived from the character for ‘heart’ or ‘spirit,’ and this may be an abstraction of that character,” she says of the tub’s sculptural form.

Though we love the custom teak-and-steel sink, shelving, shower caddy, mirror, shower, and vanity by Pat Carson Studio, the real coup of this bathroom is that the window at left goes from transparent to opaque with the touch of a button. The Duo Poliert dispensers beneath the shelf are from Blomus. A toilet opposite the sink is from Toto.

The apartment's built-in closets are deep and have mirrors on one side. Spotlights set flush overhead provide light and also allow the maximum amount of storage, all the way to the ceiling. For more of Schönning's dark, cozy-meets-modern interiors, visit his website. Photo by Per Magnus Persson.

Throughout the cabin, custom built-ins, like a folding table by Bar Harbor woodworker Rick Bradbury, pack maximum utility into a streamlined package.

Johan Bouwmeester built a library out of oak.

Backless picnic-style benches stand in for chairs at the refinished Milwaukee Public Library table where the family eats their meals. The sofa and armchair are from Luminaire.

Of the Caesarstone counter, which extends to a built-in steel dining table with a detachable leaf, he says, “The total length is just over 16 feet, which gives it a really beautiful, sleek proportion.” Chairs are from IKEA.

A built-in desk by NOEM FabLab folds into the wall when not in use.

Brightened by light from the backyard, the built-in credenzas and kitchen cabinetry are by JKK Woodcraft. A Kartell FL/Y pendant lamp bridges the glass and wood details.

Gaps and openings between the handle-less, white oak shelves are functional and decorative, holding plants, books, and office supplies. Small touches, such as the matching color of the chair and the lower shelves, help accent the clean white surfaces.

Celesta - Eskema Arquitectos

Due to zoning restrictions, the house's footprint had to be relatively small, so Svensen devised a solution: split levels. The library occupies a landing on the staircase and features shelves built by Atlanta's Dark Horse Woodwork.