A collaboration with Loll yielded this outdoor rocker.

This is the famed 1940s Rapson Rapid Rocker recently reissued.

The Rapson Greenbelt Lounge is now available in four different color and wood combinations.

An eight-foot-high sliding glass door leads to the backyard's ipe deck, ideal for informal gatherings. The bench cushions are custom from Studio Collins Weir and the tables and chairs are from Design Within Reach.

Ryan Anderson of RAD Furniture designed the stools as well as the table and benches on the pool deck.

Rapson Rapid Rocker by Rapson-Inc. “Designed in the early ‘40s by Ralph Rapson, who built a ton of famous houses and buildings in the city, it’s the most comfortable chair I’ve ever sat in. His son Toby, who lives near the store and has become a good friend, has helped get it back into production. It’s a beautiful, simple piece that fits in anywhere.”

James's bedroom furniture was custom designed by Hatch Workshop.

Here's the rocker covered in Verner Panton–designed fabric.

In the living room, spare Scandinavian design takes center stage. Hans Wegner’s Wishbone chairs surround an Essay dining table by Cecilie Manz for Fritz Hansen; a mostly wood palette is enhanced by slate-gray brick around the fireplace. The paper lanterns throughout the home are a mixture of classics by Isamu Noguchi alongside those picked up in Japan and France.

Built-ins reduce the need for furniture.

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.

The girls’ room features wood furniture designed by Bornstein.

Yang Yeo and his girlfriend Ching Ian relax on the back stoop of their renovated and radically updated Singapore shophouse—an archetypal building type in this busy port city. “Shophouses brought back memories of our childhood,” says Yeo.

The beanbag chairs and outdoor sofa and chairs are from West Elm and the Case Study Museum Bench is from Modernica.

Two San Francisco art and travel addicts overhauled a loft—and customized a pair of shipping containers—to accommodate their collection and reflect their passions.

At the Offect booth, visitors experienced the Swedish brand's acoustic panels and modern furniture built for office environments.

To highlight the existing architecture of the home, Hill retained the dark polish of the casement windows, which she finds enhances period details instead of undermining them. In the rear sunroom, the vintage Case Study furniture pieces with Plexiglas bases are from Metro Retro in Houston. A Bourgie lamp by Kartell is atop an old marble end table by Knoll, and the Gan kilim rug pictures a branch motif echoed in the kitchen and breakfast room.

Builder Ross Percival helped finesse the finely tuned detailing that separates the internal slope from the rock outside (opposite). The Pedro wire stool is by Craig Bond for Candywhistle.

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

Here's a pair of Rapson rockers made now by Rapson Inc.

This "local prefab" home on the Isle of Skye is made mostly from materials sourced in northern Scotland. The timber-framed model, meant to evoke the simple agrarian barns of the area, can be constructed on-site in as little as a day and is designed for affordability.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, food scraps and yard waste make up 20 percent of what we throw away. Composting organic materials keeps them out of the landfill, which cuts down on greenhouse gases, and enriches the soil. To compost at home, make a pile in your backyard, or introduce an indoor bin for throwaways like apple peels and eggshells.

Though only two feet deep, the Ikea cabinet Azevedo bought for the guest bath didn’t quite fit, so she sliced off eight inches with a table saw. “It might be unorthodox, but it was just easier, faster, and cheaper to do it myself,” says the former furniture designer.

Ralph Fournier outside Graham Chapel on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, 1949. Image courtesy of Maryville University.

Here is where Rapson and his gifts as an illustrator really shine. The people in Rapson's drawings are often as compelling as the furniture itself.

Simple utilitarianism at its finest: Takagi's Simple Machines series of stools, benches, and tables in white oak.

Iconic and modern furnishings mingle at Luminaire, which has showrooms in Chicago and Coral Gables, Florida.

Black and white kitchen cabinets painted with a triangular pattern add a whimsical touch to this funky kitchen.

A departure from the mod-meets-baroque dining room, Turin’s breakfast area is far more sedate. She and her daughter, Helena, have a chat at a Progetto 1 table by Monica Armani for B&B Italia surrounded by four Lia chairs by Roberto Barbieri for Zanotta. The painting behind Helena is by Ricci Albenda.

Bright colors dominated the show floor, like the hues seen in these chairs from Bespoke Creative.

Lightning design

In the living and dining area of Jean Risom's Block Island family retreat, mostly vintage Risom furnishings share space with a few new additions, the view facing north is framed by the wall of glass. Photo by: Floto + Warner

The home’s original living and dining rooms were updated with custom cabinetry and new fir floors. The living room sofa, coffee table, and lounge chair are from Blu Dot.

It’s a good idea to read reviews about specific pieces before buying them, which can help prepare you for the unexpected.

The deck is furnished with pieces from Design Within Reach.