HAPPY HOUR TROLLEY Designed by Zürich-based designer Alfredo Häberli, the Happy Hour Trolley is suitable for a wide range of functions— not just to hold your favorite beverage. Its chromed iron structure make it ideally suited for use as a side table in the living room or for additional storage in the bathroom. Tripod wheels make it an adaptable piece for any home.

It's not quite Hemingway's movable feast, but a well-stocked Happy Hour Trolley may come close. Designed by Zürich-based Alfredo Häberli for BD Barcelona Design, its legs are crafted from durable chromed iron.

Launched by Visit Sweden, the cabins and the stress study could be easily written off as a tourism board gimmick—but they shouldn’t. The tiny glass cabins tap into a growing need to disconnect from a tech-driven world. To give the structures a true sense of place, the cabins were built of locally-sourced materials and designed by Jeanna Berger, daughter of the owners of Henriksholm, a privately-owned, three-mile-long island in western Sweden.

Graphic and pastel textiles adorn a collection of modern chairs and sofas in the downstairs sitting room. Warm-gray floorboards extend throughout the whole lower level for a fresh, modern look.

In the dining room, antique wooden busts and a machiche cross designed by Farca are arranged on a resin countertop by Monica Calderon. The bar conceals a service area with an espresso machine.

Shady Business “What makes this house wonderful to live in is that the light is always, always changing,” says Pirman. Here, he adjusts shades fabricated by Unique Wholesale Distributors, which pull down in the morning when the sunlight is strongest.

If you’re tired of your go-to beverage and missing your favorite craft cocktail bar, recreate the experience at home by dimming the lights or swapping in colored bulbs, rearranging some decor and furniture, and trying out one of the shelter-in-place cocktail recipes recommended by top mixologists.

Gliss swivel stools and a Dowel bar stool share space in front of a custom maple kitchen island. The pendant lamps are by Lightolier.

Dan Pacek, left, and John Roynon prepare cocktails at their 12-foot “display island” in the renovated kitchen of their home in New Jersey. The couple bought handles matching those on their Thermador refrigerator and used them on a set of pantry doors, one of which conceals the steps to the basement.

In the 2EM lounge, light fare like duck confit cassoulet and flatbread with lamb, blue cheese, and caramelized pears is served. Beacon-based vendor Niche Modern crafted the chandelier above the bar, and the stools come from Rexhill. A major philosophy of the Roundhouse is “keep it local.” Photo by Eric Laignel.

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.

Sarti is only too happy to demonstrate one of his favorite inventions: a mobile kitchen-supply box/cocktail station/breakfast bar with casters that hides beneath the stairs.

A wall-mounted oak bar is where Siminovich and Kerner drop their keys, pound away on their laptops, and occasionally eat a quick meal with Matilda, their two-year-old daughter.

A 12-foot “display island” gives this kitchen programmatic function—food and drinks are prepared here; cooking and cleaning are consigned to the back—and helps make it a welcoming space, whether homeowners Pacek and Roynon are entertaining or simply enjoying time to themselves. The soft green hue adds an inviting touch.

This modern bar in Oaxaca is named Expendio Tradición, meaning “dispensing tradition,” a concept designer Ezequiel Farca utilized to create a space that’s seeped in the Chagoya family’s 140-year-old tradition, producing mezcal. Materials such as recycled mezcal barrels, traditional black clay tiles, and handmade cement floor tiles, which generated local work and economic sustainability, are featured throughout the space.

Happy hour has never looked so good. The home's wet bar receives stylish treatment with an asymmetrical facade and mirrored background.

Escape made a splash by launching a property in Tampa Bay filled with its trailers. But you don’t have to live there to own one.

The Jorgensen's Menlo Park home is a model of green design with features that are smart for everyone to consider. "Every project is different, but there are some universal things that will apply from project to project," says Feldman about designing a green home. "The first—and most obvious thing—is to always try to build less, to have a smaller house and be smart about how the rooms are designed and oriented so that you can get by with less space. Smart design will lead to a smaller building, but it won't feel smaller."

Bookmatched wood veneer cabinetry brings a warm, tactile feel to the interiors.

“I love the house more each day,” says Tamami Sylvester of her and husband Michael's home by Sebastian Mariscal in Venice, California. The kitchen, which includes all Miele appliances, is sheathed in custom woodwork from Semihandmade. Accessories from A+R complement the Caesarstone countertops and Franke faucet. A LifeSource Water System provides filtration. Photo by Coral von Zumwalt.

Six-inch-square blue tiles cover the walls and floor of the girls’ upstairs bathroom. The towels and rug are also by H&M Home.

"How would a kid draw a house?" architect Per Franson asked himself when designing the Olivero-Reinius family home. The simple prefab structure’s unusual color comes from a traditional source: falu rödfärg, the historic mineral paint that gives the region’s famous barns their red color.

Architect Gustavo Costa calls the home library the “project’s heart.” This central space houses the owner’s expansive collection of about 5,000 books, and acts as a meeting place for friends and colleagues. A Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Red and Blue chair completes the space.

5. "What are the top 10 most important things I must have in a home?" "If there are two people buying the home, write your answers down separately, starting with your absolute must-haves," Hoffman explains. “Putting together a list separately can give both parties and the realtor a clear picture of what the perfect home will have for both of you."

An outdoor shower was the family’s first construction project. “Doing the shower made us realize we can build things the way we want to build them,” says Meg.

“We sought to create a house that would not damage the environment and not be too visible,” says architect Tina Gregorič. A single zigzagging roof stretches over 5,380 square feet, doubling the area of the interior spaces and serving as an ideal spot for sunset cocktails and whale-watching.

He worked around existing oak and eucalyptus trees for the new building, and retained the vernacular of an original barn, at right, where Frankel hosts concerts. Check out MVRDV's Balancing Barn.

Urbio is the magnetic modular system that attaches to any surface for indoor or outdoor vertical gardening and home organization. Configure in myriad ways for creative display of everything from spiky succulents to colorful Sharpies--perfect for any household with children or gardening enthusiast.

The courtyard is just one of many open spaces that will be highly utilized—in the non-winter months anyway. Concrete worked well with developing the language of FlatPak. The second level is a wood panel that can be clad in corrugated metal or cedar—different layers that can be plugged in like covers on your cellphone.

The kitchen is situated in a sunken basement, underneath the staircase’s walnuts steps. The same joiner who built the house’s timber elements built the white cabinetry which are finished in a 40% gloss lacquer. Silestone countertops and integrated appliances maintain the space’s simple lines. Additional storage is fitted under the staircase.

Located on a steep site with limited suitable building ground, the firm decided to cantilever the home over the hillside, which has the effect of helping the structure blend in with the landscape.

Happy Canada Day!

This wooden trunk may be nondescript on the outside, but inside it can hold a complete home bar.