With its dramatic facade, the Cornwall House, located in Cornwall, Vermont, is adjacent to the town of Middlebury, Vermont, home to Middlebury College, where John McLeod is a visiting professor of architecture.

Waechter Architecture reimagined a traditional gabled home in southeast Portland without significantly altering the original building. A simple coat of red paint abstracts the century-old structure, creating a residential work of art.

Porcelain Sugar Bowl by Hasami "I have more sugar bowls than I care to admit," Stubbs says. "I drink my tea and coffee with sugar, so I always want to have a sugar bowl out, right next to the kettle. This is a really nice departure from the old-fashioned sugar bowls that I’ve been using for years."

Jansen+Co Cake Stand Young Dutch design house Jansen+Co adds to its growing collection of brightly colored ceramic servingware with cheerful pedestal stands. Layout cupcakes, pies, cake of course, or anything you want to display on your tablescape. Traditional form meets contemporary styling in the minds of Jansen+Co founders Anouk Jansen and Harm Magis. Find this item at the Dwell Store.

Since surrounding neighbors can overlook the one-story property, Thomson created a roof detail that is environmentally friendly and attractive: “the bio-diverse [green] roof is planted with indigenous species of flowers and grasses,” he says.

With primary colors and a classic shape, this pot is a throwback to childhood tea parties with a grown-up sensibility. $65 from store.dwell.com.

Jansen+Co Espresso Mug and Saucer Made of high quality ceramic, these mugs are perfect for serving that little bit of espresso at the end of a fabulous meal. They are a beautiful combination of industrial production and hand finish. Their shape is classic with twist and is available in bright colors and urban tones. Find this item at the Dwell Store.

The steel canopy protects the residents from Seattle’s notoriously rainy weather as they walk from the entry gate to the front door.

By inserting a tunnel made from 36 reclaimed commercial doors and tearing down a handful of walls, LOT-EK and contractor Andreas Scholtz brought light into the formerly unused dark hallway in Maurice Russell (right) and Jorge Fontanez’s apartment. The glossy Safety Red paint by Benjamin Moore catches the light by day but “becomes a richer, darker, very relaxing red at night,” Fontanez says.

The bathroom features Chromtech tile, a Toto toilet, Kohler vanity, and powder-coated steel countertop.

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The Helios Fire Bowl Set from Skagerak is a portable outdoor fireplace that is ideal for a back patio. It can be used as a fire pit, or with the Helios Steel Grille and some charcoal to create an outdoor grill for hotdogs, vegetables, or shish kebabs.

The red acrylic hallway.

"Like the old farmhouses and barns of the Champlain Valley, the Foote Farm House has a clearly ordered wood frame on a sturdy foundation, an exterior skin made of local materials, an economy of form with tried-and-true proportions, a central fire place, and a common-sense relationship to the sun and the weather." - Architect John McLeod

Moskow Linn Architects of Boston tackled this ground-up renovation in Cambridge, Massachusetts, for a client who wanted to maximize efficiency. Photo by Eric Roth.

"Architecture exists through states of contrast; the building as a bridge between a wooded forest and a field, a strong roof line against a backdrop of trees or mountains. In these states of contrast we truly start to see where we live." -Architect Steve Kredell

The walls are covered in Graniplast, a tinted acrylic finish. Nathan Pereira Arquitectos y Diseño advised on the facade, floors, and finishes. All the bedrooms are off one hallway; the three children’s rooms were designed by Vanessa Clark.

The Red House, 2002.

Soggy breakfast cereal is the worst. That’s not hyperbole; soggy cereal is literally the worst. To combat the despair of having to eat your bowl of Cap’n Crunch like a soldier late for drill practice, innovative minds have come up with the Obol. It’s basically two bowls in one. One side hold the milk, while the other holds the dry cereal. Just scoop up some cereal, dip it in the milk, and enjoy every bite as though it were your first.

SUGAR + CREAM $84 For presenting sugar and cream on the table we suggest this minimalist, hand-thrown sugar bowl and creamer set from Pigeon Toe. We especially love the small leather loop handle on the sugar bowl lid.

The streamlined shape of the home kept slab, framing, and roofing costs down, Pavonetti explains. A barn red shade on the front door adds a touch of farmhouse whimsy to the modern structure.

To maximize space, both sides of the bed are outfitted with wall sockets and reading lights.

Pros: Also known as composite quartz, engineered quartz comes in a wide range of colors and textures with the general durability of real stone slabs, but with the ease of manufacturing and installation of a man-made product. As a result, engineered quartz isn’t as expensive as other natural stone countertops. Cons: On the other hand, customers can expect to see these qualities reflected in the price of engineered quartz, which can be on the higher end. Quartz also doesn’t handle extreme heat as well as granite does.

One family in Seattle, Washington, looked past a sloping landscape and saw the opportunity to build their dream home. Resembling a modern-day metal treehouse, the Hale and Edmonds residence is nestled within the edges of a wooded park. The house’s exterior of paneled grey is perfectly balanced against the accent of the orange frame, proving that there’s a chance for subtlety with the bright color.

Though Bruce has thus far only managed a week or two here or there on the island, he's hoping to make it a more frequent—and extended—part of his regular routine. "I'm thinking about going out for a month to write," he says.

Another of our favorite home office ideas on a budget? Incorporate a basic office space in the upper level or attic of the house, like this small workstation on the upper level of this magnificent, midcentury, A-frame prefab home off the coast of Rhode Island. Here, an airy push-open window provides a refreshing ocean breeze for this sparse workspace.

Eazy side chairs by Whiteonwhite line one side of the custom-designed table by LOT-EK. Castore suspension lights by Michele De Lucchi for Artemide hang above, and a custom rug by Liora Manné lies below.

Unlike its next-door neighbor, R-House, TED wasn’t originally planned to meet the exacting Passive House standard. The building’s green bona fides came largely from four roof-mounted thermal solar panels and a 120-gallon water storage tank that architect Tim McDonald attests would have met nearly all of the home’s heat and hot-water needs. After submitting the proposal, though, he completed a course in the Passive House standard. Inspired, McDonald modified the original approach, ditching the tank and thermal panels in favor of a highly insulated, airtight envelope—the equivalent, he says, of shielding the house from the harsh Syracuse winter with a fur coat instead of a windbreaker.

“Considering all of the foot traffic around their property, [the owners] made it very clear that they wanted to find a way to maintain as much privacy in the home as possible,” architect Chad Mitchell says of this Denver home. “Thus, the main floor of the home is elevated from the sidewalk by about six feet.” The exterior siding is red cedar with a custom Sherwin-Williams stain.

The entire family makes good use of the music room, where they hold public and private Sunday concerts with local and international musicians.

Though the home’s common areas are largely white and monotone, the kitchen introduces a pop of red, the owner’s favorite color, through the glossy AGC kitchen backsplash. Stone pietra cardosa counters are used on the center island, along with white Corian around the perimeter. A Miele range, Sub-Zero refrigerator, and Piston stools by Shin and Tomako Azumi complete the space.