In this sleek kitchen renovation in San Francisco, the kitchen backsplash is an easy-to-clean glass backsplash that mimics the glossy finish of the surrounding white cabinets. Painters accomplished the high-gloss finish on the cabinets of a kitchen in San Francisco by applying a coat of paint, polishing it with very high-grit sandpaper, repeating the process for each layer, then topping it with three coats of clear varnish. "It’s like an auto body," says builder Jeff King. "It’s incredibly beautiful." The island provides shelving space and storage as well as a second sink, an is topped with pietra grigio marble.

Designer Jeff Sand’s Universal Chairs combine his love for classic French café chairs with an appreciation for “the beautiful metal casings on an old Moto Guzzi.” Sand Studios also designed the dining table and pendant lamp.

Across from the entrance is the main staircase, which leads to the bedrooms.

Minimal interventions by architect Andrew Simpson allowed this former jam warehouse outside of Melbourne, Australia, to be turned into a family residence. "To draw light and ventilation into what was a poorly oriented and deep footprint, an extensive number of operable skylights were introduced on the north- and south-facing roof pitches, and a large void connecting the floors was strategically positioned to also take advantage of this amenity," Simpson says. American oak floorboards and Dulux paint were used throughout the property for continuity.

King installed dimmable fluorescent strips by Bartco in the alcoves above the cabinets for ambient lighting.

Russell-Clarke tends a small garden.

In the bathroom, a teak live-edge countertop and custom yellow cabinet support a double wash basin by Duravit. A mirror from Restoration Hardware hangs below custom lights, designed by the homeowner for a steampunk look.

The kitchen is marked by its Wolf gas range, white Carrara marble countertop bar, and Cobb Rise & Fall pendants by Original BTC. The architect designed a custom wine glass holder, which hangs nearby.

The three levels of the house transition from public to private: The ground floor is composed of the kitchen and living-dining area; the bathroom and closet occupy the mezzanine, accessed by a ship’s ladder; and the sleeping loft hovers a couple steps above. The seminal 1970s tome A Pattern Language, written by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein, inspired the layout. “I’m a huge proponent of the [book],” says Azevedo. “I like the ideas of a bed as an alcove, natural light on two sides of a room, varying ceiling heights, and different levels of privacy.”

“By creating high ceilings with large windows, the feeling is all about space and light,” says architect Robert Nebolon, principal of Berkeley firm Robert Nebolon Architects. The 2,100-square-foot floating house was built on land in six months before settling into its final location in Mission Creek.

In the second floor master bedroom, a custom captain’s bed designed by the homeowner, features drawers and storage underneath. Its towering height allows for views out the nearby window.

The residents incorporated speed racks into the cabinets. Typically found in restaurants, the racks offer chefs intermediate storage. In this case, the couple places food behind the cabinet until it’s ready to serve. After the meal is over, they can stow dirty dishes out of sight instead of interrupting the party with cleanup. To ensure trays slide in and out without catching the cabinet, King used hinges that allow the door to rotate 270 degrees.

“The house was designed to complement the challenging triangular corner site and its context.” —George Bradley, architect.

Heath Ceramics tile continues in the master bathroom.

The roof deck has a commanding view. “We have friends out here in the summer and stay too long drinking wine,” says Bradley.

The coffee station features a professional-grade Rocket Espresso machine. Jang and King designed a stainless-steel pullout shelf for a cream and sugar station.

“For me, an idea can come from anywhere,” says Tim, an artist who has an interest in product design, and often incorporates found items into his work. “I really enjoy the challenge of finding an object and responding to it.”

Made of black anodized aluminum with stainless steel hinges, the home’s warehouse-style windows are designed to withstand corrosion. No wood was used on the exterior except for the dock, called a finger pier, which allows access to the front door and the couple’s boat. The home looks out onto downtown San Francisco, with AT&T Park visible from the main deck.

Because the residents wanted lighting “to fade away,” the home makes the most of natural light and minimizes fixtures. Each room has two sources of daylight, usually in the form of floor-to-ceiling windows and skylights. Fluorescent lights integrate into the surface of the skylights so they don’t protrude into the space.

Generous storage is key to an uncluttered look. Drawers for shoes tuck away under the raised mezzanine floor.

The living room floor is made of Australian cypress with a tung oil finish. A Solas wall-mounted fireplace by Hearth Innovators and a curious chair, by Putra Salahin in Bali, complement the sun-drenched space.

“Peter and I’ve got shockingly similar and far-reaching design inspirations. Our conversations would move easily from brutalism to driftwood to kachinas and then flow right back to something applicable to architecture. I can’t tell you how many times I will do that with a less-design-literate client and just get a blank stare!” —Architect Craig Steely

A shallow built-in bathroom shelf.

The entrance opens into a light-filled hall, with a Marcel Wanders chandelier and a Luna console table by Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance.

The once-sloping space now has climbing vines, a slatted fence, and foxtail agaves.

To allude to the nearby ocean, the architects designed a seaweed patterned for the interior of the garage door (seen here raised). It successfully reads like a leather padded wall and makes “the cube” feel that much more customized.

Curtiss describes the floor plan as “super efficient but with gracious moments.” Instead of maximizing room size, she ensured that shared spaces were adequately sized. In the upstairs hallway, that means two or three people can pass each other with relative ease.

“We wanted windows and natural light. It’s not quite a fishbowl—we have shades for privacy.” —Eddie Baba, resident.

The property is comprised of a succession of buildings that extend from the street-facing entrance. The 1,215-square-foot main house is the last of the three.

The space is just off the kitchen, which was moved and updated. Bradley paired cabinetry of his own design with tiles from Heath Ceramics.

The public staircase is directly adjacent to the house, though the louvers mitigate the view of passersby in favor of views of San Francisco.

An existing home in San Francisco was renovated by architect George Bradley as his home with Eddie Baba, an attorney. The house was reconfigured to accommodate the entrance on the second floor, but the couple retained the in-law unit as a rental but shrunk it from two floors to one, creating space in which to carve out an office and a guest bedroom on the bottom floor of the main house.

The residents store perishable items that don’t need refrigeration—like fruits, vegetables, onions, and garlic—in maple-lined pantry drawers.

The catwalk above leads to the master bedroom. The living-dining room’s Stix chandelier is from Nido Living.

A family of cost-conscious Hamburgers converted a kitschy turn-of-the-century villa into a high-design home with a strict budget in place. To unite the quaint masonry of the original villa with the squat, ugly add-on built flush against it, the architects decided to paint the old-fashioned facade graphite gray and then covered the box next door in plain, light-colored larch. Photo by Mark Seelen.

Despite their dark color palette, black and white kitchens can still feel bright. This tiny kitchen perfects the art of chiaroscuro with white shiplapped walls, custom-built open shelves and dark concrete floors. The owners selected sleek faucet fixtures by Santec and a sink by Blanco to complement the white laminate countertops. The stainless steel appliances include a Bertazzoni oven, Fisher & Payel refrigerator, and Thermador dishwasher.