Here's a detail shot of the stool. The leather comes in four options—black, chocolate, tobacco, and saddle—and the brightly hued backing fabric comes in ten—sky, radish, egg yolk, cream, camel, charchol, sand, mocha, chocolate, and black.

Architect Ulrich Hamann's rendering of the new addition to the Lenbachhaus Museum and Gallery; the Stadtische Galerie Im Lenbachhaus. Image courtesy of Lenbachhaus Gallery and Museum.

Inspirational spaces

Because their loft is a rental, David and Im Schafer built everything to be removable.

British artist Hannah Sawtell and technologist Avi Flombaum created sawbaum.com, where users can create visual collages using multiple vine streams. "We wanted it to look like a visual comic book, with overlapping panels," said Flombaum. "And we wanted it to be fun!" Photo courtesy Rhizome.

I.M. Pei, Luce Memorial Chapel (1963) When architect I.M. Pei designed this chapel for Tunghai University in Taiwan, he had to take local conditions, like typhoons and earthquakes, into account. His plan, which, included a curved roof of glazed, diamond-shaped tiles and interior ribs of reinforced concrete that run like ribbons towards the cross mounted on the roof, was an elegant solution to the challenges of the local environment. Photo courtesy Valter Wei, Creative Commons

Broken, 2014. I.M. Pei's Fountain Place in Dallas, Texas, built in 1986. “He used angles, triangles, planes and prisms to create a seemingly impossible visual space with this building,” says Olic. “The view from the east makes the structure seem broken and folded down the middle.”

In the bathroom, they did "basically surface things," says Im.

Luce Memorial Chapel in Tunghai, Taiwan, 1963, by I.M. Pei.

Here's IM Pei's Meyerson Symphony Center done up for the holidays.

Illustration via drawastickman.com.

“I’m a huge fan of yellow,

"I wanted the bones of the house to be bold, strong and simple,

The architects incorporated sustainably sourced parota wood into the living room’s sunken seating area. The Turn Tall side table is from Blu Dot, and the pillows are from West Elm.

A young Finnish designer bypasses building permits by creating an affordable tiny home under 100 square feet.

The journey through the dark tunnel to the new, light-filled addition is both a texturally interesting and atmospheric experience, where the contrast between old and new, dark and light, can be felt.

Piet Hein Eek's wooden chairs add a touch of color to the monochromatic apartment. "I'm a fan of simple modern furniture, with a twist," says Carr. "I wanted to buy everything from Piet Hein Eek."

Project Name: Orinda Connect 8 & Connect 2 Website: connect-homes.com/dev...

Photo from blackandwtf.tumblr.com

One of the witticisms found on livethesheendream.com.

Local sailboat shops wanted thousands to make the 13-by-13-foot curtain that hides the Wall of Storage. "We we called my parents in Bangkok, gave them the dimensions, and they got it made for 150 bucks." says Im.

The Schaffer's furniture includes an Eames Aluminum Group lounge chair ("and ottoman!" adds Im.) A coffee table made of glued, corrugated cardboard was the couple's first project together, when they met in college eight years ago.

“I don’t paint landscapes when I’m here because I can’t compete with the natural beauty,” says Yael.

Bestor consulting with her demolition crew, in her kitchen-to-be. I'm hoping to get Bestor blogging about her renovation on Dwell.com—so stay tuned for that!

Ulysses word cloud poster from beautifulwordsbeautifulart.com.

“I studied architecture as an undergrad, and even though I’m in interiors now, that education of not overpopulating spaces, of letting the building be seamless, has always carried through for me,” says Caroline.

"Some people want a manicured garden, but I'm of a different mindset," says Patnaik. She left the grounds untamed and organic. "If we're building in the wild, I want to live in the wild."

I'm not in the market for dolls these days, but I'll be damned if these plush gals from goodbyebluemonday weren't adorable.

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.

One of the more understated of the series, I'm quite fond of the rough ropey texture against the leather.

Elfa by the Container Store / containerstore.com

The outdoor atrium of Family House Litvínovice is a completely private space that's well-suited for the installation of a hammock, outdoor bath, or shower. A11 designed the home to be an exploration of minimalism and privacy from the outside world.

"I'm not trying to do anything new in my work," Spellman states. "I'm simply trying to do it in my own way, and I'm still figuring out what exactly 'my own way' is."