As the facade of a Bates Masi-designed home in Water Mill, New York, rises from eight to 14 feet high, the mahogany planks subtly widen. “It was quite a demand to make of the contractor,” architect Paul Masi says. “But the design was so much about traveling through the site and weaving [the house] together with the deck.”

This revamped Montreal flat includes a rooftop sauna lined with torrified, or dried, cedar. Outfitted with glass paneling and oriented to capture views of Mount Royal, it is the ideal haven for this hardworking homeowner.

Jeffrey Shumaker, chief urban designer for the New York City Department of City Planning, calls out the High Line, the wildly popular public park built on an elevated abandoned railway, as an example of cities seeing potential in underutilized spaces. "As delegations from other cities and countries visit the High Line, they always ask, 'How can we create our own High Line?' The answer I always give is the same: Think of something that's unique to your place, some place that's embedded in the fabric of your city that can have a similarly transformative effect," he says.

The Marimekko factory prints nearly 6,500 yards of fabric each day. The company typically purchases its material, usually cotton, in 2,200- to 5,500-yard rolls or pallets from Germany, Peru, Turkey, and the Baltic nations. Flat screen–printing makes it possible to divide repeats in sections and create large-size patterns, from 24 inches to several yards long.

Another print from the collection, called Meriheinä, depicts a kind of sea grass.

Frank Lloyd Wright's Spring House in Tallahassee, Florida, was commissioned by George and Clifton Lewis, who sought a comfortable house for their large family that fit within their modest budget. Completed in 1954, the home features an unusual "hemicycle" form—a shape that the designer briefly experimented with at the end of his career. Now, a fundraising campaign aims to acquire, restore, and open the house to the public.

In the bathroom, plain white tiles line the walls and ceiling. The floors are natural stone and the fixtures are by VOLA. Lassen built the sink himself.

The bathrooms are lined in luxurious Estremoz marble.

A close-up of the Meriheinä print.

The Merivuokko tea pot.

Fashandi arranges flowers and greenery for Persian New Year, which is a celebration of spring.

Each project comes with an introductory paragraph that provides basic details such as name, location, year, and architect (when known). The meat of the book is its visuals, as evinced by the nearly full-spread of the 1973 Lavie Residence (designed by William F. Cody) and its striking indoor-outdooor design.

Tom Givone's current weekend abode, nicknamed the Floating Farmhouse, is—so far—his capstone project, a synthesis of personal taste, material experimentation, and historically sensitive restoration: a living laboratory for how to bring the vernacular past into the present.

Overhead cabinets now can be easily swung open for ease of access. The kitchens are priced at IKEA’s usual retails. A 10 by 10 foot kitchen fitted with Sektion cabinets will range from around $1,300 to $2,200, excluding appliances.

Mexican encaustic tiles with a geometric floral pattern from Mosaicos Terra line the bathroom in Austin’s studio, where a full-height window near the wall-mounted shower provides a view to the expansive outdoor scenery. A vintage kewpie doll sculpture sits atop the custom terrazzo-and-granite counter; the steel mirror is from Artes de México.

Black and white kitchen tiles add visual interest to this stunning modern kitchen by IKEA.

The owners furnished the living room with a mixture of new and old pieces, including a Hans Wegner lounger and Tuckbox coffee table. A timber-lined hallway leads out from it to the newer parts of the home. Sections of steel-framed double glazing separate and accentuate each “house” while letting in glimpses of sky.

Räsymatto bedding by Marimekko in the studio is complemented by a green Anglepoise lamp from Sydney boutique Planet Furniture.

Set against the backdrop of the dry desert hills, the Ace's white buildings are an unpretentious makeover of an existing, rundown roadside motel. L.A.-based firm Commune and the Ace's own design team, Atelier Ace, approached the project as a curatorial endeavor, commissioning a number of artists and artisans from southern California and the Southwest to piece together the design elements. See more of the Ace Palm Springs here.

Made from a linen and cotton blend, the tea towel owns a chill retro vibe thanks to its bold graphics. $20 from usstore.marimekko.com.

The Lumimarja print by Marimekko.

Unikko coated cotton fabric $59 Unikko (poppy) was born in 1964 shortly after Armi Ratia had announced that Marimekko would never print a floral pattern. Maija paid no heed to Armi’s decree and designed an entire collection of floral patterns in protest. One of them was Unikko, a true icon of the future.

Puketti coated cotton fabric $40 The Puketti (bouquet) pattern from 1965 is a true Marimekko icon. Its minimalistic design language reflects functinalism, a key principle in Annika Rimala’s work.

Kuuskajaskari linen fabric$66.45 Brilliant panoramas. Bring the splendor of rainfalls and sun rays to the home all year long. This stunning fabric complements Marimekko's new, exquisite Weather Diary collection inspired by the beautiful autumnal nature of Finland.

Attika cotton fabric$48.69 Consisting of large colour blocks, the Attika print from 1959 is one of the bold graphic prints of Maija Isola.

Kuuskajaskari linen fabric $66.45 Brilliant panoramas. Bring the splendor of rainfalls and sun rays to the home all year long. This stunning fabric complements Marimekko's new, exquisite Weather Diary collection inspired by the beautiful autumnal nature of Finland.

Twisti cotton fabric $136.21 Named after a popular schoolyard game, Twisti (twist) takes us back to childhood summers.

Pähkinäpuu cotton fabric $35.94 The Pähkinäpuu print from 1974 exemplifies Katsuji Wakisaka’s close relationship to Japanese design tradition.

Taapeli cotton fabric $100.27 The quilt-like Taapeli (pile of boards) pattern takes us through the forest and all the way to a saw mill. There logs are being sawn into boards and placed in piles, or “taapeli” in Finnish, to dry.

A tiny outbuilding offers a cozy living space inside a simple shell.

Marimekko's spring/summer 2015 home collection, the work of Finnish artist Kustaa Saksi, features patterns and products inspired by the sea.

Fed up with flashy, environmentally insensitive beach homes, architect Gerald Parsonson and his wife, Kate, designed a humble hideaway nestled behind sand dunes along the New Zealand coastline. Crafted in the image of a modest Kiwi bach, their 1,670-square-foot retreat consists of a group of small buildings clad in black-stained pine weatherboards and fiber-cement sheets.

The family spends summers and school vacations at the bach. New Zealand's relatively mild winters mean they use the house year-round.

View of the High Line public park, a former elevated New York Central Railroad spur, or branch line.

The same print makes its way onto mugs, teapots, pillows, bowls, and plates.

Tanya Wexler and Amy Zimmerman linger in the breezeway designed to draw eyes, and footsteps, from the driveway through the house to the gently sloping backyard and swimming pool beyond.