Long before he moved into the historic building, Dutch architect Felix Claus admired 51 rue Raynouard, an apartment block in the Passy district of Paris designed and built in 1932 by Auguste Perret. One of the seminal architects of the 20th century, Perret is renowned for high-profile commissions like the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris and the post–Second World War rebuild of Le Havre, and for his pioneering use of reinforced concrete. He constructed 51 rue Raynouard to house the design firm he ran with his two brothers and created a 1,830-square-foot apartment on the seventh floor for himself and his wife. Here, the apartment’s balcony offers an impressive view of rue Raynouard.

Durable, economical, and easy to build, the simple A-frame was once the must-have midcentury vacation home. Today, the classic retreat has been propelled back to popularity, thanks largely to photo-centric platforms like Instagram and Pinterest. Read on for 20 charming A-frame homes that caught our eye.

POOL realized the graphic identity, interior design, and most of the furniture of Café Craft in Paris, France. While still remaining true to the spirit of the café, the designers highlighted the architectural lines of the building with the stark contrast of black and white. No longer is it a place just to grab a coffee and pastry to go. Photo by: Samuel Kirszenbaum

Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, France-Paris' Bibliotheque nationale de France consists of 4 open-book-shaped towers arranged around a dug-out mature forest courtyard. Constructed in 1996 to replace a previous library building that could no longer hold the expanding collections, the 22-story structures make this library one of the largest in the world. Photo: Panoramas

The second bedroom, shared by two young children, offers a private space away from the rest of the home. The owners and architect alike made sure to maintain the apartment’s original features, including the ceiling moldings.

Paris, France-Arguably the most famous city in France, Paris is the site of such visitor favorites as the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame Cathedral, and Sacre Couer. While there is no shortage of historically prominent architecture in Paris, modern structures have also been cultivating their reputation in the city of love. Architectural students and fans alike will not want to miss the Grande Arch, as well as I.M. Pei’s glass pyramid in the Louvre. Photo by: Jon Barbour.

Can you spot the cluster of Ball Lights inside Italian footwear brand, Sergio Rossi's shop in Paris, France?

The Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France.

UNESCO Headquarters (Paris, 1951) Le Corbusier was initially recommended to design this structure, but budget issues from his previous UN project in New York led to the appointment of Breuer, Bernard Zehrfuss of France, and Pier Luigi Nervi of Italy. Breuer left his stamp on the facade of the main building, the Y-shaped “three-pointed star,” creating soaring concrete shapes that would be a signature of his public works for decades to come. Photo Credit: Matthias Ripp, Creative Commons

Situated on a natural promontory in Coupeaux, France, the home’s plan and expansive windows open it to the beautiful surroundings outside.

Le Corbusier's outdoor garden with a fireplace and the grass lawn 'carpeting.'

In the living area of Daniel Rozensztroch’s Paris apartment, an Eames La Chaise and a butterfly chair complement a Moroccan Berber rug.

The roof of the Publicis Groupe’s building in Paris is home to a variety of trees and potted plants, providing a peaceful retreat for employees. Photo via Pbase.

“We really wanted to capture the ruinous quality of this old building rather than do something overtly new,” says Greg Blee, founding partner at Blee Halligan Architects. Before construction could begin, however, he and Halligan had to patch the remaining walls using stones found in the nearby river. Wherever a wall had collapsed, the designers inserted framing to create windows and doors. For the roof, they turned to the original tiles. “My father’s terrible at throwing things away,” Blee says. “We took the tiles off 30 years ago, as it was too dangerous to have them up there. They’ve been sitting in the fields ever since, and this was our last chance to use them.”

The home’s interior design, featured in Vogue and widely celebrated, was an unusual foray into residential surrealism by Le Corbusier and his cousin, Pierre Jeanneret.

The roofs of each of the three sections of the home are constructed of zinc and are insulated for added protection.

The result: a house that looks like it’s just been dropped into a field, casual, with nary a path leading up to it and a front door that can barely be detected on the red-cedar-shingled facade.

Charles de Beistegui, a collector living in Paris in the 1930s, commissioned Le Corbusier to design a spectacular penthouse apartment for him on the Champs-Élysées. Though the home no longer exists, save for archival black-and-white shots, Michael Herrman was greatly inspired by it. Seen here, a spiral staircase in the living room of Beistegui's apartment.

Rue Vignon's floor plan.

A far cry from minimalism, the renovated 900-square-foot Paris flat belonging to Nicolas Roche, a scion of the French furniture company Roche Bobois, is decked out with vivid hues and vintage furniture. A 1960s orange lamp by Luxus is suspended over the Warren Platner dining table and chairs. The 1950s rosewood glass cabinet is from Soriano. Pod Lens pendants by Ross Lovegrove for Luceplan hang from the ceiling.

Blanc took the term "living room" to a different level with this striking 20-by-23-foot interior wall for the Dimanche family's home in Paris.

A laser-cut-steel staircase connects the two floors.

“The upper floor includes the entry, cloakroom, guest bathroom, kitchen, dining room, living room, and terrace,” Hammer says. “In contrast to the lower floor and its separated rooms, the living area is composed as an open space with no walls.” Nerd Chairs by David Geckeler for Muuto surround a handcrafted nutwood table in the dining room.

An architect by profession, Roche removed as many partitions as he could when recasting the apartment’s interior, preferring transparency. He custom-made the red room divider from bungee cords.

“All interior walls were removed to create four individual rooms on the sixth floor,” Hammer says. The two children and the new baby share a bathroom. And in their bedrooms, storage continues to be key.

On the oversized terrace looking over the city, a Voido rocking chair by Ron Arad sits amongst the greenery.

“The clients contributed quite a few interesting pieces from their art collection, including photographs, a signed original bookstand prototype column by Tom Dixon, and traditional artifacts brought from their long stay in China,” Hammer says. New and original parquet floors, as shown in the master bedroom, add another layer of character throughout the home.

The Louvre Pyramid by I.M.Pei, installed in 1998. Quite stunning at night!

One of the hardest things to do when looking at potential homes is to overlook existing finishes, colors, and materials.

A Smeg refrigerator is one of a series of red accents that punctuate the black-and-white space.

The metal-topped side table is from Roche’s grandparents’ house and the lamp is vintage Vico Magistretti for Artemide.

The Elevations Architectural Print Series is a thoughtful collection of portraits of famous international cities. In architectural drawings, elevations are flat representations of the façade of a building, showing a complete view of one building’s side. At the bottom of each Elevations Print, studio esinam includes details about each building pictured. The Paris Elevations Architectural Print includes architectural drawings of five buildings—Sacré-Cœur, Palais Garnier, Arc de Triomphe, Pont Marie, and Centre Georges Pompidou.

A vintage console and a Noguchi floor lamp sit in front of an oxidized metal partition.

A vintage Eames rocking chair occupies a corner of the living room.

The living room features an Equation sofa and Bi-Pod stool, both from Roche Bobois, atop a 1970s Siberian wolf carpet. Through online sleuthing, Roche found the red Boris Tabacoff chair at an Austrian gallery. The chandelier is vintage. Roche’s most-recent acquisitions include the traditional African masks, which he likes for their “aesthetic purity, the beauty of their forms.”