A custom table surrounded by NET’s Museo chairs and poplar stools provides a space for the Sarmiento Tovo boys, Manuel, 5, and Julián, 3, to play with the toys their mother makes.

A 3,500-square-foot home in upstate New York was designed by the architecture firm Mapos with simple materials and passive design principles. The contemporary fireplace, which sits on buffed concrete flooring at the center of the ground floor, was custom-made by Mapos.

The custom cedar tub, fabricated by Dovetail, elegantly fits into the master bathroom.

The walnut staircase and slide in a Chicago town house leads from the main level to the basement. To protect people on the ride down, a “crash pad” fashioned from a standard gymnastic mat covers the wall at the slide’s base.

Sawatzky designed the bookshelves along the living room wall out of Ikea components: one-inch Lagan butcher block countertops and inexpensive Ekby Lerberg brackets. She also used pieces of the strong and attractive countertops for built-in shelves in the upstairs lounge as well as for trim in the kitchen.

Tanya, Chris, Jackson, and Zeke spend much of their day outside.

James's bedroom furniture was custom designed by Hatch Workshop.

The Lowreys worked with architect Luis Sánchez and a team of local craftsmen to complete the build. The custom counters in the kitchen are terrazzo and granite; the oven and cooktop are from Teka.

“The inside is, for the most part, concentrated on the local craftsmanship, because I believe it is very important,” Vanotti says. “It represents our history.” Artisan Vanotti Mauro built many parts of the building, including its most prominent feature: the larch wood accents. A custom fireplace warms the living room.

Upon approaching the hotel, the exterior seems quite tame, with a nice, clean, white façade greeting guests from afar. But once close, signs of life start to show, with pops of color emanating from various sides and unexpected places. For example, the porte-cochère’s underside is a lovely surprise, painted with the yellows and light greens from the hotel's palette of desert wildflowers: Staghorn Cholla, Sunflower, California Poppy, and Lantana Camara.

Hynam built additional storage along one angled wall of the bedroom loft and beneath the skylight.

A wide view of the renovated home situates it as it sits on Austin soil. Where the gentle swoop of the driveway meets the overhanging garage, the home's patio is just visible. A light in the new kitchen window further integrates the home with the neighborhood just beyond it.

Clad in Western red cedar siding and punctuated with floor-to-ceiling windows, this minimalist two-bedroom home boasts sunrise views over the Sonoma hills.

“The backyard, which was kind of the focus of the project, was overgrown and quite disconnected from the house itself,” said architect Nigel Parish. The glass doors of the addition open onto a patio and lawn where the kids can play.

MAD's custom-designed logo for The Home Front

Bernier’s firm designed the built-in storage, seating area, and kitchen island to be intentionally abstract, directing attention to the forest outside. Cabinetmaker Pixel & Scie manufactured the furniture.

Creative Direction The arrowhead-shaped corner at the end of the living room evolved from the need to accommodate a standard sliding-glass-door module. “It would have been astronomically expensive to custom-build it,” says Chris Bardt. This architectural gesture— the arrow “points” toward the river—“enabled us to be very generous with the view area without having to extend the entire house.”

Top designers give their advice about how to choose a stylish, functional faucet and what it will cost. Hint: it’s more than you may think.

Jonas runs up the custom walnut stairwell, with inset Corian handrail, that leads up to the second-floor master suite.

Ornate concrete blocks screen a storage area in the kitchen while letting light through. The effect is “romantic—romantyczny,” says Nix.

In the master bathroom, a matte Ove tub from Wetstyle is one of Maca’s favorite getaways. The angle of the custom window, designed with a minimal frame to maximize the view, mimics the roofline.

Wilkin and Pini hired Longma Joinery to build custom cedar windows and doors for their 270-square-foot addition.

Adrian designed the Basic coffee table.

In 2003, Resolution: 4 Architecture was one of 16 firms who participated in the Dwell Home Design Invitational—a competition to design a modern prefab home for $200,000. Their winning design, constructed in Pittsboro, North Carolina, is a groundbreaking case study that combines prefabricated construction with contemporary, modern design.

Custom kitchen cabinets designed by Pulltab and fabricated by Maciek Winiarczyk hold mostly vintage ironstone that Geiger has found at flea markets and estate sales over the past 20 years. "I love white," she says, "because I think food always looks better on it." She also collects vintage wooden cutting boards, shown resting against the marble tile backsplash from Stone Source.

In the master bath, a custom raised Silestone sink is surrounded by a teak countertop and Porcelanosa glass tiles. Teak slats anchor the glass-enclosed shower.

The sink in the half bath was special-ordered from Home Depot and Pavonetti designed the base to give the basin a snug fit. He built it out of a steel rod and painted it with black shoe polish.

In the shower: custom Carocim tile, created in Morocco.

In the family room, cabinets open up to create an office desk. The steps on the left lead up to a mezzanine space that serves as play space for the children and a sleeping area for guests.

Here's what you need to know before undergoing a building project with a contractor but no architect.

In the kitchen, artist Riley McFerrin installed custom floating shelves.

Here, laminate kitchen cabinets are topped with Corian in Glacier White for a fresh and fun color-blocked look.

A carpet of custom tile created by Navone punctuates a corridor on the first floor.

When not in use during winter, the tub is hidden from the home’s view. The entrance has a sheltered overhang for car parking.

The LV Series homes by Chilean-American designer Rocio Romero are simple, modern, and environmentally conscious. These homes are meant to connect their owners to the outdoors through steel load-bearing posts that create large openings for glass windows. Specific designs can be tailored to the location and lifestyle of the customers. Although flat-packed and easily shipped, the LV series requires a contractor for construction.