“The home is quite small, but designed in such a way that you don’t feel it,” Herrin says. Lift-slide openings by Quantum Windows & Doors, which were fabricated fewer than 50 miles from the house, make the main living space seem larger.

Bakker’s girlfriend, fashion and furniture designer Brecht Duijf, sometimes suggests colors for designs. “I would not have been able to think of these colors,” Bakker says, holding up tiny ceramic chips she selected to determine the palette for Jug, a water carafe with a neck bent over a drinking cup, looking like a primordial creature feeding its young.

Designed by Eric Magnussen for Stelton, the Vaccum Jug contains a interior glass vessel to efficiently insulate beverages for hours on end. It's remained in production since its launch in 1977, it has continued to be released in new colorways, including these metallic finishes in gold, silver, and copper.

Recessed ceiling lights, speakers, and the range hood ductwork are all concealed by the dropped ceiling. The stools are West Elm.

When working in the studio, Bakker says, “I always need to speak my idea out loud. Speaking and sketching at the same time help me to explain the idea. Then I do all the technical drawings myself because they drag me out of the illusion that I am almost there.”

Tall indigenous wetland grasses grow fecund, right up to the border of the saltwater swimming pool.

Maggie Treanor waters plants around her rural home.

Mila designed the home’s concrete pool, which is finished with a custom plaster. The pool area includes sleek chairs from Cast + Crew.

A 41-foot-long heated saltwater pool includes a submerged tanning ledge. The hot tub was created using concrete and stucco. The outdoor area includes lounge chairs from Jøna’s curatory, Cast + Crew.

The all-over green tiles of this bathroom feel the most like camp.

Mary Henning and Ann Wansbrough's renovation of a semidetached cottage enables them to use 75 percent less town water than the average two-person home.

Located in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, the original 1916 factory building was converted to rental units in the 1980s and condominiums in 2005. The extensive drop ceilings were probably cost-saving heating measures by the original owner. With the apartment facing the less-exposed North and West elevations, the architect had to maximize the amount of sunlight the space could admit.

The Best Watering Can Although they admit that a watering can is a luxury (any old pitcher will do the trick) having a good watering can does make the chore easier. They recommend the Haw Bosmere V115 5-liter because it “produces a gentle rain the spindliest seedlings could love.”

Eujin: Soma Water Move aside Brita and Bobble, because there's a new water filter in town. And it's 100% biodegradable and sleeker than that decorative object perched on your living room table. The simple and elegant design (which immediately reminded me of Dieter Rams) is all thanks to great talents Markus Diebel, IDEO's design director, and incase's cofounder Joe Tan, who designed the curved beauty and Manual's Tom Crabtree who took the helm on packaging. The release date is near, so I'd hop to it if I were you.

In the backyard, Umerani and Fashandi decided to limit the lawn to minimize water consumption.

They installed water-saving artificial grass on their patio for pup Moxy to enjoy.

A freestanding tub from the Water Monopoly.

A limited number of Drop chairs were made for the hotel, then production ceased. In 2014, Fritz Hansen revived the design. Hayon upholstered this particular one with bold, blue fur.

DROPIT WALL HOOKS The Dropit hook is a wooden, drop-shaped hook with a strong visual expression and exquisite finish. Hang a single drop on the wall or create a pattern using several Dropit hooks.

At night, the entire studio glows like a lantern, its light amplified by the reflection in the seasonal pond. I

The Wire Drop Silver Ornament by CB2 shows that negative space, when carved out by a wire frame, can be a beautiful thing.

Six-inch-square blue tiles cover the walls and floor of the girls’ upstairs bathroom. The towels and rug are also by H&M Home.

A bathtub that looks out to views of the trees,

When upgrading this 1960s midcentury home in Austin, Texas, local architects local architects Rick and Cindy Black created a new powder room with punchy Jill Malek wallpaper, a turquoise built-in cabinet and vanity support and a mirrored shelving unit with a back wall painted orange-red.

Cubic bookshelves do double duty as a dividing wall and as a sliding door opening up to a hidden bath.

The walls of the apartment were left unplastered.

A skylight carved into the spa building appropriately fills this relaxation zone with natural light.

The bathroom is clad in blue penny tile, and natural light pours in to illuminate it all. “It’s almost a spa-like experience,” says Khoi. The tiles are from Bedrosians.

The simple, pared-down aesthetic and the open-ended time frame of the project—along with the couples’ building and design skills—helped Odgård and Lyng Hansen achieve their renovation on a miniscule budget, with a project outline that ebbed and flowed with Odgård’s professional successes in product design.

A cheerful, blue tiled bathroom.

Cultivating a garden not only helps you and your family live a greener lifestyle, but also saves on grocery bills, too. Start a fruit and vegetable patch in your backyard or roof terrace; and if you live in an apartment with limited outdoor space, try growing herbs and even vegetables inside.

How did the collaboration come about with Soma Water? After meeting with Mike we were immediately drawn to the idea of rethinking how we filter our water while also helping to solve the global water problem. There was great synergy and chemistry and we started to get to work. Tell us a little more about the design process. We set out to create the best water drinking experience and brainstormed different ideas and scenarios. We then created a few concepts and prototypes to validate our ideas. Soma went with the most iconic which happened to be one of the more challenging designs to make into a real product. We had to fail a lot along the way, chartering new territory, exploring what worked and what didn't, but we were also able to apply and further develop and apply our design process to facilitate creative decision-making and hone in on making the best idea a tangible reality. Looking back, this was an amazing process to see a big idea come to life.

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