The netting suspended over the water feature makes for a whimsical spot to stargaze.
The kitchen is streamlined and modern, with a black seamless backsplash, a minimalist faucet, and a wood-clad vent hood.
The budget was nearly as tight as the space in this cheerful renovation of a 516-square-foot flat in Bratislava. The centerpiece of Lukáš Kordík’s new kitchen is the cabinetry surrounding the sink, a feat he managed by altering the facing and pulls of an off-the-rack Ikea system. The laminate offers a good punch of blue, and in modernist fashion, Kordík forwent door handles in favor of cutouts. “I wanted the kitchen to be one simple block of color without any additional design,” he says.
For this Swedish kitchen, an extra-thin slab of Carrara marble was used for the countertop and backsplash so that it would recede into the space, not overwhelm it. The room is also outfitted with IKEA cabinets painted a serene powder blue—adding a vintage vibe, and a high-low sense of style.
The aluminum windows are powder coated in a charcoal color, which is intended to match the shadows created by the forest and help the building further blend in.
The bedroom is elevated around five meters above the forest floor, and the space beneath has—like the green roof—been given back to the Bushveld. “Naturally, this space is shadier than the surrounding forest, so it creates a different microclimate for different species to flourish in that area,” says architect Ant Vervoort. “It’s an area that we have cultivated.”
The design of this Australian houseboat features a soft, modern color palette. Here, light sage laminate kitchen cabinets are paired with leather recessed pulls.
Inspired by the sea and sand, Richard and Jackie Willcocks chose blue and orange joinery colors for their 1,140-square-foot prefab. The modular home is by New South Wales company ArchiBlox.
After: Pink-toned terrazzo tile counters and a backsplash and olive green-painted cabinetry enlivens the kitchen, where the designers created open shelving using leftover plywood from the mezzanine ceiling panels.
In this kitchen, three globe pendants with brass details and burgundy cords match the hood tube hanging above the kitchen island.
Vibrant blue cabinets brighten up this kitchen and serve as a bold contrast to the exposed brick. The stainless-steel countertop wraps slightly up the wall, and creates a trough for storing items.
One of Catherine Williamson's favorite Semihandmade cabinets includes this appliance cabinet, which keeps things out of sight. The piece of art to the right is a vintage portrait from her grandparents.
Inside, rustic elements (like wood beams and whitewashed wood) nod to the structure’s former life, while walls of glass, black metal accents, and sleek furnishings give it a fresh, new look. After the renovation, the couple loved the guesthouse so much they decided to make it their full-time dwelling.
The Stewart-Schafer team hand-selected each slab of Calacatta Vagli marble to be book-matched. "We love the beautiful natural veining and imperfections of marble against the clean lines of the kitchen design," noted Stucker. To protect the marble, they used a trade secret sealing product that comes with a lifetime guarantee, which, according to Stucker "helps alleviate the hesitations some clients have with marble."
In the kitchen, olive green cabinets pair with Calacatta marble, stylish fixtures, and a circular, wood-clad island.
Hatchet Design Build took a contemporary approach with this kitchen while still drawing from the a traditional palette. The grain-matched walnut cabinets echo the walnut pocket doors elsewhere.
By removing walls and a counter peninsula jutting into the room, interior designer Corine Maggio was able to create enough space for a generous island. The stove wall is a fitting focal point with a hood vent accented in tigerwood and a quartz slab backsplash that helps to tie the space together.
A custom-made black walnut dining table is surrounded by chairs from Matthew Hilton Designs. A Lindsey Adelman chandelier hangs overhead. The team chose to paint the dining room in Railings by Farrow and Ball to create a mood apart from the airier kitchen and living area.
A ladder in Skye's bathroom leads up to a secret passageway.
5. "What are the top 10 most important things I must have in a home?"
"If there are two people buying the home, write your answers down separately, starting with your absolute must-haves," Hoffman explains. “Putting together a list separately can give both parties and the realtor a clear picture of what the perfect home will have for both of you."
The addition is connected to the existing home by a glass "bridge" that serves as the entry and maintains visual continuity through to the backyard.
Lanefab Design/Build demolished the existing carport and replaced it with a new addition that included the new entry, dining room, family room, mud room, and garage.
The house was originally designed for a different site, with the entry door in the middle of the ground floor; however, the site was changed and the house was built in its current location without altering the design. As a result, the home's relationship to its site "is a bit more ad-hoc than other Erickson projects."
"Clad in economical fiber-cement siding, the ADU reaches down to the ground, while the stucco cladding of the garage reaches up, forming a semi-enclosed entry sequence," says Martin.
The floor plan was streamlined by demolishing a wall between the living room and dining area. A staircase with white oak steps leads to the new top floor, which contains the master suite, roof deck, and study. “Opening up the space a bit, improving the views and flow, and adding that upper level added more opportunities for Greg and Kirsten to enjoy time with their family,” says architect Robert Miller of Bohlin Cywinski Jackson.
The original entryway, conceived as an aperture to view beyond, was updated with more glass. The street-facing exterior was bumped out four feet toward the road to create additional space.
From the front, Greg Hoffman and Kirsten Brady’s home in Portland, Oregon, bears little resemblance to the daylight ranch house that once stood in its place. Yet upon closer inspection, it is clear that the enlarged structure is actually an updated version of the same dwelling that has occupied the site since the early 1950s. More windows, a trellised roofline, a basalt privacy wall, and a flat-roofed, top-floor addition are among the most striking changes. Plantings were also added to enhance the yard. “There was zero landscaping,” says Greg, “If you look at the original photos, the house was just sitting on the ground.” All of the new features are carefully oriented so that the sightline from the street through the house to the vista beyond remains open. “The original house had a gap in the hedge so people could see the view,” Greg recalls. “We said, ‘Let’s keep that.’”
A new built-in bench is now tucked into the corner.
In the kitchen, the team refinished the original cabinets, supplemented them as needed, and introduced a new stainless steel countertop. New appliances provide modern functionality.
Major interior moves include restoring the tinted concrete flooring throughout, as well as the abundance of Philippine mahogany in the ceiling, walls, and cabinetry. The team also built custom furnishings designed by Wright, such as the dining room table, here surrounded by Nakashima chairs.
The south view of the home shows how “Wright characteristically located the house to be slightly below the highest point of the hill,” says the firm, which has renovated many Wright residences.
Chicago–based Eifler & Associates Architects leads a painstaking renovation of the rarely published home located in Barrington Hills, Illinois—overseeing everything from a sagging roof to a Wright-designed dining room table.
After: A commanding carport greets visitors at the entry point to the house.
The stairway was backed with this worn-down terra cotta, which made little sense with the modern design of the loft.
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