the area is characterized by small lots and post-war, spec-built semis, typically with small footprints and rooms, with no connection to the outside. as one of the few remaining affordable beachside suburbs of sydney, maroubra has seen an influx of young families wanting to be close to both the city and the beach. many houses in the area have undergone renovations ove...
The Red House is the latest, designed for an artist and percussionist. At only 90 sq m, and with a tight budget, it works efficiently to provide all the practical needs of life, while expertly elevating everyday materials and using light to make a simple house rich and engaging. Its red exterior sits in vivid contrast with the green of the bush, adding a burst of lif...
The house was built around them.' The explanation sounds almost like a throwaway line, but its reification as a solid, three-dimensional house in a quiet leafy São Paulo neighbourhood is gratifyingly breathtaking. In many ways, the aptly named Ramp House bears all the trademarks of Marcio Kogan's studio. The living room, invariably the focus of the Brazilian architec...
The field of geometry is inherently diverse, a study of every shape and form – so it's no surprise to find that geometric design offers equally limitless possibilities within the home. From the retro appeal of interlocking patterns to modernistic low-poly figures, you'll never run out of styles to explore. All three homes below express their own interpretation of this po...
Plus, natural materials are easy to adapt when it's time to change to something more vibrant. It's the ultimate win-win decor theme! If you're looking for ways to decorate your home with relaxing organic tones, the stylish interiors below are sure to inspire. These designs show how flexible and versatile a natural home design can be: the first home is light and chic, whi...
The high street is at the heart of an increasingly coveted part of town, but is far enough away from central London to offer space and opportunities for new builds. One such is architect Jonathan Tuckey’s latest project, the Yard House, which is tucked away behind the high street and sits at the end of a row of more traditional housing. Tracy and Steve Fox, a buyer/styli...
Unfortunately, securing a beachfront plot proved impossible due to the popularity of the location – so the architects at 123DV had to take a creative approach with a home one plot back. Despite another house standing between this property and the beach, this uniquely tailored construction still manages to offer a breathtaking panoramic view with a raised foundation and a...
Whether you're dreaming of a small home to call your own, or just want to make the most of what you already have, these spaces demonstrate how creative constraints can lead to inspiring breakthroughs. In fact, many adventurous souls who could otherwise afford spacious abodes are opting for a more streamlined lifestyle by choosing cozy apartments like these. It goes beyon...
Its rounded core wall - off of which the rest of the 540 square foot structure is cantilevered - at its apex traces the curving path of the sun on the longest day of the year. 'In and around the house you have a constant awareness that the sun is doing something to you,' said Wassmann, who likes to talk about the 'cosmic influence' on his work. The spiraling wall, wh...
Ireland is peppered with small houses, often built on family-owned farmland, that have evolved over the years with a series of add-ons. 'In Ireland it is normal to build new houses next to the old ones,' says Markus Schietsch, 'The old houses get abandoned and function as stables, stone pits or just become ruins.' This house on the outskirts of the village Inchigeelagh w...
Scoping out enviable abodes is a little like enjoying a modernist fairytale, a fun way to expand the imagination and get new ideas that can work just about anywhere. The four luxe homes below are rich with creative design concepts to indulge your love of luxury.
It's a great option for modern homes, a necessity for monochromatic palettes, and works as a fantastic background for colorful designs too. And best of all, it's the epitome of neutral so it can grow with your interior as your tastes change over time. The designers featured here use gray in several different ways and each example is inspiring.
These homes really shine through their methodical approach to illumination, using fixtures and fireplaces from the most innovative designers of our era. Positioning, coordination, material, purpose, interaction - each factor deserves careful attention.
a man came upon the dwelling while walking one day, and after stopping to appreciate it, decided that he would like to own it. though the plot was merely 66m2, and located on a narrow, forgettable alley, it had the potential to be great. the owner contacted hyoungnam lim and eunjoo roh of architecture office studio_GAON, with the intent to totally overhaul the structu...
the dwelling was designed especially for a philanthropic art collector, interested in the encouragement of emerging artists, helping them to reach the next tier of their careers. it is this desire in particular that shapes the house and its sub-forms (artist studio’s) that serve to provide the support. the house has been set-out using the strong linear aspects of exis...
the first thing they encountered was an accumulation of unsympathetic additions that were masking the natural beauty of the stone structure that dated back to the 1850’s. the process of removing excess material, opening up the spaces, and inviting more light, was the driving strategy behind the design. the ceiling was pitched in order for it to reach up over the lounge i...
House in Nara is slotted into a thin sloping plot between a road and a neighbouring home to the west of the Nara Basin. The slender rectilinear volume by Kobe architect Keiichi Sugiyama measures five by 17 metres and is covered in a combination of cedar wood and muted brown render. An old masonry retaining wall was removed from the site to improve views of the city...
Local studio Architettura Matassoni, set up by architects Alessandro and Leonardo Matassoni, designed Villa N for the manager of a shoe brand. The house is arranged around a courtyard and occupies a sloping site near Arezzo, a city 50 miles from Florence. The uneven site and aesthetic preferences of the client prompted the "strategic dislocation of volumes, the use of...
Located on a hilltop in the port of Emporeios, the two-storey house was wrecked by an earthquake in 1933. Architect Giorgos Tsironis has since renewed the structure, and Joannides was tasked with transforming it into a temporary residence for artists. "The inspiration behind this design was to keep as much as possible of the original way the Nisyrians would build hous...
Hoping to brighten and update Xinsi Hutong House, Arch Studio began by removing parts of the existing floors to make room for a modern-looking white steel staircase. A box-shaped glass extension was added to the roof, allowing daylight to flood down through the open staircase into each level of the three-storey property. "Part of the floor slabs of the original bui...
The 4 Columns house is located 20 kilometres from central Tokyo, in a neighbourhood that was previously dominated by farmland and factories. The area has recently become popular with housing developers. FT Architects – which has previously designed a photography studio with translucent plastic walls – chose to create a three-storey structure with a simple cubic form t...
HAO configured the space to suit a family of four who wanted to be closer together whilst at home. "People today have such busy lifestyles that time spent together with other family members has become more precious than ever," said the architects. "Our client's biggest concern when arranging the interior decoration of their new home was to have a natural, open feel...
The five-storey property in Brussels' Schaerbeek commune was previously occupied by a family but became too large for the owners' needs once their children moved out. Brunet and Martens, who were collaborating on a project for the first time, were asked to separate the house into two flats so the owners could sell the lower portion of the building to a friend. The ...
Lisbon-based architect Inês Brandão renovated a 50-year-old barn in Leiria, Portugal to create the family home. "The aim was to maintain existing memories from a space that was once the stage to such varied experiences," said Brandão. "We chose to protect it and elect it as the protagonist of the new home of a young growing family." Limited budget meant the archite...
The DUMBO Townhouses project involved the demolition of a single-storey warehouse and the construction of a new building divided into five skinny single-family homes. Each unit measures 18 feet in width (5.4 metres) and encompasses 3,500 square feet (325 square metres). The development was built on a 4,600-square-foot (427 square metres) plot in Dumbo, a Brooklyn e...
The Japanese firm developed a type of "environmentally friendly" concrete for R Torso C, which uses particles of volcanic ash known as shirasu in place of traditional sand aggregate. The ash increases the strength and durability of the concrete, as well as helping to provide humidity control, said the architects. Aray Architecture also used shirasu bricks to help ther...
The three cork, aluminium and wood Muji Huts were launched by the Japanese brand during Tokyo Design Week 2015, and were created for construction in countryside locations. British designer Morrison's cork-panelled hut is a "small house to spend the weekend", designed to remove the complexity of building a new home from scratch. The cabin has a sliding glass door en...
Named Vault House, the two-storey residence was built over the site of a former taxi garage in Hammersmith, surrounded on all sides by neighbouring properties. This situation made it difficult to add windows on any of the walls, so London-based vPPR had to find a new way to bring daylight into the building. They added six skylights on the roof, as well as two courtyar...
Named Relation, the house was designed by Osaka-based Iwahashi to create a series of separate spaces that are visually connected to one another. The aim is for the resident family to feel connected to one another when occupying different rooms. "Wherever they are in the house, they can feel a sign of the family," explained the architect, whose other house designs i...
The architects combined the working and living spaces into one compact volume on a small plot of land in the Czech town of Bašť. "The client's hobby as race-car driver was actually the main impulse to build the house," Stempel & Tesar studio founder Jan Jakub Tesař told Dezeen. "The couple asked us to rebuild their old row house and create a space to work on race cars...
House in Wexford was designed by GKMP Architects for a couple with three young children, who relocated from an urban apartment to the rural location in Wexford County on Ireland's south-east coast. Occupying a large site that was previously farmland, it features lime-rendered walls and a pitched roof covered in slate to fit in with the local style. "We wanted the h...
The three-bedroom property was designed by Melbourne studio Glow Design Group for a couple with one child and another due soon. They asked for a contemporary, energy-efficient home that would make the most of its views across open farmland in the small town of Trentham, just over an hour's drive northwest of Melbourne. "They did not so much have set plans in mind o...
House in Yokkaichi was designed by Tokyo studio SYAP for a family living in a suburb of the city, which is located in Mie Prefecture. An angular clerestory window runs between the house and the tilted roof, allowing light to filter down to the open-plan ground floor. Eaves overhang the glazing at the front, offering shade from the brightness of the summer sun, whil...
London-based De Rosee Sa designed the 35-square-metre Woodland Cabin to function as a picnic venue, guesthouse or art studio, but didn't want the structure to look too new. This led to a design for a rustic wooden structure, which features an all-black exterior, a steeply pitched roof and a smoking chimney. The building is even pictured with a broomstick propped up ag...
The 6,000-square-foot (557 square metres) family home, called Modern Texas Prefab, is situated on a scenic site bordering a lake in Austin, Texas' state capital. Aamodt Plumb Architects – which has offices in both Texas and Massachusetts – divided the house up into two wings: a two-storey block for sleeping and a single-storey block for dining, entertainment and recre...
Prior to the renovation, the Clapton Warehouse was divided into small separate rooms that were subject to little natural daylight. "Before the refurbishment, the space did not function very well and the inner rooms were too dark," Sadie Snelson told Dezeen. "It suffered from damp problems, with condensation on the windows." The team removed all dividing walls to...
