House Conversion And Restoration | Bofors Tower Dunkirk | Kent | England | Allies Morrison Architects

Bofors Tower is the restoration and conversion into a house of a Grade II listed redundant anti-aircraft gun emplacement. It was built in 1940 to defend a radar station at Dunkirk in Kent.

The conversion retains the majority of the existing fabric. The new components consist of glazed curtain walls and zinc or render-faced external walls set back from the outside faces of the existing frame, and a flat roof which oversails the building on all sides. This is extended to provide protection to the south stair. Large sliding doors connect each of the principal rooms to the deck and roof terrace.......more

Single Family House | Magnolia | Seattle | Washington | Heliotrope Architects

A new residence located in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood designed as a simple three-story form wrapped in a cedar rainscreen and stretched across the width of the property to maximize views west toward Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. Spaces are arranged according to the importance of prospect and refuge. Primary social spaces are located on the top floor where the view is best and where kitchen, dining and living flow seamlessly together in one loft-like space. Private functions - sleeping and bathing - occur on the second level screened from the street. The ground floor contains entry, garage and an opening through the house, front to back – a covered exterior gathering space that frames the view of water and mountain for the passerby at the street.......more

The Duncan House | Kinloch | Fife | Scotland | Gareth Hoskins Architects

The Duncan House is a new private house set within a listed walled garden in Fife. The project combines the clients’ aspirations for a ’glass house’ together with a response to the formal geometry of the enclosing walls, paths and borders of what was the original fruit garden of the adjacent country house......more

Villa Anbar | Dammam | Saudi Arabia | Peter Barber Architects

is a private house in Dammam, Saudi Arabia for a romantic novelist who spends much of her time in London. It is a single story building with a high walled roof terrace, central courtyard and frontgarden with swimming pool.
The building is an essay in the stripped aesthetic of Arabic vernacular and early Modernism. It is also a critical exploration of the complex social and power relationship encoded within the layout of a Saudi house.

The Projects has been twice shortlisted for the International Aga Khan Award for Architecture.....more

A House Made of Two | Yokohama | Japan | NAF Architect and Design

This is a project of one family living in two houses built slightly apart from one another.

One great volume of a house which covers the entire plot was supposed first. Then this volume was carved in a curve in three segments and two volumes at the both ends were built as two houses on the site.

The wood structures and finishing materials of two houses are standardized to emphasis the relations of two volumes being originally from “one great volume” and that they are one though apart. Carved volume in the middle became a courtyard leading to the approach to two houses.

Having another house for movies at night, overnight guests or work at home allows the inhabitants the liberty to do what they please at a time they want. This distance between two houses may be just right for inviting grandparents to move in someday or providing privacy to children at puberty.

The purpose of building two houses slightly apart is not the same as that of having a villa at a resort or a farm household having a main building and a barn.

This project is an experiment for allowing more life style options in the life based in the urban area.......more

Family Residence | Melbourne | dKO Architecture

A distinctive corner site in one of Melbourne’s premier bayside locations set the ground rules for this iconic family residence – further reinforcing the strong trend of return to family and a less frenetic lifestyle.

A robust play of light takes the main stage with reflective surfaces such as stainless steel, marble, mirror and glass. A timeless aesthetic is ensured – strongly supported by considered fixtures and finishes, understated lighting and neutral pallet...........more

Single Family House | Nvt | Netherlands | Mecanoo

This private villa is beautifully situated on a hill in the natural landscape region of the Veluwe. The residents enjoy magnificent views of the Rhine River from their living room. The design for the villa takes its inspiration from the beautiful views from the living room and main bedrooms and also from the spacious kitchen/lounge area toward the big garden. Large terraces elevate the house to just above grade, making the house appear as if it is floating. The villa’s transition from interior to exterior is gradual and a canopy surrounding the whole house provides beautifully framed views while allowing the outdoor spaces to be enjoyed in the summer and fall. The round forms of the villa express the wish of the family to stay close to nature while simultaneously realising an individual design..........more

Housing Development | The Giverny | Hong Kong | Ronald Lu And Partners

Giverny is a low-density residential development consisting of 63 row houses, one clubhouse and one main street.....more

Ludwig Penthouse | San Francisco | California | Craig Steely Architecture

Located in the penthouse of a concrete high-rise on Aquatic Park. The original 4-bedroom/4-bath penthouse was a rabbit's warren of confusing rooms. In our re-design, rooms were combined and uses were re-assigned to allow the occupants to take advantage of the views looking north and south and the movement of the sun through out the day. Materials used are clear and etched 1/2" glass, slabs of Black walnut, hand made mosaic tile walls, and gun blued steel.....more

Clear Link House | West Lake Hills | Texas | Cottam Hargrave

The 2800 sf Clear Link House provides expanded living spaces that unite indoor and outdoor living.
 A local architect early in her career designed the original 950 square foot house. We liked the design of the original house and believed it was an asset not only to the owners but also to the community. Maintaining its integrity was important. In addition to attaching 2800 sf which included a large living and office area, two bedrooms and three baths, we sought to take a positive position in the new Westlake paradigm by embracing the original design and minimizing the visual impact from the street.....more

310 Waverly Residence | Palo Alto | California |

An urban insertion in the suburban grid, this steel and stone home becomes progressively private as the rooms move toward the West.....more

Summer Home In The woods | Orcas Island | Washington | Heliotrope Architects

The design brief called for a very low-impact, easy to maintain summer home that provides necessary programmatic functions with minimum distractions from the land and the view. The design response situates the structure among mature fir trees located directly between the beach and an upland meadow, with walls of glass opening out to both. Steel columns minimize visible structure from the interior, while metal-clad wall elements provide a bold form when seen from the exterior. The roof is vegetated, which filters rainwater that in turn is collected and stored for use in irrigation. Potable hot water and hydronic heating are aided by solar collectors on the roof, and PV panel s above the vegetable garden provide supplemental electricity. The home is intended for occupancy from May through October, and systems have been designed to zero out electricity use over the course of a full year.....more

Apartment 4D Renovation | Ottawa | Ontario | Kariouk Associates

This project entailed the transformation of two, small, conventional apartments into a flexible, pragmatic, urban dwelling. The emphasis to design for flexibility was such that the new live-work environment would accommodate life changes and evolving work, social, and seasonal requirements without necessitating subsequent costly renovations or moves. The next challenges of this renovation were to create a bright space from a dark, north-facing space, and to create abundant storage where none formerly existed.....more

Apartment Design | Tartu Rebase Street | Estonia | Atelier Thomas Pucher

The villa-type has changed over the centuries. Long after Palladio made an icon with the Villa Rotonda in 1571 it was Mies who set the standards for villas in the 20th century with the Villa Tugendhat in 1930 and the Barcelona Pavilion in 1929. Still in our days the single family house a sometimes romantic vision of the villa - is the most wanted living type; more than 50% of our population want to have it or at least dream of it (Despite of the high costs and influence on our environment).........more

Green Dwelling | BOUCHER GRYGIER SHIPPING CONTAINER HOUSE | Leger Wanaselja Architecture

The shipping container is the standard for shipping goods from place to place. Built to exacting specifications to withstand tremendous loads and, with refrigerated units, to maintain low internal temperatures efficiently, these vessels of commerce make excellent building blocks for architecture. Even after many trips around the globe, they still easily meet or exceed the building codes for construction. As a net importer, the US ports are filled with them.........more

Esplanade House Porthcawl | South Wales | United Kingdom | Stride Treglown

This scheme involved demolition of the existing Esplanade Hotel and the construction of 42 residential apartments and approximately 420 sqm of retail at ground level.
The concept was developed from nautical and seaside references intended to re-invigorate the decaying seafront.
The bowing copper façade is the dominant construction feature and is flanked by a natural stone corner tower, obliquely rendered balconies, and zinc clad duplex apartments topping the building.

Apartments are configured to focus on the dramatic sea views and are accessed by lift and open walkway to the rear of the building. An open informal court has been constructed to the rear area for the enjoyment of residents.....more

House Expansion | Midlothian Drive House By NORD Architecture

The one storey side extension allows a reconfiguration of the internal spaces to integrate the house more fully with the garden as well as providing a more useable family kitchen and service accommodation space.

The concept was to create an architecture of lightness that engages with the garden against a materiality that contrasts with the solidity and mass of the introverted Victorian sandstone structure. This lightness is expressed through a single planar skin of glass that wraps seamlessly around the extensions perimeter. The resulting glazed and slate enclosure creates a seamless link between the existing house and garden allowing the extension to act as a filter for viewing the garden.......more

Allandale House: A Cabin of Curiosities | Mountain West | William O’Brien Jr.

Allandale House is an A-frame(s) house for an idiosyncratic connoisseur and her family. Along with its occupants, the Allandale House also provides space for an eccentric collection of artifacts that resist straightforward classification. Wines, rare books, stuffed birds and an elk mount are among the relics on display in this small vacation house. The house links three horizontal extrusions of “leaning,” or asymmetrical A-frames. The skinny A-frame on the western side contains the library, wine cellar and garage. The wide A-frame in the center of the house is dedicated to two floors of bedrooms and bathrooms. The medium A-frame on the eastern side consists of living, kitchen and dining areas. The house aims to undermine the seeming limitations of a triangular section by augmenting and revealing the extreme proportion in the vertical direction, and utilizing the acutely angled corners meeting the floor as moments for thickened walls, telescopic apertures and built-in storage....more

[KO] mic House By Synn Architekten

The simple garden house for a collector is divided into the rich trees. As a sort of small museum offers the warped cube storage space and presentation area. The irregularly set windows convey the idea of the cabinet and frame as the end points of the route-views and vistas in the garden. A level ceiling increases to the garden-oriented living room, sits down in the bedroom above it (with a glazed-sided corner bay window) and continue deforming the cube at this point.....more

Xiao-Yen's House | San Francisco | California | Craig Steely Architecture

The extensive remodel of the house began by tearing away the substandard remodeling that had taken place over the past 100 years and replacing it with spaces more appropriate to the client's program. These included a more open plan for work and living, a sod roof, and a glass penthouse with the roof supported by a steel exoskeleton. The steel exoskeleton is part of a seismic upgrade that doesn't tear the existing building apart. It also supports decks on 2 floors and a pack a bi-facial solar panels.....more

Low Energy House | The Holm | Solway Firth | Scotland | Simon Winstanley Architects

This house is located in an idyllic setting in the Galloway hills just off a quiet ‘A’ road and a few miles from the Solway Firth. It was designed for the potter Will Levi Marshall and his family. The site was a large, relatively flat, wet paddock surrounded by mature trees. The house sits on the north east corner of the site to allow for south west facing living area. The paddock has been planted with wild flowers, so the timber building appears to sit lightly on the ground. The pottery sits at right angles to the house forming a court area and screening off the private garden. Both buildings have a semi industrial feel, softened by the cedar cladding. The house is organised in an L shaped plan; one length providing open plan living space which includes a kitchen, dining area and living space; and the other containing bedrooms, utility and a study. The living area has an expressed structure with a steel frame and exposed douglas fir joists with plywood decking. The southern elevations are fully glazed and allow the owner to open the house to the landscape. The entrance is located in a glass link between the living space and the bedrooms, so that as you approach the building there are views through to the garden.....more

North Park House | London | Burwell Deakins Architects

This discerning client still feels at home in the house designed for his family in the Eltham Palace Conservation Area. Set discreetly behind a mature yew tree, the simple geometry is layered elegantly away from the road. Service elements are to the north, while the more private spaces to the south bleed through generous windows and sliding doors into the shade of the orchard. Despite the contemporary form and simple structure, the careful use of traditional handmade bricks and Portland stone means the house sits easily within its environment. So much so, it won a Civic Trust Award.....more

Loft XX Paris 20 | France | LAN

Located in Paris, the project occupies the attic floor of a XIX century building. It is a tall space (5 meters at the ridgeline) under a high-pitched roof held up by two large wood trusses, and well lit with windows on both the front and back walls. In order to satisfy the client's desire to keep the exceptional volume of the space open, the architects placed all of the service functions, such as the kitchen, dressing room, closets, and bathroom, into one compact, almost free-floating, container. The "roof" of this container becomes the sleeping loft. Importantly, the container stays clear of the front and rear walls and the ceiling, just missing the bottom chord of one of the trusses.....more

Casa De Uno | Dear Architects

Shelter and intimacy are achieved on this specific construction that raises from a quoin, long and narrow, lot. The envelope recalls the notion of a back that bends over to protect against “the inhospitable of the times to do”; and for the one that knows how to observe, it allows him to sense an intimacy without distractions. Located along the narrow side, the pedestrian door, a wide steel plate, gives entrance to a cut of air that extends along the site, limited by the high neighboring wall and the even higher internal façade of the house; it is a gorge of light with the sufficient width to saturate with clarity each of the house precincts. The one that enters the house dwells this open air. Beams of light, at entering, reflect planes of clarity over the long adjoining wall.......more

Lucky Drop House | Tokyo | Atelier Tekuto

Among the increasing number of houses planned on small plots of land, this is out of the ordinary in shade and size, A 20-minute train ride from downtown Tokyo, 15-minuite walk from the station. It is a long, narrow trapezoid with a lower base of 3.2m as the frontage, height of 29.3m as the depth, and upper base of 0.7m at the very end of the site. Moreover, there is a local ordinance requiring a 0.5-meter set-back of external walls from the adjacent land. Conditions are extremely tough. From the moment I had looked through the site's situation, I have organized a collaboration system consisting　of the client, design, structure, construction and maker, then started off planning.....more