My Property Life

If there is one room in our house that we fear when it comes to a makeover, then it is definitely the kids’ room. It is a room filled with color, multiple motifs and often is a mix between what…

With the rapid evolution of the smart home, has privacy become just another setting? The connected home is inevitable. Like the plumbing, electricity, and refrigeration that came before it, the smart-home system will soon be an integral part of our…

The nostalgic shape gets a modern update at a guesthouse in central Ohio. Rick Hawkins grew up on a rented farm 25 miles east of Columbus, Ohio, growing corn, wheat, and soybeans with his parents and five siblings. When the…

In Palm Springs, a pair of prefab experts turn their process on themselves. Joel and Meelena Turkel, owners of Turkel Design, have produced dozens of prefab houses for other people since starting their company more than a decade ago. But…

A couple ask Olson Kundig to build on a family legacy in Vermont. It’s an image out of Robert Frost. Walter Sargent would take his daughter, Katherine, hiking on the densely wooded piece of land the family owned outside Stowe,…

The architect reveals how a humble bird’s nest influenced her idea of home. Nesting is often used as a metaphor for settling down, buying a house, and accumulating all of the accoutrements we assume make a comfortable life. But a…

This project was commissioned by a couple living in Vancouver who fell in love with Salt Spring Island (as many do) and decided to build their dream home on a beautiful high-bank waterfront lot overlooking views of Sansum Narrows and…

Planning a party in honor of a friend or family member who’s expecting? Good news: baby shower decorations have come a long way! From tabletop decor options to towering backdrops, the possibilities are endless. At the same time, countless choices…

SHED Architecture + Design fashions a more coherent layout for a Seward Park home with refreshing lake views. When the owners of this 1961 midcentury in Seattle’s Seward Park were first considering buying the property, they toured it with SHED…

Estudio MMX designed the concrete and brick volumes of the CMR House to create an elegant contrast with a verdant subtropical garden. Mexico City–based Estudio MMX designed this concrete and dark brick house around an existing garden that they found…

Listed for $1.68M, the Brittain-Wachs Residence is centered around a two-story garden room filled with an abundance of natural light. In 1948, prominent housebuilder Harry L. Brittain tapped his close friend Raphael Van Buren Livingston to design a home for…

The Triangle House The characteristic of the narrow, steep hillside plot is its tapering, triangular shape. The view sweeps far and wide over an extensive, natural landscape towards the valley. The layout of the stretched building follows the property line.…

Fall is a time for celebrating the harvest and nature’s bounty. No wonder we round up foliage and hang it on our doors as it begins to fall from the trees! While orange leaves and foam pumpkins grace many a…

Located in the center of Rome, the “Bow Window House” is a flat located on the fifth floor of a residential block. The building was constructed in the 1970s and was built using reinforced concrete. The flat’s interior was recently…

A blank canvas to create a new family home. On this slim vacant block, perched on a Brisbane ridgeline, we were engaged to design a comfortable and homely abode with the challenge set to capture the views, traverse the sloped…

We are always on the lookout for new decorating and design trends that not only improve the aesthetics of our home, but do so with a dash of exuberance and elegance. That is just what you get with the trendy…

Sim-Plex Design Studio transforms a tiny apartment into a flexible, four-bedroom home whose Zen-inspired interiors belie high-tech features. Hong Kong–based architect Patrick Lam is no stranger to small spaces. He lived in a small tenement apartment in Kowloon for many…

Originally constructed in the 1920s, the Magnolia Firehouse located in Oakland, California was operational until the 1960s. When modern fire engines could no longer fit within the building, the structure was no longer feasible for its original use. “The structure…