Downtown Living unites two mid-rise apartments in Boston, MA, United States, by Walker Architects into a single elevated home oriented to a sweeping city panorama. The clients—downtown academics—kept their original residence and added an adjacent unit for relaxed gathering, games, and study. The result ties modern simplicity to rich material comfort, from paneled arrival to a long living room anchored by stone and steel, with new finishes extended across the public rooms.
Whidbey Uparati sits in Island County, WA, United States, as a house by Wittman Estes. The family retreat is designed for uparati—stillness—set lightly above a meadow. It folds a courtyard plan, cedar cladding, and wide glazing into a quiet, high-point perch with views to Useless Bay and the Olympic Mountains, aiming for connection to land and shared rituals.
Un Plaza Apartment sits high in Manhattan, New York, where Sherman Architects refines a once-compromised residence into a poised, open corner home. The New York studio pares back 1980s clutter to reveal long sightlines, reconnecting rooms to the tower’s mid-century order and the East River beyond. In this apartment, material restraint and precise moves restore calm, clarity, and the views that matter.
M.H. Lair is a new house by Claret-Cup in Los Angeles, CA, United States, set into a steep Montecito Heights hillside. The three-story residence uses courtyards, terraces, and a winding circulation to pull daily life outdoors while threading privacy back inside. It reads contemporary without fuss, favoring fold-away thresholds, a cinder block spine, and rooms that adapt to guests or quiet routines.
Northern Writing Studio lands in Northport, MI, United States, as a compact house-scale retreat by Mathison Mathison Architects. The project replaces an aging garage beside a turn-of-the-century farmhouse, giving the owner a place for writing, rest, and time with family. Plainspoken in form and tuned to daily use, it folds a small sitting room, galley kitchen, and lofted sleeping quarters into a durable, modern shell.
Sausalito Retreat sits atop Wolfback Ridge in Sausalito, CA, United States, a three-level house reworked by 35th Collective. The 2,500-square-foot, 1951 structure now expands to three bedrooms and three baths with broad glazing and timber-lined rooms. Inside and out, the project reads as a quiet refresh that leans into wood, stone, and brass while opening to the San Francisco Bay.
Nest sits on a ski-in/ski-out site in Park City, United States, where Sparano + Mooney Architecture steers a house toward light, views, and daily mountain rhythms. The design leans into the setting with radiata pine, board-formed concrete, and durable metalwork while threading sustainable systems throughout. It reads as mountain modern in spirit without losing its grip on real, everyday use.
Stealth House lands in Austin, TX, United States as a compact house by Specht Novak that hides its life within. The 2024 ADU turns its back to the street with corrugated Cor-Ten cladding, then opens to courtyards and full-height glazing that soak interiors in daylight. Privacy drives the parti, yet the plan feels effortless and bright.
