Barndo exterior

London- and Oslo-based architectural practice Studio Bua turned a battered 1930s farm building into a 1,959-square-foot live/work space in Iceland’s remote Breiðafjörður Nature Reserve. To contrast with—but not distract from—the rugged outbuildings and surrounding landscape, the team built a low-impact timber insert that allows the existing structure to maintain its distinctive character while adding another level to the home. The architects meticulously restored the original concrete structure, which was "fragile in some places,

The apartment is entered through a courtyard tucked just off one of the main thoroughfares of the bustling, historic Marais district in Paris.

Two recreational tubs are heated by a solar heat pump.

“For me, architecture is pragmatic yet joyful,” Andrew says. “The entrance cut away allows for a deep cantilevering overhang that gives shelter when it's raining, and the 1400mm-wide pivot door is pure theatrics.”

“The scorched larch timber protects against water and is a beautiful, sustainable process that avoids harsh chemicals and paints,” Andrew says.

Stillwater's homes range in sizes from 1,000 square feet to 4,000 square feet or more, and every home comes with a striking butterfly roofline and a wall of windows.

Clients can be guided through the entire process, from initial permits to the finishing touches. The entire project can be completed in under two years, depending on its scale.

A narrow building next to the main structure houses storage and an outdoor kitchen.

Architect Jesse Garlick’s rural Washington vacation home references its rugged surroundings. The steel cladding has developed a patina similar to the ochre-red color of bedrock found in the area.

The white cedar exterior is rot- and insect-resistant, and has a beautiful silvery finish that will continue to patina over time.

An artist by trade, and gardener by passion, Allison Paschke commissioned Providence-based architecture firm 3SIXØ to build a modest cottage that would allow her to reconnect with nature. She landscaped the home’s lush gardens herself.

Now, large doors connect inside and out, as does the double-sided fireplace. Instead of installing a flat fascia board at the roof, Marlatt “went to a metal shop and had a stainless-steel V-shape fabricated. It gives us that sharp metal edge, almost like a wing of a plane.” The new deck is made of Pakari, a thermally modified pine that is chemical free, insect and rot resistant, renewable, and California fire-rated.

Sunshine flows through a large gridded skylight to illuminate an atrium at the heart of the home.

Three of the house’s walls are finished in cork on the lower level, and the upper portion of all the walls is clad in poplar bark from lumber cut in the Appalachian Mountains. The bark would typically have been a waste product in the timber-harvesting process.

A porch at the bottom floor level serves as a rest space, play area, and work spot when Hale pulls out his tools. The horizontal window above connects the first floor to the deck so Hale and Edmonds can keep a watchful eye on the girls when they play outside.