Toby Orton

In the Berkeley Hills, where it takes in distant views of the San Francisco Bay, this mid-century home was recently reworked by Mork-Ulnes Architects. Originally designed by Roger Lee, an architect prolific in the 1950s and 60s across the Bay area, the gem of a home was carefully updated, with the new design balancing preservation with a lighter, more open approach to contemporary living.

Located in a picturesque spot in Arizona’s Catalina foothills, Casa Luce was the result of architects HK Associates

Removed from the city in the foothills of a national park near to Barcelona, the single-storey Casa Sota la Mola in Matadepera is designed to almost disapp

Hidden away in wild woodland on a dramatic, steep slope in Ontario ’s Niagara Escarpment, the Belfountain House was the result of some creative design from architects UUfie. The task to transform a modest 1970s chalet into a dramatic family retreat was a challenge only emphasized by the topography of the site and its densely wooded surroundings. The result is a sprawling four-level home that expands across the footprint of the original structure, carefully woven into the landscape.

Taking a communal approach to building, Noreña Arquitectos engaged local craftsman and artisans to bring traditional techniques to the construction of this

Designed for a couple leaving behind the city experience of Montreal, Knowlton Prairie by architects L.McComber, saw a tired 1970s bungalow updated into a contemporary cottage. Located in the surrounds of a quiet village, the finished home demonstrates the architect’s brief: to design a new building that appears naturally rooted in its environment while responding to the character and charm of the neighborhood at large.

Nestled at the foot of the Serra do Mar on Brazil’s northern coast, this elevated retreat in Maresias by architects Studio Carlito and Renata Pascucci was designed around the guiding principle of preservation – specifically in creating minimal disruption to the landscape while constructing a property worthy of its location. Set on a lush 1,200-square-meter site, the house rises on stilts above the vegetation that has been allowed to continue to grow beneath it. The elongated structure is threaded through the forest canopy, the architecture coexisting with its surroundings.

Hilltop House, perched on a slope on a rugged, densely forested site on an island in British Columbia, is the work of Vancouver studio Woven Architecture and Design. Specializing in residential homes inspired by classic West Coast Modern design, the studio created the Hilltop House as a quiet retreat where architecture, landscape and light work in balanced partnership to lay the foundations of a sedate, private off-grid lifestyle.

Hidden away in the trees of an East Sussex woodland, the Yogi’s Cabin by

Utilising the distinctive white bricks produced in this region of Mexico, this compact home in Mexico balances individual sense of character with local tradition. Set within a residential development in the town of San Cristóbal Tepontla, the house was designed as both a home and creative workspace for a performance artist and choreographer. Occupying a reasonably modest 110-square-metre plot, the project deviates from the look of its neighbors, its design by architects Estudio Tecalli worked around a rectangular volume whose large windows and open internal arrangements forge a light, adaptable living space and a closer connection to the nature beyond its walls.