At 500 square feet, it is not a huge retreat but it serves its purpose perfectly: fold-up sides keep it secure when not in use, while doubling as privacy screens, light blocks and thermal barriers as desired.

Essentially a glass house on the inside, folding down three of the four exterior walls gives the occupant a nearly 360-degree connection to the surrounding context .

These wall sections in turn become exterior decks when lowered, and are easily raised via “Â a hydraulic system of wires, rope, pivoting sheaves and lead blocks, that serves as shutters.”

The steeply-sloped roof simply drains water toward the back, and extends out on the other three sides to provide cantilevered cover and shade, with minimalist (lack of) detailing that fits with the rest of the structure.

Inside, a 180-degree rotating fireplace likewise accommodates directional decisions about where one wants to face – into distant views or into the nearby wildlife-populated brush. The primarily single-space strategy also accommodates a kitchenette and small bathroom.

Creating a green residential oasis is no easy feat when faced on three sides with potentially nosy neighbors on an urban plot – the key is making the hard building decisions look easy.

A series of perforated metal, natural stone, cast-in-place concrete and glass deck walls frame the entryway to a relatively secluded-feeling series of indoor and outdoor spaces designed by Australian architect Michael Morris.

Softening the edges of these straight-lined design elements are a complementary set of vegetation-related strategies, starting with a row of young pines in front of the lot, followed by a series wild grasses suspended at eye level, an overhanging old peppercorn tree from an adjacent property and a series of semi-abstract green walls in the courtyard.

Inside, a simple repetitive use of red accents ties together disparate rooms, each designed in a pragmatic way to address its particular function, using conventional finishes and traditional materials in combination with contemporary aesthetic sensibilities.

There is nothing expressly novel about the material palette or the visual techniques employed, but in combination they show a remarkable sensitivity to site and context, and exert conscious control over all views in and out, all without feeling forced or otherwise artificial.

Nothing quite says ‘urban blight’ like an abandoned, virtually windowless concrete tower sprouting up like a super-sized weed from the surrounding flat landscape. But what can you do with such a building, structurally sound but with no access to natural light and limited square footage on each floor?

The solution may sound counter-intuitive, but fits the situation like a glove: C. F. Moller Architects retrofitted the center as a service and circulation shaft, then suspended brand new dwellings on three of its four sides (leaving a key piece of history exposed on this last surface).

The resulting uneven rhythms give the visual appearance of something organically growing up alongside or out from the old structure rather than merely an additive cloak to its exterior, and the new residences within get to experience the historic center without sacrificing daylight or views.

“Many towns in Denmark have centrally located industrial silos; most are no longer in use, but continue to visually dominate the local skyline …. Around the tower, the apartments are built up upon a steel structure in eye-catching forms which protrude out into the light and the landscape – a bit like Lego bricks. This unusual structure with its protrusions and displacements provides all of the apartments with a view of Aarhus Bay.”

A striking curved walkway cuts through the middle of this beautiful old barn home, dropping a spiral staircase along its way into the center of an otherwise linear space.

With over a century of experience and studios in Surrey and Switzerland, Stedman Blower Architects has a good deal of experience with regional and historic farm architecture – in particular, big barns in need of tasteful conversion for use as homes.

Exposed wooden beams and rafters overhead as well as old wood columns can be found manifesting in different ways throughout various rooms, offset and enhanced via simple decor and white paint.

Their approach, put simply, is to preserve as much as possible of the structure, then work with the wide-open interior volumes to build out something new, different, but ultimately also comfortable to live in.

This particular home is on an old estate in Surrey, England, with a 25-foot central space and sides that are subdivided to create homey bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen and dining room spaces, all showing elements of the existing structure in their various ways.