A canyon at the foothills of the Cascade Mountains in rural Washington is the setting for this timber and concrete house designed by Seattle firm Balance Associates (+ slideshow). More about Nahahum Cabin is a canyon retreat built into the landscape
This timber-clad beach cabin by Amsterdam-based studio Marc Koehler Architects is embedded into the sand dunes of a Dutch island, overlooking the North Sea (+ slideshow). More about Beach house by Marc Koehler Architects is half submerged into a grassy dune
This Japanese family home by FORM/Kouichi Kimura Architects is arranged as a series of framed spaces, with the ground floor dominated by an art gallery and workspace (+ slideshow). More about Kouichi Kimura's Framing House combines a home and a gallery
A cluster of glass pavilions positioned around the base of this existing Melbourne house open onto terraces that are sheltered by a copper-edged canopy (+ slideshow). More about B.E. Architecture adds gridded glass rooms to a Melbourne residence
This three-sided house in a Dutch village has two blackened timber sides that flank a neighbouring property, while its only glazed facade is orientated towards an adjacent field (+ slideshow). More about Barend Koolhaas completes a blackened timber house with a triangular floor plan
White aluminium panels give a ridged texture to the walls and rooftops of these residential properties completed by BURO II & ARCHI+I in a Belgian coastal town (+ slideshow). More about Homes near Belgium's coastline feature ridged skins of white aluminium
A driveway cuts through one wing of this three-pronged house in New York state, which is topped by a roof terrace with amphitheatre-style seating (+ slideshow). More about Three-winged 36SML House by Levenbetts has a driveway carved through its middle
Strips of dark-stained timber give a charred appearance to the three stacked blocks that form this house in the Netherlands, which replaces another property that was destroyed by fire (+ slideshows). More about Huize Looveld is a blackened timber house built on the site of a razed farmstead
Architects Deborah Saunt and David Hills used underground rooms and mirrors to help disguise the volume of their house, which is located in a conservation area in leafy south London (+ slideshow). More about DSDHA's Covert House is designed to camouflage with its surroundings
Strips of recycled hardwood enclose the narrow balcony that runs around the edge of this family residence on the outskirts of a fishing village in Thailand (+ slideshow). More about Slatted timber screens shade poolside residence in Thailand by Architectkidd
Melbourne studio Make Architecture has renovated a red brick bungalow outside the city, adding an extension featuring a decorative timber facade that references brickwork patterns (+ slideshow). More about Make Architecture adds perforated wooden facade to renovated and extended Melbourne house
A skin of corrugated and perforated metal clads this villa in the Beskid Mountains, which sits on a wedge-shaped podium with stone-filled gabion walls (+ slideshow). More about Villa in the Czech mountains combines perforated metal with stone gabions
Narrow strips of wood screen both walls and windows at this house in Bavaria by Kühnlein Architektur, which comprises a pair of connected sheds (+ slideshow). More about House in rural Germany features a slatted wooden facade and copper fittings
The top floor of this hillside house in Argentina extends out over the treetops to offer residents a vantage point over the surrounding town (+ slideshow). More about Casa 367 sits above the treetops of a hillside in Argentina
Concrete forms influenced by 1950s architecture were combined with contemporary details for this house that architect Pitsou Kedem designed for himself and his family in Ramat HaSharon, near Tel Aviv (+ slideshow). More about Pitsou Kedem's house in Israel is influenced by its "humble and timeless" Modernist neighbours
A slanted roof with a timber underside is elevated above this top-heavy house on the Chilean coast, designed by architects Alvaro Arancibia and Sebastian Coll (+ slideshow). More about Timber-lined roof perches at an angle on top of Chilean seaside home
Four concrete boxes make up this holiday home by Paris architect Pascal Grasso, which nestles into a verdant hillside on the southern coast of France (+ slideshow). More about Concrete Maison Le Cap house features mirrored glazing to reflect the seaside scenery
This house on a hillside in Leiria, Portugal, has two wings – a three-storey block that follows the slope of the site, and a bedroom block that cantilevers out at an angle (+ slideshow). More about Vidigal House by Contaminar has a V-shaped plan enclosing a triangular garden
The stacked horizontal volumes that make up this house in Jammu, India, are clad in vertical timber battens to regulate the amount of sunlight that enters (photos by Edmund Sumner + slideshow). More about Sameep Padora's Lattice House is an Indian holiday home wrapped by wooden screens
Tasked with designing a "small but prestigious residence" in an Alpine village, Italian studio Pedevilla Architects planned an asymmetric house with a chalky-white exterior (+ slideshow). More about House at Mill Creek by Pedevilla Architects features a homogenous off-white exterior