A small concrete structure once used as a house for doves has been transformed by Portuguese studio AZO Sequeira Arquitectos Associados into a garden playroom. More about Concrete dovecote transformed into children's playhouse by AZO Sequeira
Design-and-construction firm First Lamp Architects has raised this family home near Seattle above a nearby body of water, drawing references from bridge structures. More about Waterfront home near Seattle is lifted on bridge-like structural supports
Sue Architekten has converted a 1930s outhouse near Vienna into a writing studio, guest room and playhouse, accessed via a trapdoor. More about Derelict shed converted by Sue Architekten into writer's studio and playroom
A grand window offers views of the woodland and sea in this house in Hanko, Finland, designed by Mer Architects as a contemporary update of the town's historic villas. More about Timber-clad Gamla Villan by Mer Architects offers views of Finnish meadow and sea
A translucent fold-up doorway separates a studio from a living room in this apartment created for a São Paulo-based illustrator who works from home. More about Apartment in São Paulo transformed to create home and studio for an illustrator
This 120-year-old Kyoto townhouse was once used as a seed plantation, but has been carefully restored to create an events venue that celebrates Japanese interior design traditions. More about Events space opens inside revamped century-old machiya house in Kyoto
US studio Abramson Teiger has created a rural Wyoming home that consists of low-lying volumes made of glass, concrete and weathering steel. More about Abramson Teiger builds steel-clad residence in a Wyoming meadow
ABIR Architects used pebbles found on the beach to create the layered facade of this house in the English seaside town of Shoreham – which featured in last night's episode of UK television show Homes By The Sea. More about Shoreham Beach House by ABIR Architects features gabion walls filled with beach pebbles
Blee Halligan Architects has renovated and extended a house on Highbury Hill in north London, using black gridded glazing and pale brickwork to frame views into the back garden. More about Blee Halligan Architects updates north London house with lantern-like extension
A long cypress-clad volume that projects from a hillside in rural Massachusetts forms this home, designed by US studio O'Neill Rose Architects for a nature-loving couple. More about O'Neill Rose creates elongated wooden home in the Berkshires
Houben & Van Mierlo Architecten has transformed a pair of former barns in Amsterdam into residences that combine original features with nods to their industrial past. More about Houben & Van Mierlo Architecten converts former potato barns into loft-style homes
A multi-layered facade creates extra privacy for the residents of this Tokyo house designed by local firm Satoru Hirota Architects (+ slideshow). More about Tokyo house designed by Satoru Hirota Architects to offer residents maximum privacy
Ponds fed by the Yellowstone River provide natural water features around this home by Hughesumbanhower Architects, located on a ranch in Big Timber, Montana (+ slideshow). More about Montana house by HUUM sits beside the Yellowstone River
American firm Ward + Blake Architects has completed a residence and guest house in western Wyoming, which features rustic materials and sweeping views of the surrounding mountains (+ slideshow). More about Ward + Blake uses salvaged wood and weathering steel to clad rustic Wyoming house
This 1960s house in suburban Melbourne has been overhauled by Branch Studio Architects to create a contemporary home for the original owners' granddaughter (+ slideshow). More about Branch Studio Architects revamps 1960s dream house in Melbourne
Canadian studio Bourgeois Lechasseur Architects has stacked two wood-and-glass volumes at opposing angles, resulting in a home designed to embrace its picturesque surroundings (+ slideshow). More about Bourgeois Lechasseur's V-shaped Altaïr House overlooks a Quebec forest
Slanted slats of aluminium cover the irregular, curving form of this house and cafe in Gyeonggi Province designed by South Korean architecture practice AND (+ slideshow). More about Aluminium louvres cover curving walls of house and cafe in South Korea
Parts of the mountain landscape extend into this house in southeast China, which was planned by designer Xu Fu-Min to offer its residents a peaceful retreat from city life. More about Xu Fu-Min completes "paradise-like house" in rural China that brings the landscape inside
Multiple residences are combined into single house-shaped volumes at this development by Bestor Architecture in the Echo Park neighbourhood of Los Angeles. More about Bestor Architecture uses "stealth density" at Blackbirds housing in Los Angeles
Next in our series of roundups presenting houses from different US states, it's New York's turn. The Empire State's top rural residences include a Hamptons home shaded with strips of canvas and a secluded writer's retreat (+ slideshow). More about Five of the best houses in New York State on Dezeen