Uncovering the original concrete surfacing of the columns, which are unusually thick thanks to the building’s original industrial function, was a major undertaking. Covered in successive layers of white paint, a team worked for over a week to expose the concrete, revealing the space’s gritty character.

Though we love the custom teak-and-steel sink, shelving, shower caddy, mirror, shower, and vanity by Pat Carson Studio, the real coup of this bathroom is that the window at left goes from transparent to opaque with the touch of a button. The Duo Poliert dispensers beneath the shelf are from Blomus. A toilet opposite the sink is from Toto.

Architect Christi Azevedo, along with homeowners Lorena Siminovich and Esteban Kerner, transformed this 1,485-square-foot, multilevel, mid-century maze into a modern and efficient family home in just three months. “It was the craziest frickin’ thing,” laughs Azevedo. “It was like a Tetris game, putting it all together, trying to squeak out space wherever we could.” Purchased as if straight out of 1955, the home is now the ideal small space for Siminovich and Kerner to raise their young daughter, Matilda.

Halfway through a pregnancy isn’t exactly the ideal time to buy a house. So after spending months scouting San Francisco’s Victorians and turnkey cookie-cutters—and almost defecting to the East Bay—Lorena Siminovich and Esteban Kerner decided to put the hunt on hold until after their baby was born. But then one afternoon Kerner, a design director with Old Navy, logged on to Craigslist on a whim. He saw a below-market listing for a single-family home in Noe Valley, their neighborhood of choice. With crumbly brick cladding, peeling rust-brown paint, and rotting garage doors, the house lacked curb appeal. But the Argentine couple was drawn to the interior. "It was amazing and strange at the same time," says Kerner of the 1,485-square-foot, multilevel, midcentury maze. "Mind-boggling," adds Siminovich. "It was just a knot of doors and a series of insane stairs to nowhere."

This bathroom, tiled in bright blue mosaic to offset the home’s limited materials and color palette, calls for a simple vanity. The sinks, toilets, and tubs are by Villeroy & Boch, while the faucets and towel rails are by Grohe and Avenir, respectively.

The bathroom includes a walk-in tub.

Sævik designed the wood tub in the bathroom, which features an adjacent sauna. The Inxx A5 faucet is by Mora.

“A critical aspect of the project was the incorporation of natural light and ventilation within a broad footprint,” Simpson says. Conventionally private areas, like bedrooms and bathrooms, are therefore reinterpreted with more openness in mind. For instance, this bathroom’s skylights mirror those found throughout the rest of the property. The bathtub, basins, and showerhead were all purchased at the Australian retailer Reece.

“They wanted to keep the house to one level so that they could retire there without worrying about stairs and access,” Hutchison says. The home features two bedrooms, and the second one is available to guests and the homeowners’ college-age son.

The travertine floor for the guest bedroom came from a De La Espada showroom in Soho. When moving stores, the owners were considering throwing out their travertine floor, but Dealtry offered to install it in his home. Along with exposed ceiling beams, the tiles provide a sense of texture and warmth to the space. Photo by Tara Donne.

In lieu of a fireplace, the pair opted for an exposed ethanol burner mounted on exposed concrete (the wood is just decor).

Casteñada explains, “Everything starts with an interview that I personally conduct with the owner in order to understand his lifestyle and expectations. The final result needs to satisfy the owner’s lifestyle, dreams and expectations, as well as my firm’s vision and design concepts.”

Exposed beams continue into the kitchen ceiling, where minimal details and contrasting dark shades emphasize the natural materials. The window frames are positioned as “fins” to draw in just enough southern-facing light to keep the room comfortable.

The ultimate luxury: a hot bath in the clawfoot tub, with the fiberglass door open wide to the woods.

White tiles envelop the en suite master bathroom.

Tribeca Manufacturing Building New York–based architect Andrew Franz undertook the renovation of a landmark circa-1884 former soap warehouse in Tribeca, originally designed by George W. DaCunha in the Romanesque Revival style. Franz reorganized and modernized the six-story building—which retains its original 16-foot beam ceilings, brick walls, timber columns, and elevator winches from the former freight shaft—by incorporating steel, glass, handmade tile, and lacquer to complement the masonry and heavy timber. An interior courtyard and rectangular mezzanine are situated below the original 16-foot gull-wing ceiling planes.

In modern bathroom vanities, timber can be used a number of different ways. It’s at its most basic in this simplistic modern bathroom, tied together neatly with matching shelving in the cut-out above.

It’s important to confirm that there are no rotten columns, beams, or other damaged supporting elements before you buy a home.

The subway tile-lined bathroom was kept as simple as possible, with Hansgrohe fixtures and cabinets made of vertical-grain Douglas fir above a top-mounted Duravit sink. Since installing a window was unfeasible given the bathroom's proximity to other properties, Storey added a skylight over the shower.

The master bedroom includes an armoire by Kastella and a chandelier by Lambert & Fils. A portion of the ceiling was pared back to expose the underside of the original roof.

Architect Bill Ryall installed vertical circulation elements, opened an unobstructed 47-foot-long view from front to back, and kept the ceiling beams exposed to create a loft-like environment.

The minimalist bathroom boasts Cararra marble surfaces, Hansgrohe faucets and shower fixtures, and a skylight by Velux.

The upstairs showers are particularly ingenious: Operable skylights loom above, and perforated, galvanized-steel platforms open up to spacious, sunken bathtubs.

Benjamin Moore’s “Mountain Peak White” coats the western red cedar walls in the master bathroom, which is detailed with the same Carrara marble countertop seen in the kitchen. Waterworks tile covers the floor, and an Agape tub stands across from a vanity light fixture custom-made by the firm’s interior designer, Erin Martin.

itHouse, view from court to bathroom.

Exposed pine dominates the downstairs reception area.

The bedroom opens directly into the master bathroom to complete the open feel.

The bathroom features Chromtech tile, a Toto toilet, Kohler vanity, and powder-coated steel countertop.

Part of the master suite, the bright bathroom embraces texture and pattern. The space clad in bold, graphic tile and features a custom steel vanity.

The Salvatori marble tiles in the bathroom were added at the last minute, once everyone was confident that they would not put the project over budget.

Opposite the inner courtyard and master bedroom, the bathroom enjoys a view of the lush garden space. Polished concrete floors and walls, and white Carrara counters offer cohesion with the rest of the home. American Standard plumbing fixtures and reclaimed midcentury pendant lamps round out the space.

Dual, white square-shaped sinks make the perfect modern bathroom vanities for granite countertops, like the contrasting black one seen here.

Silhouette

The exposed ceiling beams and inserted steel framing system are visible in the lower level, where Lange and Dixon relax with their son Paul.

In the bathroom, Roca wall tile in Rainbow Azul continues the citrus color scheme, and the floor is clad in ceramic plank. The Ikea sinks and faucets also helped the design come in on budget.