The Conversation Pit Makes a Big Comeback in These Fabulous Sunken Living Spaces

Designers David Leven and Stella Betts of New York City studio Levenbetts designed this bunker-like backyard house for their clients—and close friends—in upstate New York. Although the guesthouse appears as a single story, the floor level rises and lowers with the site’s topography. In the already stepped-down living area, more steps lead into a conversation pit framed by a sectional that the clients and architects designed together, which is upholstered in cotton velvet.