Located in an old warehouse space in Richmond, Australia, a suburb of Melbourne, Patch Cafe serves a Paleo-inspired menu (think meat, fish, veg, fruit; what early humans ate) in a simple, unpretentious space with more than a few raw edges. Cofounders Tom Davidson and Jacob Burke turned to interior designers Hana Hakim and Kestie Lane (former partners in the Melbourne-based Studio You Me) to transform the raw industrial space, with its exposed brickwork, arched steel windows, and soaring ceilings, into an intimate dining spot. "Our challenges included a long, narrow space and a fixed budget," Hakim says. "We pulled it off by using inexpensive building materials combined with custom finishes and joinery." Here's a glimpse of the creative space. 

Photography by Tom Blachford.

Above: Guests can peek into the cafe through a newly opened black steel facade (which was tied in with the old existing wall and structure), creating a sense of transparency. The patchwork pattern of tiles on the rear wall adds a playful note.

Above: "The central canopy structure that houses the open bar and live kitchen was designed as an integrated installation that provides a lower anchor for the eye and an ‘activity hub’ for operations," Hakim says. The bar is made from Azzura blue honed marble and features simple wooden shelving. The barstools were painted a custom lacquer shade of green. 

Above: "To create a sense of intimacy, we created a feature wall out of inexpensive black builder's wire mesh, which gives the walls a graphic and industrial touch", says Hakim. "We hung fun, quirky, and functional objects from the wall to add visual interest," Hakim says. 

Above: Furnishings are custom-made from plywood and stained in a whitewash finish to bring out the grain of the raw timber. The lighting is by TossB.

Above: The waiters' station is constructed from cement sheet, concrete, and wood, with a lab sink and tap fittings by Astra Walker. 

Above: The large arched steel window provides abundant light to the narrow space. The built-in seating is upholstered in heavy-duty fabric to offset the soft hues of the space. 

Above: The plywood scalloped shingle canopy above the bar area imparts a village vibe to the industrial warehouse space. A geometric pattern of soft blue, black, and gray tiles creates a whimsical backdrop to the bar. 

For more on Melbourne:

• A Weekend Guide with Petite Passport: Melbourne, Australia
• Sunny Side Up: A Victorian Makeover in Melbourne
• The Aviary Hotel in Melbourne
• The Magic of Two Courtyards in Melbourne

More Stories from Remodelista

• Laden Cafe: Food, Wine, and Design in Berlin
• Pretty in Pink: Brunette Wine Bar in the Hudson Valley
• Urban Sanctuary: The Margot House in Barcelona

Join the Gardenista crew for a look at standout fall gardens east coast and west. They've also rounded up wooden rakes, found great-looking compost bins (who knew?), and created bouquets from fistfuls of leaves.

Above: California Colors: Fall at McEvoy Ranch in Petaluma. Looking to plant some color? See 11 Best Trees for New England–Style Follage.

Above: 10 Easy Pieces: Leaf and Garden Rakes.

Above: Better than flower shop blooms: DIY Foraged Foliage.

Above: Stylish compost is not an oxymoron. See 10 Easy Pieces: Wood Compost Bins.

Above: Justine shows what to do with bayberries in The Romance of the Homemade Candle.

 Above: Made to order in Wilshire: Fence Hurdles and Gates from Green Man Wood Crafts.

Go to Gardenista for the Deconstructed Outdoor Kitchen, celeb hair stylist Sam McNight's Dahlias, and more.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Trending on Gardenista: The Fall Forecast
• Trending on Gardenista: Cultivating Calm
• Trending on Gardenista: Living with Plants

Here's a look at what we loved this week. 

• UK design enchantress Rita Konig has just launched her new online enterprise, Rita Konig. On offer: her own line of interior flourishes (we're coveting a set of jewel-like Candlesticks from Remodelista favorite Marianna Kennedy) and workshops with Ms. Konig herself (the afternoons conclude with Prosecco on ice). See you there.

• Above: New from Zak and Fox: Handwoven jute and cotton fabric by the yard. 
• Simmer vinegar on the stove to get rid of offensive household odors. 
• DIY Halloween skulls, three ways. 

• Above: Make your own black and white stitched table runner. Photograph by Erin Souder. 
• If you dare, take a tour of 14 horror-movie houses. 

• Above: L'Objet's new candle collection is inspired by the scents of travel. 
• Twelve rooms that feel like fall.
• As fans of HBO's Girls, we were intrigued by a Q&A with the show's costume designer.

• Above: We're taking notes from an elevated Halloween dinner party. Photograph by Rebecca Hansen. 
• 20 black San Francisco Victorians.

• Above: Spot on: Madeline Weinrib's pop-up at Barney's NYC. Worth a visit.
• Introducing Yahoo Decor.

Instagram and Pinterest Picks of the Week

• Above: Our latest Instagram discovery is Provide Home (@provide_home), an online shop out of Vancouver, British Columbia. 

• Above: For a bit of gothic inspiration, we're following Beth Kirby's Hallow's Eve board on Pinterest. 

For more Remodelista, see our Deconstructed Kitchen issue. And don't miss Gardenista's week of Fall Foliage. 

More Stories from Remodelista

• 12 Favorites: Best of Household Tools
• High/Low: Chandelier-Inspired Glass Pendant Lights
• À la Carte Kitchen Components, Tiny Apartment Edition

In this week's edition of Design News, the inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial begins this weekend, the Royal College of Art gets unwanted press, and an Austrian design studio imagines the kitchen of the future.

Kitchen of the Future at Vienna Design Week

Above: Austrian studio Chmara.Rosinke partnered with several other Viennese designers on its Cucina Futurista 2.0 exhibit at Vienna Design Week. Read more at Dezeen.

Inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial Launched on Saturday

Above: A lakefront kiosk by DM Studio. 

Festivities for the first Chicago Architecture Biennial—the only architecture biennial in North America—kicked off yesterday, October 3, at the Chicago Cultural Center (the Chicago Tribune calls it "a sprawling, captivating mixed bag"). Highlights include four lakefront kiosks commissioned for the festival to augment Chicago parks; one kiosk was chosen by competition, and the other three are contributions from Chicago architecture schools. All will be on display in Millennium Park. Read more at Crain's. 

Airbnb Buys Russian Industrial Design Firm

Above: Lapka's iPhone-conncted environmental sensor. Photo via Fast Company. 

Airbnb bought Russian industrial design firm Lapka, a five-person outfit whose products include a minimalist breathalyzer and an iPhone-compatible air quality sensor. Why? Fast Company is guessing that as the $24 billion room-rental platform aims to expand its reach in the travel industry, devices might be in order: maybe check-in sensors or branded key locks. Read it at Fast Company. 

Royal College of Art in Disarray

Above: The Royal College of Art's Design Interactions studio. Photo via RCA. 

London's Royal College of Art—named the world's top art and design school earlier this year by rankings group QS—has suspended admissions to its Design Interactions focus after several senior staff members departed earlier this year and the school failed to replace them in time. The cancellation has attracted further unflattering reports, including one of an open student letter lamenting the "undesirable deterioration of education" at the school, a silent student protest on school spending in May, and seemingly high rates of senior staff turnover. Read it at Dezeen and The Independent.  

Herzog & de Meuron Unveil New Vancouver Art Gallery

Above: The building's lower levels are almost completely transparent, while the upper levels use glazing to frame select city views. 

Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron released renderings of the new Vancouver Art Gallery, to be developed on the last plot of vacant land in downtown Vancouver. The design resembles a tower of stacked wooden blocks, with low-rise levels near the street and taller and wider blocks up top. Past projects by the Pritzker Prize winners include the Tate Modern, Prada Tokyo, and the De Young Museum in San Francisco. Read it at ArchDaily. 

More timely happenings:

• Today, October 4, is the last day to get 15 percent off your order at True Nature Botanicals with code REMODELISTA.
• Trending on Gardenista: Foliage Fever
• Enter your email address by October 7 to be entered to win a complete bedding set from Parachute. 
• Current Obsessions: Black is Back 

More Stories from Remodelista

• Malibu Makeover: A 1970s Bungalow Reinvented by Lauren Soloff
• Top 5 in Design News: Frank Gehry Designs a Yacht and Steve Jobs Is Back in the Headlines
• Top of the Lake: Tiny Cabins in Dark and Light

As we head into Halloween season, join us for a week of dark arts inspiration.

Above: Photograph by Justine Hand in Falling Leaves: Justine's Spooky-Elegant DIY Table Setting.

Monday

Above: Our Boston editor Justine Hand recently dropped in on Remodelista reader Peter Cohen in Salem, Massachusetts, for our House Call section. Witches not included.

Tuesday

Above: In this week's Hotels & Lodging installment, Margot drops in on a new Goth-inflected hotel in Chicago designed by Roman & Williams.

Wednesday

Above: On Wednesday, Alexa rounds up our favorite shou sugi ban furniture in 10 Easy Pieces.

Thursday

Above: The lovely bones: a collection of ghoulish door handles in our Hardware department.

Friday

Above: On Friday, we're rounding up our favorite Halloween decor ideas in our Entertaining column.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Hardware Update: SR Hooks in Metal from Scout Regalia
• Table of Contents: California Creatives
• Current Obsessions: California Dreaming

In 2014, Peter Cohen and Marty Lieberman ventured East from Seattle in search of a Cape Cod retreat. They never made it past Salem. During what was supposed to be a brief stop in Peter's hometown, the couple discovered a 200-year-old, Federal-style brick mansion, located in one of Salem's most historic districts. Unsullied, except for a couple of midcentury mod cons, the house had a lot of potential. It also needed a lot of work.

Peter, who had designed the couples' previous residences as well as several investment properties, took the helm of what would turn out to be a 14-month renovation project. His goal, or challenge, was to seamlessly marry the couple's modern sensibilities with the home's historic character. "Overall, our intention was to honor and respect the bones of the house," he says. "There were lots of old scars or little things that told the story of the building, and we were careful to preserve those nuances throughout." At the same time, Peter sought to bring the house into the modern age, creating a space that would showcase their collection of contemporary art. "We love the intersection of antique and modern, and that was the driving aesthetic sensibility."

For Peter, this endeavor not only involved a shift in locale, but also a career change. A former advertising director, he recently launched PB+C, an interior and architectural design firm. Join us for a tour of his Salem tour de force.

Photography by Justine Hand for Remodelista.

Above: Step one was to strip the house to its bare bones. "Copious amounts of wallpaper in varying stages of decay were removed," he says. This process revealed some pleasant surprises, not the least of which were the impressive beams in the kitchen, heretofore hidden under a drop ceiling. For Peter, there was no question that these lofty timbers, possibly salvaged from an old schooner, would become an integral part of the kitchen design. Not only did they pay homage to the building's history, they also provided a rustic counterpoint to its otherwise grandiose detailing of the home. Painting the beams the same white (America's Cup from C2) as the rest of the house served to integrate them into the overall design scheme while at the same time emphasizing the room's soaring height.

Above: For kitchen storage, Peter retrofitted some lightly used Bulthaup cabinets, which he garnered from a friend. Their dark facades help anchor the room without competing with the architecture. As a result of seeing "one too many strip-mining operations," Peter and Marty opted for custom laminate countertops. The laminate has the warmth, weight, and texture of natural stone, but is less hard on the environment. Placed lengthwise, the kitchen counters, as well as the minimal lighting from Artemide, accentuate the dramatic lines of the room.

Above: More seamless lines: a Dornbracht Meta.02 Faucet presides over an integrated sink.

Above: A longtime art collector and burgeoning sculptor himself, Peter wanted the house to have a "gallery-like feel." The warm white walls (also America's Cup) not only showcases the art (in this case two portraits by Robert Longo) but also emphasizes the classic architecture of the house.

Above: Complete with recessed shutters, the home's 44 double-hung windows are one of its most outstanding features. Peter was painstaking in his restoration of these masterpieces, reglazing more than a thousand panes of glass. 

Above: The only room in the house that is painted a color is the library or media room. Here Peter used Anchor Gray (a Benjamin Moore color he had mixed by Fine Paints of Europe) paired with amber accents and warm textures. In what many designers might consider a radical departure, Peter choose a high gloss paint for the walls to further emphasize the texture of the millwork and the carefully preserved horsehair plaster. On the trim here and throughout the home, Peter used Fine Paints of Europe Brilliant Gloss, which contrasts the old and "makes things feel like a shiny, new car."

Above: The view from both in and out of the media room; its dark recesses create a dramatic, chiaroscuro effect.

Above: Strict symmetry, a hallmark of the Federal style, results in impressive enfilades throughout the home. As seen in this view from the living room into the dining area, Peter took advantage of these architectural details to frame pieces of furniture and art in distant rooms. (Here, the red and orange abstracts are by Robert Motherwell. The black sculptures are Peter's own work, available by contacting Peter here.) The all-white walls also serve to enhance the sense of movement and light.

Above: To further emphasize the home's qualities of light and air, Peter whitewashed the old growth pine floors with Rubio Monocoat, a natural, zero-VOC product that, according to Peter "actually smells great after application, cures in a couple of days and has no sheen whatsoever." Throughout the downstairs and in the kitchen especially, the couple salvaged 24-inch floorboards from the attic to replace and patch old flooring. 

Above: In the dining room, a set of elegant bow windows host one of Peter's own metal sculptures. Whimsical accents such as the sheep statue and Areaware pig counteract the formal nature of the room. The lithograph on the wall is a Robert Motherwell.

Above: For the most part, Peter respected the original plan and details of the house. Besides the updated kitchen, his one concession to modern living was to install a bathroom (as well as a coat closet) on the ground floor, cleverly hidden below the main stairs. Seamlessly integrated, the door continues the line of the moldings, a small "Vacant" sign the only indication of the bath within.

Above: Upstairs in the master bedroom, lithe furniture creates an airy, peaceful feel. Minimal black accents both complement and direct your attention to the centerpiece of the room, the dark marbled fireplace.

Above: One of the most stunning architectural features of Peter and Marty's home is the double staircase, one set at the front and a "summer stair" at the back of the house. These are joined by a second floor landing, which allows light and air to pass through. For emphasis, Peter also painted these in Fine Paints of Europe Brilliant Gloss.

Above: The view from a guest room, through the hall, and into the master bedroom. 

Above: In addition to redesigning the two existing midcentury commodes, Peter added another 1.5 bathrooms, including this Jack and Jill bathroom, located in between the two guest rooms on the second floor. With no windows, Peter maximized the light coming from the doors at each end by painting the entire room, including the floors and the interior of the fireplace, with the same Brilliant Gloss as the trim. Here again in a seamless marriage of contemporary and vintage features, the white walls and modern bathtub stand in contrast to the historic details of the door and mantel.

Above: On the third floor, a spare bedroom makes a serene retreat for guests. 

Above: Playful details in Peter's office (L) as well in this guest bedroom (R) add a dash of color.

Above: Peter's office on the third floor is at once spacious and intimate. 

Above: Peter tacks inspirational images over his desk on a large pinboard.

Above: Much of Peter's vast collection of ephemera is on display in his office.

Above: Peter Cohen in his newly renovated home.

Above: Updated with fresh coats of black and white paint, Peter and Marty's home maintains the grandeur of its rich historic past.

See another favorite Remodelista reader rehab at The Quiet Man: At Home with a NY Designer and A Moody, Belgian-Inspired West Village Townhouse.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Malibu Makeover: A 1970s Bungalow Reinvented by Lauren Soloff
• Top 5 in Design News: Frank Gehry Designs a Yacht and Steve Jobs Is Back in the Headlines
• Top of the Lake: Tiny Cabins in Dark and Light

Rough-hewn kitchen tools with a rustic vibe (plus a witch-worthy broom).

Above: The magnetized Fair Catch Knife Rack from Buccholz Berlin is €149 ($167).

Above: The Table Dustpan and Brush by Geoffrey Fisher is £40 ($45) from the New Craftsmen.

Above: The Tripod Stool from Buchholz Berlin is €90 ($101).

Above: Kitchen Hooks made from tree branches are $40 from Live Wire Farm.

Above: The Vegetable Peeler by E.J. Osborne has a handcarved handle; £14 ($21) from Hatchet & Bear.

Above: A selection of brooms from Haydenville Broomworks in Haydenville, Massachusetts; the Traditional Broom is $65.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Remodeling 101: Ceiling-Mounted Recessed Kitchen Vents
• Steal This Look: Hotel Covell's Glamorous Kitchenette
• Kitchen of the Week: A Hamptons Kitchen with a Custom Island Sourced on Etsy

Casamidy, the creative shop founded by husband/wife team Jorge and Anne-Marie Midy, is known for its one-of-a-kind rugged yet refined furniture, designed by the couple and made by artisans in San Miguel de Allende Mexico. "The Altamura line took a while to catch on and it's been one of our best-selling pieces for the past two years," Jorge says. When the newly launched Restoration Hardware Teen came out with a catalog recently, we couldn't help noticing how similar their Flynn sectional is to Casamidy's Altamura sectional. Let's take a look and compare and contrast:

Casamidy's Altamura Sectional

Above: Casamidy's Altamura Sectional is available in an armchair, side chair, right corner, left corner, and ottoman configuration. The frame is 1-inch tubular iron and the cushions are covered in Altamura waxed cotton canvas detailed with ties of saddle leather. All pieces are made to order by craftspeople in Mexico and custom finishes, including color matches for the frame, are available.

RH Teen's Flynn Sectional

Above: RH Teen's Flynn Lounge Sectional (the version shown above is $2,849) comes in an armless chair, corner chair, ottoman, and love seat configuration; pieces can be mixed and matched to create various configurations. The frame is iron and the cushions are covered in 100 percent cotton canvas.

The proportioning and materials are notably less refined than the Casamidy original, and the RH version features leather webbing instead of canvas panels as in the Altamura, but the inspiration is immediately apparent. (The RH website does not provide any information on country of manufacture, but when we called RH they told us it's made in India.) 

Side-by-Side Comparisons

Above L: Casamidy's Altamura Side Armchair is covered in waxed reclaimed canvas with flow-through foam and is intended for use in an outdoor covered setting; price on request. Above R: The Flynn Corner Chair is $899; the cushions are 100-percent cotton canvas in charcoal (stuffing unknown) and designed for use indoors only.

Above L: Casamidy's Altamura Armless Chair has a slim tubular iron frame and a generous seat; price on request. Above R: RH Teen's Flynn Armless Chair is $799 and has an iron frame "inspired by steel pipes and finished in a dark steel color." 

See all our High/Low posts here and see our original post on the Altamura line here.

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• Hardware Update: SR Hooks in Metal from Scout Regalia
• Table of Contents: California Creatives
• Current Obsessions: California Dreaming

Lessons in moodiness from a dining room in Lyon, France, designed by Stéphane Garotin and Pierre Emmanuel Martin, the couple behind Maison Hand. The somber yet elegant Saint George apartment is outfitted with modernist furniture and an austere palette: a Maison Hand trademark. Here we look at the individual components of the dining room—the furniture, wall decor, and accessories—and offer our ideas on adding a certain modern French goth look to your own interiors.

Above: Rush seats, a grouping of pottery, and white-painted beams are the only nonblack moments in the dining room.

Above: A wall of tonal, macabre artwork and taxidermy.

Above: We like the way Maison Hand deftly contrast pale artwork and ceramics against a blacked-out wall.

The Basics

Above: Farrow & Ball's Pitch Black is a similar match to the wall's matte black color. A gallon of the estate emulsion Pitch Black paint is $97. Another trusted black paint is Benjamin Moore's Black Horizon; a gallon is $37.99.

Above: The Serge Mouille Two-Arm Ceiling Lamp in black lacquered aluminum is $3,250 at Horne.

Above: Crate & Barrel's Facet Sideboard is black-stained with a low-sheen finish; $699.

Above: Restoration Hardware's Seagram Rectangular Dining Table is designed by Søren Rose in black oak; $3,495 for the 96-inch table (stay tuned for tomorrow's 10 Easy Pieces: Distressed Furniture in Black for more options).

Above: A similar chair with a paper cord seat is Hans Wegner's Wishbone Chair with a black lacquered frame; $599 at Design Within Reach.

Above: The Hand-Braided Jute Rug in dark charcoal is $1,395 for the 9-by-12-foot size at Restoration Hardware.

Wall Decor

Above: Thin black Gallery Frames range in price from $12 for the six-by-eight-inch size to $99 for the 16-by-20-inch size at West Elm.

Above: John Derian's Decoupage Wall Plates: the Heart in Hand Plate ($50) and Skully Plate ($48).

Above: From Paxton Gate in San Francisco, an Antique Mounted Skull Cap is $150.

Accessories

Above: The Cestita Table Lamp by Miguel Mila is a smaller version of the designer's popular Cesta Lamp. It's made of Sumatran pine wood and a plastic lampshade; $340 CAD ($258 USD) at Mjölk.

Above: Alissa Coe's Cone Vase in rough, unfinished pale porcelain is $250 CAD ($190) at Mjölk.

Above: A mouth-blown candlestick holder from Paris glass studio La Soufflerie. Read our post Design Sleuth: La Soufflerie's Handblown Glassware and contact the studio for pricing and availability.

Above: Dripless and Smokeless Taper Candles from Cire Trudon in black are $17 for a box of six at The Line.

Above: Heath Ceramics' Dessert Bowls in Onyx from the Coupe Line are $25 each.

Above: From Canvas in New York, simple Fat Glasses are $11.50 each.

For more moody rooms to steal, see our posts:

• Steal This Look: A Moody Minimalist London Bedroom
• Steal This Look: A Black-and-White Bathroom with a Gothic Edge
• Steal This Look: Stealth Glamor in Stockholm

More Stories from Remodelista

• Owen Wall: London's Ceramicist to the Culinary Stars
• 10 Easy Pieces: Quirky Glassware, Stemmed Edition
• 10 Easy Pieces: Quirky Glassware

Cue the cigar smoke and the gold watch chains. Master set designers Roman and Williams have recast the grand Chicago Athletic Association on Michigan Avenue—right across from Millennium Park—as a playfully posh hotel, Venetian-gothic details intact. Look no further for the perfect place to hole up on Halloween weekend.

Photography via the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel, except where noted.

Above: Once a gathering spot for Wrigleys, Fields, and Spaldings, the 1890s building was designed by Henry Ives Cobb. Shuttered in recent years, it came close to having all but its facade demolished. Owners Commune Hotels & Resorts hired Chicago firm Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture to oversee the restoration, and Roman and Williams to inject the rooms with new life. Shown here, the pleasingly time-warped drawing room.

Above: A reading room with original paneling and stained glass. Photograph via HPA Architecture.

Above: The structure was built during the city's renaissance years spurred by the Columbian Exposition of 1893. The club only allowed women on Wednesday nights and Sunday afternoons until 1972, and was closed in 1997, but left largely intact. Photograph by Nick Fochtman via Chicago Curbed.

Above: Window seating and tête-à-tête tables. Photograph by Nick Fochtman via Chicago Curbed.

Above: Monogrammed knobs on a lacquered wardrobe in a guest room. 

Above: The 241 rooms have custom metal bed frames and Faribault Woolen Mill blankets woven with the quote: "I miss everything about Chicago except January and February." 

Above: Referencing old-school gym equipment, Roman and Williams designed desks inspired by wooden stretching racks and pommel-horse-shaped benches. Here and there they also inserted cheeky paintings. "A touch of disorder within the order keeps a space fresh," say the designers. (Go to 10 Favorites: Vintage Gym Equipment as Decor for more.) "

Above L: The racks are cleverly hung with leather storage pouches. Above R: A preserved floor monogram incorporates a fencer's foil. 

Above: Bathrooms have Carrara marble and nickel vanities and classic black-and-white porcelain tiles with dark grout. Guest robes are boxing-robe-inspired. Photograph by Nick Fochtman via Chicago Curbed.

Above: The top-floor restaurant, Cindy's, is in a new greenhouse-like addition, modeled after the botanical garden glass houses of the 19th century. "The space is a romantic notion of what might have been on this site before the wave of development swept the fields by the lake," say Roman and Williams.

Above: The newly restored Venetian-gothic building rises for 13 stories. It's located at 12 S. Michigan Avenue overlooking Millennium Park. Go to the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel for full details.

For another Roman and Williams design in a dramatic historic building, take a look at New York's High Line Hotel in Chelsea. Heading to Chicago? Peruse our city guide for more finds.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Crypt as Canteen: Hueso Restaurant in Guadalajara, Mexico
• Patch Cafe: A Playful Custom-Built Restaurant in Melbourne
• Laden Cafe: Food, Wine, and Design in Berlin

Are you as obsessed with tile as we are, but haven't had the chance to get your copy of Tile Makes the Room?

We've partnered with Ten Speed Press to give a copy of the book to 20 lucky Remodelista readers. To enter, sign up for email from Crown Publishing Group and Remodelista by entering your email address in the box at the bottom of this post by Monday, October 20. The winners will be chosen at random and notified by email by October 22. The contest is open to U.S. readers only; see Official Rules for details. 

Written by Heath Ceramics owners Catherine Bailey and Robin Petravic, Tile Makes the Room profiles more than 50 residential and commercial projects that make use of tile to great effect. The book features projects using Heath tile, of course, but also handcut tiles, cement tiles, and hand-painted tiles from makers around the globe. For more, read our interview with Robin and Cathy in Required Reading: Tile Makes the Room: Good Design from Heath Ceramics.

Photography by Mariko Reed. 

Above: The showroom kitchen at Heath Ceramics in San Francisco features four shades of matte and glossy blue Field Tile on the walls and Heath Dimensional tile on the island. 

Above: Kogure House in Tokyo achieves a lived-in look with an irregular mix of blue and white herringbone tiles on the kitchen floor, sourced by the owner in Morocco.

Above: Tile Makes the Room is available on Amazon for $22. Photograph via Cool Hunting.

New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco Readers: Register to attend the NYC Book Launch Party on October 13 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Design Within Reach in SoHo and the Los Angeles Party on October 25 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Heath LA. Bay Area readers: Cathy and Robin will be in Corte Madera on November 8 at 1 p.m. for a Book Signing at Book Passage. (If you can't attend the event, you can still order a Signed Copy from Book Passage, which ships globally.) 

Don't delay: Enter your email address below by October 20 to win a copy of Tile Makes the Room from Ten Speed Press. 

More Stories from Remodelista

• Malibu Makeover: A 1970s Bungalow Reinvented by Lauren Soloff
• Top 5 in Design News: Frank Gehry Designs a Yacht and Steve Jobs Is Back in the Headlines
• Top of the Lake: Tiny Cabins in Dark and Light

Blackened wood is having a moment, be it lacquered, stained, charred, or oxidized, and we're all in. For those who dare to join us, here's a roundup of our favorite noirish pieces.

Above: BDDW's large and low Bron Table is available in a burned, charred finish as seen here. Contact BDDW for more information.

Above: From Sawkille in Rhinebeck, New York, the Nomad Chair in oxidized black walnut has shaker proportions. Contact Sawkille for pricing and availability.

Above: Materia Design's Incendo Bench is blacked via shou sugi ban and constructed with traditional joinery technique; prices start at $1,774.

Above: From charred wood experts ReSawn Timber Co., the Credenza 1 has a case of shou sugi ban treated wood with pale maple doors and oxidized maple accents. Contact ReSawn Timber Co. for more information.

Above: The Low Table from Blackcreek Mercantile & Trading Co. in Upstate New York is naturally dyed in black; $4,500 for the 53-inch-long table.

Above: CB2's Charred Bench is a pine wood top, charred and set onto lacquered steel legs; $299.

Above: The Pub Table from Fermata Woodworks is a tall bar table charred in the traditional shou sugi ban style and hand waxed. Contact Fermata Woodworks for pricing and availability.

Above: The Sawyer Bench from Fern in New York is available in lengths up to 12 feet and is shown here in ebonized ash wood. Contact Fern for more information.

Above: Designer Nao Tamura created a special edition of the classic Alvar Aalto Stool 60 by lacquering the birch stool in black and printing the top with a white pattern like the rings of a tree trunk. The stool is $390 at Artek.

Above: Also from Sawkille in Rhineback, the 119-Inch Oxidized Cherry Bench is $5,800 at March.

For more on black furniture and the shou sugi ban technique visit:

• 10 Easy Pieces: Classic Black Dining Chairs
• Palette & Paints: Matte Black Painted Furniture
• Dark Wood: Shou Sugi Ban Torched Lumber
• DIY: Shou Sugi Ban Tabletop from the Felted Fox

More Stories from Remodelista

• The New Serif TV by the Bouroullec Brothers for Samsung
• Ethnicraft: Furniture for Life from Lekker Home
• Best Professionally Designed Living/Dining Space: CWB Architects

The Scenario: Designers Megan Sommerville and Matt Ensner decide to leave Brooklyn to escape rising rents and resettle in the Hudson Valley to launch their furniture and lighting company Materia Designs.

The Solution: After looking at more than 40 properties, they buy a dilapidated 1940s Cape Cod–style bungalow in Ulster County with good bones and 13 acres of land (bluestone cliffs, a waterfall, and a crumbling outbuilding included). They sink their savings into the house, so the only way forward is to renovate it themselves. That means taking the house down to the studs and rebuilding it (yes, all electrical and plumbing, as well as walls, windows, and a back porch).

The Result: After a few rounds of “drywall parties” with friends from Brooklyn and three years of ongoing intensive work, they achieve a homestead that reflects their commitment to time-tested design.

The Couple's Top Three Tips: 1.) If you plan to live onsite during the renovation, focus on finishing a space that's clean and separate, so you can maintain your sanity. 2.) Spread out the large purchases—doing this allowed us to buy things that are made to last. 3.) Have a detailed plan. Knowing what you want to do and how you're going to do it is very helpful in avoiding costly and time-consuming mistakes.

Join us for a tour. Photography by Poul Ober (unless otherwise noted).

Above: The couple moved into the 1,900-square-foot house immediately after purchasing it. "We renovated the upstairs master suite so that we would have somewhere to live while we continued the downstairs renovation, as time and budget would allow," Megan says.

Above: The front door leads directly into the main living space, which is warmed by an Oslo Woodstove from Norwegian company Jøtul; it was one of the first things Matt and Megan installed. "We paid close attention to being 'green' wherever possible and have reaped the benefits: Since installing our Jøtul stove six years ago, we've used only a single tank of heating oil to heat the house," Megan says. The couple removed layers of varnish from the original Douglas fir floors and treated them with their own custom gray-washed Driftwood Finish. 

The room is furnished with their Materia Designs Ulmus Coffee Table and Cubo Sofa of black walnut, linen, and calfskin. Vintage black walnut chairs are reupholstered in black cotton velvet and linen. The couple used painted plumbing pipes throughout as curtain rods for simple linen sheers.

Above: Throughout the house, the designers mix their own designs and prototypes with antiques and accessories they've collected over the years. A lamp from Ikea hovers over a Barcode Cushion printed on Belgian linen from the couple's new textile collection. The painting came from a local flea market, and they discovered the horns during a walk on their property. Photograph by Materia Designs.

Above: The dining area, which is near the kitchen at the opposite end of the living space, includes a steel Parsons table that the couple found on the street in Brooklyn. It's paired with 1940s black and brass dining chairs reupholstered in burlap and a Tibula Stool from Materia Designs. The oil portrait, painted in 1947, is of Megan's great aunt, and the two small intaglio etchings are by Joe Owczarek, an architect and artist whom the couple represent in their Hudson Valley showroom. Photograph by Materia Designs.

Above: The U-shaped kitchen occupies half the back wall of the house and is open to the main living space. "We didn't want it to look too 'kitchen-y,' " Megan says. "We used darker materials to provide contrast with the light walls and chose finishes that we might use in our furniture, such as walnut and leather." The butcher block countertops were custom built from a black walnut tree that came from a neighbor's property. "They're finished with a natural oil and are super forgiving; we just have them wet-sanded from time to time." Vintage glass factory pendant fixtures hang over the counter; two Reed Lamps from Rejuvenation provide task lighting for the prep area by the stove; and the Cape Pendant above the sink is by Materia Designs.

Above: Forgoing upper cabinets was easy with the U-shaped kitchen configuration, which provides ample storage. The double-sided sink was discovered in the basement of an old farmhouse nearby and the industrial faucet came from Fisher, a restaurant supply company that makes its fixtures in the US using responsible manufacturing practices. 

The couple decided to expose the Douglas fir rafters and ceiling joists in the kitchen and plan to eventually carry that through to the living room too. "Instead of leaving the original ceiling joists raw, we opted to paint them in several coats of Super White by Benjamin Moore, which made our eight-foot-high ceilings feel much higher and brighter," Megan says.

Above: The designers made the kitchen cabinets from several inexpensive architectural salvage units, which they disassembled and then reconfigured and refinished. They created the hardware from steel plumbing parts and calfskin from Pergamena, a family-owned local tannery. Photograph by Materia Designs.

Above: Megan and Matt built a small bar into a cedar-shingled wall outside the kitchen. The bar's exposed brick is chimney facing. 

Above: Off the kitchen is a sitting room with a daybed that the couple built for sleeping and watching TV. The flat files underneath are used for storing drawings and paperwork. Matt's great grandmother passed down the antique gilt mirror to the couple as a wedding present. The beveled weathered cedar shingle siding that lines the hall is repurposed from an outbuilding on the premises. Photograph by Materia Designs.

Above: In the sitting room, a roll-up vintage school map hides the TV. The stairs lead to a second-floor master bedroom suite, and the ladder provides access to a sleeping loft used for overflow guests.

Above: The antique steel chairs are reupholstered in gray goatskin. 

Above: Painted plumbing pipe was used to create a handrail and ladder hold. 

Above: In the downstairs hall, large-scale Kimura wallpaper from Romo contrasts with the raw, linear cedar shingles. "We think a lot about texture and scale in both our furniture and interiors projects," Megan says. "We wanted one moment of bold color and added it here because it's visible from all the downstairs rooms." The guest room is at the end of the hall; the sitting room and living area open to the right, and there's a bath on the left.

Above: "We chose charcoal chalkboard paint for the guest room because it's on the north side of the house and is always dark," says Megan. "We painted the room white at first, but it felt dead, so we decided to embrace the lack of light and envelop the room in a dark veil."

Above: The couple displays rotating groupings of objects around the house, usually based on a color story or contrasting textures. In the guest room, the cut paper silhouette is by artist and friend Jenny Lee Fowler, the bird-shaped marble bookends are from Matt’s mother, who is an antiques dealer, and the paper car came from Muji in Paris. 

Above: "The black-and-white print is by our friend Halsey Chait, whose work we represent in our showroom," Megan says. "I have a thing about foxes, so a friend gave me this photo on one of her visits. We found the playing card on a trip to Paris, and the feathers and rocks are natural objects that we’re always dragging in from the property."

Above: The subway tiles in the bathroom are rough-tumbled Turkish marble, sourced from a discount wholesaler in New Jersey. Because the tiles have an uneven surface, they were double glazed with a matte sealant to protect them from the light gray grout application. The bathtub is vintage; the exterior is painted in Elephant’s Breath by Farrow & Ball, and the Rigid Riser Shower Kit is from Hudson Reed. Turkish towels hang on vintage hooks. "We decided to leave them different because we always like something to be slightly off in our spaces," says Megan. "We’re not fans of things that are too symmetrical or perfect." The wooden "beads" by the bath are offcuts of African hardwoods that the designers found in a dumpster in Brooklyn and use as side tables.

Above: Megan and Matt painted the exterior of the house in Trout Gray with Witching Hour on the trim, both by Benjamin Moore.

Before

Above L: The couple replaced the windows with Marvin Integrity double-hung units, making the house significantly more energy efficient. Matt, a self-taught woodworker, became a master of all trades; he's shown here installing the large window over what is now the kitchen stove. "We did all the work on the house ourselves, so in the beginning, we often wound up working all hours of the days, nights, and weekends." Above R: A view of the kitchen before the wall between the living room and kitchen was removed.

Above L: The living room with the original Douglas fir flooring covered in layers of varnish. Above R: The staircase before the designers ripped out the the overhead wall, carpet, and paneling and replaced the door at the bottom right with a large window.

Above: The house that Megan and Matt bought, pre-renovation.

The Materia Designs showroom in Kerhonkson, New York, is open by appointment only. Looking to overhaul your own place? Have a look at Reader Rehab: Danielle's DIY Kitchen Remodel for Under $500 and Back from Black: Repainting the Bath from Dark to Light. And for inspiration, see another north-of–New York City renovation, An Architect's One-Room Family House.

On Gardenista, take a look at a 186-square-foot garage transformed into a guest cottage, aka The Grottage.

N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on October 20, 2014, as part of our Dark Shadows issue.

More Stories from Remodelista

• Malibu Makeover: A 1970s Bungalow Reinvented by Lauren Soloff
• Top 5 in Design News: Frank Gehry Designs a Yacht and Steve Jobs Is Back in the Headlines
• Top of the Lake: Tiny Cabins in Dark and Light

A roundup of rooms animated by avian visitors, black bird edition.

Above: The Stockholm kitchen/dining room of NYC-based artist Mats Gustafson. Photograph by Magnus Marding for T Magazine. 

Above: A pair of Eames House Birds ($250 each from DWR) in a project by Texas-based designer Barbara Hill. Photograph by Gregory Miller via Dwell.

Above: A high-ceilinged bedroom in the Shed by Sydney-based Richard Peters Associations is anchored by an Eames House Bird. 

Above: In a house on the archipelago of Sweden by Johannes Norlander, an Eames House Bird stands sentinel.

Above: A renovated flat in Valencia, Spain, by architect Sonia Rayos, via Divisare.

Above: A house in Sweden with a blackbird perch by In Praise of Shadows

Above: In a restored farmhouse in the Netherlands, an inky black bird presides over the kitchen; via Planete Deco.

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Lisa and Chris Goode, NYC green-roof designers and cofounders of Goode Green, undertook a top-to-bottom renovation of their shingle-style house in the Hamptons. Having designed many projects, including Brooklyn's Eagle Street Rooftop Farm and the meadow atop New York's Crosby Street Hotel, they decided to save money by acting as their own general contractor.

An avid cook who likes to be joined by a crowd, Lisa envisioned an island—but not just any: "An island is the one place where everyone congregates, so I wanted an overhang on two sides where we could pull up stools. This island had to be perfect and I needed to find someone to design it." Tight on time, Lisa began an initial search on the Internet and soon found herself, via Etsy, on the home page of Siosi Design & Build, a two-woman furniture workshop in Bloomington, Indiana, 860 miles away. “The image on the company's opening page had the exact aesthetic I was looking for,” she says. “From the first email and throughout the process of dimensioning and pricing, I came to really trust owners Ivy Siosi and Audim Culver. Even though I hadn't met them, I could tell they were talented and professional craftspeople; they were the ones I was looking for.”

On the same day that the Goodes moved into their newly renovated place, they received their wood-topped island—hand-delivered by Ivy and Audim, who had driven 14 hours to get it there. It's now the heart of the kitchen—and the home. 

Top Tip: The Web is smaller and more personal than you think. "When it comes to pulling the trigger on final decisions, online research is incredibly useful for comparing costs and finding discounted items, not to mention talented designer-builders." Read on to see all the kitchen elements Lisa sourced on the Internet.

Photography by Lisa Goode.

Above: The Goode's custom kitchen island sits in the elbow of their L-shaped kitchen. As Lisa envisioned, it has a butcher-block top and two overhangs so that people can congregate around one corner, leaving the other corner free for her to cook and move around.

Above: The Goodes incorporated shiplap paneling on the walls to match the vernacular of historic houses in the area. The walls and ceiling are painted in White Dove by Benjamin Moore. Learn more about interior shingles in Expert Advice: The Enduring Appeal of Shiplap. 

Above: "The pendant lights are by my friend Michele Quan of MQuan who makes beautiful ceramics and jewelry," says Lisa. "The lamps are celadon-dipped porcelain and the metal finishes are brass." Quan also makes Ceramic Bells Inspired by Japanese Temples.

Above: The countertop is Alberene soapstone, which Lisa bought directly from a quarry in Alberene, Virginia. "Sourcing the slabs from images at a distance was difficult, but I persisted because of the large cost saving," she says. "The slabs were shipped to a local fabricator, and I worked with him on setting up the patterning and seams. I love the waxy, warm feel of the stone, and this particular soapstone has a slight veining that adds depth and character without becoming too much of a pattern." Later today, see our Remodeling 101 primer on soapstone countertops.

Above: The carpenters who renovated the house also built the kitchen's wood cabinets and painted them Midnight by Benjamin Moore. "I designed the cabinets with lots of drawer access—I think it's easier," says Lisa. The existing Douglas fir floors weren't salvageable and were replaced with new Douglas fir. "Although the new Douglas fir doesn't have the color variation of the older wood in the rest of the house, the Bona Traffic matte lacquer that we used does a great job of pulling it all together."

Above: The island has two drawers and a powder-coated metal base of open shelves. "There are several items that I use every time I cook, and I love being able to access them so easily. Also, the metal is so easy to clean," says Lisa.

Above: The island's butcher block is called ambrosia maple; the sink side is detailed with a continuous grain waterfall edge achieved with a miter joint. The wood is named for the ambrosia beetle that burrows in maple trees, causing the darker coloring. Lisa's everyday plates, purchased as part of an auction lot, are easily accessible.

Above: On the inside of the island drawer, a spline-reinforced rabbet joint in contrasting wood tones is an example of Siosi's ability to, in Lisa's words, "take a common joint and make it into a beautiful and defining design element."

Above: "Working with Audim and Ivy was a definite highlight of the project, and having them show up at my door with the island after several months of emails and phone calls was like having long-lost friends appear for dinner," says Lisa. "Anyone who has done construction knows that there are often mishaps and frustrations. Having something go so well is worth taking note." Reluctant to see the duo go, Lisa commissioned them to design and build something else—a small writing desk for a corner of the kitchen.

Above: "I knew I wanted a spot in the kitchen for my laptop and for flipping through cookbooks," Lisa says. "Sometimes the island works for this, but it's also nice to have a chair with a back when you've been on your feet." The chair is part of a set of eight that Lisa sourced on 1stdibs. "They're Willemer Stuhl chairs from 1958 that German artist Markus Friedrich Staab painted in 2013."

Above: "The desk is in constant use as a place to plug in electronics," says Lisa. Contemplating your own remodel? See Remodeling 101: Where to Locate Electrical Outlets, Kitchen Edition.

Above: The original owners named the house Massakeat after a character in The Maid of Montauk, a 1902 story by Forest Monroe. "The name was painted on the floor at the entry to the kitchen," says Lisa. "We just recently had it repainted where it originally was."

Before

Above: A decidedly different kitchen with a table in the center.

Above: A look at the walls that the Goodes removed to open up the space.

For more island inspiration, see:

• 10 Easy Pieces: Instant Kitchen Islands
• 11 Kitchen Islands Gone Glamorous
• Kitchen Islands and Tables on Wheels
• The Kitchen Island Reimagined

On Gardenista, have a look at Brooklyn landscape architect Julie Farris's Rooftop Meadow, and read Michelle's domestic dispatch on The Unused Kitchen (for all that she wishes she'd known when she remodeled).

This post is an update; the original ran on June 25, 2015. 

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Designer Faye Toogood has the rare ability to balance morbidity with refinement. This is best seen in the interiors of her London house (note the skull beneath a pair of Perriand sconces) and in her own designs, her artwork verging on unsettling.

In 2010 Toogood created the Sticks and Stones and Broken Bones series of hardware with European brand Izé and we've admired the knobs and hooks ever since. But more as objects—we're left wondering how they would look in situ without being too gimmicky. Toogood shows us.

Above: The hardware on a door opening into Toogood's dining room. Photograph by Henry Bourne for T Magazine.

Above: The Bone Lever Handle 1 is 5.5 inches long and available in all of the Izé finishes.

Above: The Bone Lever Handle 2, seen in Toogood's own home (top), is a little over five inches long.

Above: The Bone Coat Hook 1 has two bones to hang items from.

Above: The Bone Coat Hook 2 is a simple cross section resembling plated bone marrow.

Above: The Skull Door Knocker is shown here in dark bronze.

Above: The Drawer Pull Handle is a short bone, a little less than five inches in length.

More from Toogoo's London house:

• Steal This Look: A Moody Minimalist London Bedroom
• Steal This Look: Designer Faye Toogood's Artful London Patio
• Greatest Hits: 12 Favorite Kitchens in the UK

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The Day of the Dead is every day at Hueso. Part crypt, part Joseph Cornell–style assemblage, the concept restaurant (whose name means "bone") is an artfully spooky collaboration between chef-provocateur Alfonso Cadena and his architect brother Ignacio of Cadena & Asiocados. Ignacio stripped the interior and, with the help of local artists, covered it with a collage of skeletal fragments. Located in the Lafayette Design District of Guadalajara, Mexico, the canteen occupies a resurrected 1940s structure, formerly the home/studio of architect Diaz Morales and now part of the Luis Barragán Foundation—and itself equally eye opening. 

Photography by Jaime Navarro via Architizer, unless otherwise noted.

Above: Eucalyptus provides a sign of life in the chalky white dining room where everything from human and animal bones to molcajetes (mortar and pestles) are part of the fossilized display.

Above: A stepped communal table extends the length of the 240-square-foot space, surrounded by classic Thonet hairpin chairs. The white tiles on the floor are a continuation of the exterior of the building (see below).

Above: The whitewashed walls are an ode to the elemental, and include, according to Ignacio, 10,000 bones organized in a grid of wooden frames and shadowboxes.

Above L: Chef Alfonso Cadena, 29, grew up in Mexico City and got his training at the Culinary Institute of America. Above R: An aluminum backbone holds the orders of the day. Photographs via Yatzer.

Above: The long, narrow room has a bleached bar table (right) and the kitchen opens behind it. Photograph via Designboom

Above: In the chapel-like back of the room, a dead tree rises and casts interesting shadows. Photograph via Designboom

Above: Cooking implements and a bucket of bones adorn the area around stairs.

Above: In the entry, a display case is filled with aluminum castings of ribs, vertebrae, and other fragments.

Above: The 1940s building is covered in "a skin" of ceramic tiles decorated with stitching patterns. That's a bone hanging over the door.

Above: Hueso is in Guadalaja's Lafayette District, at 2061 Efraín González Luna.

Kindred spirit? Take a look at Bones, a gastropub in Paris.

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Two tiny cabins owned by two friends in New Zealand offer an important reminder: a retreat need not be massive to offer a peaceful hideaway.  

Designed by firm principal Nat Cheshire of Aukland-based Cheshire Architects, the cabins are two projects for two clients: friends who pooled their money to buy a plot of land on a moody, remote estuary in northern New Zealand. They built their own shed cabin atop it, and took turns sharing it before deciding that two tiny, but very special, homes would better suit their needs. 

The result is a pair of structures full of dichotomies: They have small footprints but stick out jarringly from the landscape. They're basic plywood buildings, but with luxurious details inside. And one is black, the other light. 

Spotted on ArchDaily; interview info via New Zealand's Home Magazine.  

Above: The cabins' charred wood exteriors make them contrast with the landscape, but their lack of conventional "house" details—like a pathway from the road or a front door—make them look like objects that might always have been there. Says designer Nat Cheshire, "In that big, long grass it feels more like these were boats tied up at moorings in a slow-motion ocean." Photograph by Jeremy Toth. 

Above: Each cabin has two openings: one serves as an entrance, the other as a window. But the entrance is not a door—instead, visitors step up onto a boulder to climb inside the large opening. "We hoped that in subverting the shorthand language of building, these little constructions might feel like something other than—and more than—houses." Cheshire's office spent days figuring out how to lock the openings without any visible hardware. Photograph by Jeremy Toth.

Above: The light cabin's interior is plain builder's plywood. Here, an occupant enjoys the water view from the open "window." Photograph by Jeremy Toth.

Ostentatious second homes were not in the budget for this project but weren't wanted, anyway. The petite cabins were created in part as a reaction to overly large, little-used vacation houses. "Holiday homes have become this country’s decadence," says Cheshire. "We wanted a different vision for New Zealand’s coastal future."

The cabins are entirely off the grid, and each has a bathroom, kitchen, living room, lofted sleeping space, and outdoor shower. For ventilation, wood hatches open in the bathroom and sleeping lofts. 

Above: The entryway of each cabin looks inward toward the land. Photograph by Jeremy Toth.

The estuary-side plot was zoned for a single 1,500-square-meter (16,145-square-foot) house. Since this plan called for two separate dwellings—albeit at 29 square meters (312 square feet) each—Cheshire and his clients had to argue their case for special permission to build. In total, the two cabins required just over eight sheets of plywood.

Above: The designer and owners liked the idea of adding luxurious details inside and wanted each interior to be distinct, one bright, the other moody. Says Cheshire, "There’s a responsibility with objects of that scale that someone who is bold enough to commission it deserves to be delighted in every junction." Furnishings in the light cabin include an Ercol sofa and AJ floor lamp by Arne Jacobsen. Photograph by Jeremy Toth.

Above: Each kitchen has a small sink, refrigerator, gas stove, and dishwasher drawer. In the light cabin, the kitchen nook is lined in oiled jarrah eucalyptus wood. At left, the small closet bathroom. Photograph by Darryl Ward. 

Above: The black cabin's view of the mangrove inlet. Rather than adding walls of glass to immerse the cabins' occupants in the landscape, the architect actively avoided an indoor/outdoor experience. "The cabins are a retreat from the landscape rather than a saturation in it," he says. Photograph by Jeremy Toth.

Above: The black cabin is lined in form ply—low-cost panels covered in polished black coating—which creates a deep, inky space. Says the owner: "At night, if there’s just a couple of candles going, the panels have a sheen that’s quite disconcerting; it’s like you’re sitting in a void, or outside.” Furnishings in the black cabin include a daybed by Donald Judd and an Eleanor Cooper twig mobile overhead. Photograph by Darryl Ward. 

Above: The black cabin's kitchen has the same appliances as the light cabin but is lined in glamorous brass paneling. Photograph by Darryl Ward. 

Above: The dark cabin's sleeping loft, with a skylight overhead for viewing stars. Photograph by Darryl Ward. 

Above L: Both cabins' showers are outdoors, facing the water. R: The entrance opening of each cabin doubles in function as a small deck. Photograph by Darryl Ward. 

Above: Cheshire wanted the cabins to exist boldly in the landscape, to “invoke the kind of dislocation that might stop you in your tracks, and help you see anew.” Photograph by Darryl Ward. 

More dream cabins await: 

• A Kiwi Beach Compound, Cross-Cultural Edition is designed by Nat Cheshire's father (and the other principal of Cheshire Architects), Pip.
• An Indestructible Cabin on Stilts
• Outbuilding of the Week: Tiny Glass Houses on Dry Creek
• Steal This Look: Island Cabin Kitchen

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Our resident Halloween expert Justine Hand says: "I like to honor All Hallows' Eve with a subtle, grown-up approach—something that is only vaguely sinister or decayed." We couldn't agree more. In the spirit of the indirectly eerie, here are 10 of our favorite Halloween setups of all time. 

Above: The ingredients for re-creating Justine's subtly spooky tablescape are simple: bone white china and floating black leaves overhead. For more, see Falling Leaves: Justine's Spooky-Elegant DIY Table Setting. 

Above: Justine created five Halloween-appropriate flower arrangements using only yard clippings and vases she had on hand. Here, Virginia creeper in an absinthe-colored antique vase. See the rest at 5 Favorites: Foraged Halloween Bouquets. 

Above: Skip the face painting and paint the flowers instead: Gardenista used black acrylic paint on blue thistle stems for this kooky arrangement. For instructions, see DIY: A Black Thistle Bouquet for Halloween.

Above: When we asked Halloween hostess extraordinaire Claudia Schwartz for late-October decor ideas, she arranged dried green moss in antique French rose vases with vintage bone gaming pieces on top. For more tips (plus a party playlist), see Expert Advice: Halloween Decor Tips from a Master of the Dark Arts. 

Above: Not one to be hindered by a small budget, Justine turned her house into a haunted hall for a total cost of $0. For this arrangement, she placed her wedding veil on a black rocking chair and set it in "that archetypal scary spot under the stairs." See the rest of her ethereal setups in DIY: Justine's Haunted Hall.

Above: At Remodelista, we use black taper candles year-round, but they're an obvious choice for Halloween. Justine made these tapers herself for about $3 per pair. Read how she did it in DIY Project: Black Beeswax Tapers for the Holiday Table. 

Above: This unruly bouquet combines wild grapevine and tillandsia with leucadendron and amsonia. Learn how to do it yourself in Bouquet of the Week: Celebrating Decay for Halloween on Gardenista. 

Above: These creepy-cute kitties are truly simple to make—chances are good you have paper, scissors, and string lights at home. For details, see DIY: Instant Black Cat Halloween Lights.

Above: For readers who love saving time and celebrating holidays in equal measure, try this all-purpose holiday table arrangement that will last from Halloween through New Year's with just a few tweaks along the way: see Steal This Look: A Versatile Holiday Table Arrangement. 

Above: When Remodelista collaborated with Rue Magazine on a holiday table setting back in 2010, we applied the 100-mile rule: Everything from plates to persimmons were sourced from our neighborhood or our closets. See how we did it in Steal This Look: Remodelista's Holiday Table for Rue Magazine. 

Spend some time in the dark:

• Remodeling 101: 10 Architects' Moody Paint Picks
• Remodeling 101: The Intel on Black Marble Countertops
• Palette & Paints: Matte Black Painted Furniture
• Dark Shadows: Pros and Cons of Painting a House Black

More Stories from Remodelista

• DIY: $100 Glass and Concrete Coffee Table
• Real Estate Advice: 5 Deal-Breakers When Buying a Place in the City
• High/Low: Dot Wall Hooks

No pumpkins or scarecrows required. The Gardenista crew is getting prepped for the Halloween season with a week of black porch lights, rusty metal, dark leaf decorations, and poisonous plants.

Above: This way to the Poison Garden at Alnwick Castle in the north of England, designed by Jacques and Peter Wirtz.

Above: DIY Decor: Justine's Spooky-Elegant Halloween Table Setting.

Above: 10 Genius Garden Hacks with Rusted Metal.

Above: 10 Easy Pieces: Black Porch Ceiling Lights.

Above: Five DIY Fall Arrangements for Gardenista Readers by David Stark. Shown here: Drumstick alliums and passion vine in a Cécile Daladier vase.

Above: Required Reading: A Day at Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte.

Find the best fall foliage shrubs, curb appeal ideas to steal from Brooklyn for Halloween, dark door knockers, and more at Gardenista.

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