Blending old and new will forever be a favourite of mine. That tension is so intriguing, and Fern Santini did just that in this Austin home – complete with huge modern addition. The dining features a vintage zinc top table and very modern chairs, the kitchen island displays vintage lab beakers on original stands, a vintage leather sofa takes pride of place in the study, the guest suite and laundry/office/sewing room maintains their original shiplap ceilings…. it’s such a wonderful mix of past and present.

Architect: Paul Lamb Architects
Builder: Pilgrim Building Company
Photography: Douglas Friedman

If you’re concerned about your environmental footprint and in the market for a sofa, check out this guide for sustainable sofa buying and ownership by Interiorbeat

A little slice of heaven in the Basque country. This old farm is now a stunning private residence that is as beautifully neutral as can be. Lots of wood used throughout that adds such a wonderful element of nature that exudes so much warmth. This is cabin style taken to a whole other level. Designed by Gilles et Boissier. Photos: Jerome Galland.

Henri Martin – the dreamiest of Paris apartments with to die for architectural details (you have to pay close attention as it’s all painted out in white, unfortunately but I won’t judge). Fleur Delesalle took a modernist, Art Deco approach when designing the space. It is Paris chic at its finest. Stunning.

I would have guessed this stately manor home was located somewhere in Europe. If you have the right builder and architect and property you can build a dream home like this anywhere, even New Jersey!

Located on a private lane in horse country, this house sits on a site once occupied by centuries-old family farms. The client envisioned a new manor house and outbuildings on the land that would occupy the same footprints as the historical farm structures, which had become derelict over time. For the main house, Peter Pennoyer Architects designed a classical stone manor that, by virtue of its thin plan, enjoys views to the east and west. PPA leavened the formality of its facades by its simplicity; indeed, only in the entryway and in a few places does the exterior display fully developed classical themes. PPA designed the outbuildings, including a guest house, a staff cottage, a garage, pool house, and a barn, in a simple wood vernacular of board and batten. On the interior, the ample scale of the rooms allowed for a robust program of moldings and paneling that take classical traditions as a starting point for a more ebullient and voluptuous style.

Landscape Design: Miranda Brooks Landscape Design
Photography: Eric Piasecki

This jaw-dropping home in Lincolnshire, England is currently for sale via Inigo, and has me dreaming and scheming of living there and cooking in the kitchen with its original three-arch stone fireplace, and then lunching in the garden surrounded by all that beauty, and afterwards wandering among the topiary trees….. *sigh*

Cressy Hall is a striking Georgian hall, surrounded by nine acres of verdant gardens and meadows and the bucolic Lincolnshire fens. Grade II* listed, the house has an exceptionally handsome façade and a plethora of original features inside, from a sweeping, sculptural wooden staircase, to the shutters that frame each sash window. A set of stairs lead to a complete set of 18th-century cellars, including a boot room, a wine cellar, a game larder, a wet and dry room plus a coal cellar, all set against a combination of herringbone brick and flagstone flooring. From here, a doorway opens into the studio; a particularly bright and voluminous room, it is lit from above through a glazed ceiling, with a mezzanine running along three sides. Currently used as a painter’s studio, it could easily be an office or expansive study, and has its own separate entrance. The staircase ascends to the first floor, where four bedrooms can be accessed via the central hallway. The top floor is home to three further bedrooms, a linen room, and a billiards room with fantastic striped wallpaper. Outbuildings include the old stables and a workshop, now with planning permission to convert into a one-bedroom cottage. These are flanked by a tool shed and a three-bay open store/woodshed. There is a very spacious garage and a large barn. The garden extends across nine acres, and a combination of formal and kitchen gardens. The garden is most notable for its incredible topiary, such as the yews at the front of the house and a box wave hedge that runs along the driveway. The vista runs the whole length of the garden, past a walled kitchen garden and through a clipped yew circle. Parallel to this is a pleached lime walk leading to a small summer house.