Dwell November/December 2018

Ideally our homes should evolve in tandem with our culture. But lately they’ve been lagging behind. In a sense, we all are. Technology has us struggling to keep up as we encounter a firestorm of useful, entertaining, addictive, inspiring, and time-wasting images and messages daily. Meanwhile the continuing damage to our environment—something architecture can and must address—puts our very future at risk. How can our homes be a place of calm and rest in a turbulent world, while still engaging us in culture and community? I believe the answer is in building for our time. Today American homes are rife with copies of what I call “grandma’s kitchens”—spaces that nod stylistically to the humble traditions of the past but fail to capture their magic. Drywall is substituted for plaster, country-style cabinets are…

I read your interview with Dan Maginn on Dwell’s new podcast, RM-3, and I have to say, if I were steel, I’d be pissed. To see this podcast come to fruition sparked joy within me. And I love the idea of covering one material “three ways.” But to say steel is “basically processed dirt”—this is an insult to any metal, really, and misdirects the potential of dirt. Steel was born from the belly of the earth, trapped for hundreds of years surrounded by dirt in the form of iron ore. Steel is not dirt. And this isn’t to undermine dirt, which in and of itself is fascinating and a true chameleon of materials. —Diana Giulietti Thanks for the letter, Diana. I hope steel isn’t pissed at me and understands I was being…

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDES Take the stress out of holiday shopping with our curated gift guides. Whether you’re looking for stocking stuffers or cool new finds (like the levitating Flyte LED lamp, above), you can cross off everyone on your list by heading to www.dwell.com/shop. VACATION RENTALS Minimod, originally designed by pioneering Bay Area architect Joseph Esherick, is a compact, three-level cabin in California’s famed Sea Ranch community that’s been lovingly restored by Framestudio to accommodate up to six guests. Book your stay at dwell.com/minimod. TOP INSTAGRAMS A revamped 1955 home in Austin (above), an off-grid retreat in Australia, and a renovated London townhouse were among your favorite recent posts. Add more inspiration to your feed at instagram.com/dwellmagazine. POLL: 72% of readers say they would not put a television over the fireplace. PHOTOS: DREW KELLY (MINIMOD); CASEY DUNN…

Turn my San Diego cookie-cutter condo kitchen into a “wow” moment. Goodbye countertops and cabinets that everyone used in 2006 during the peak flip years.@joshnsd on Instagram Rewired electrical and new lighting. Oh, the difference better lighting would make in a 1949 bungalow! Stacy Bartko on Facebook The kitchen. The germophobe in me hates the tile countertops. But the thing about kitchen remodels is that you never know how much it’s going to cost or how long it will take, especially in a 103-year-old house. Not sure I wanna open Pandora’s Box. @karenarman on Instagram I would add a ton of hardscaping to our very wooded yard to help keep overgrown weeds at bay. @suerissab on Instagram The back of our house is almost all glass, which gives amazing light, but I sometimes wish we had more…

You can count on one hand the pieces of furniture in the apartment Julian von der Schulenburg shares with his wife, Min, and their year-old daughter, Miru: bed, dining table with benches, console, daybed, chair. Everything about their home is ultra pared back, down to the lighting, which consists of LED bulbs in simple porcelain sockets. The sparseness fits the couple’s minimalist lifestyle, but it also emphasizes the raw beauty of the loft-like space. When Julian and Min purchased the yellow brick building that houses their apartment three years ago, it was totally run down. Their gut renovation, which also included an upstairs rental unit and basement studio, was “largely a process of subtraction,” says Julian. Out went the fake wood walls. Out went the dropped Styrofoam ceilings. The design took…

• PRODUCTS A region-by-region roundup of our favorite furniture and accessories, all new for 2018. ♦ EXPERIENCE Companies of various sizes and ages weigh in on domestic production issues big and small. ▪ CLASSICS A spotlighted selection of some of the greatest hits in the history of American ingenuity. WEST • 1 REJUVENATION Portland, Oregon Taking its cue from the sweeping curves of medieval flying buttresses, the O&G Ames floor lamp features a cast base in brushed or burnished brass and is topped with a linen shade in white or black. 2 IACOLI & McALLISTER Seattle, Washington Composed of brass and powder-coated steel tubes that range in size from three to 18 inches, the Acis No. 7.1 hanging light system can be arranged in almost endless configurations on a 60-inch-long mount. 3 CROFT HOUSE Los Angeles, California Nestled in an ultra thin steel frame with the…