Fresh Builds: The Coolest Houses of August 2013

Throughout history, we've all read and heard stories about people who retreat into the woods to "become one with nature" and flee civilization along with all of society's needless rules. And just like Thoreau, sometimes we all need a home in the woods to be our haven.

Many of this month's dopest homes feature layouts and spatial manipulation that connect some of the most contemporary, manmade structures with their natural surroundings. From tilted buildings constructed on slopes to structures with beautifully arched roofs, the latest Fresh Builds: The Coolest Houses of August 2013 all exhibit the architects' brilliance and, by coincidence, bonding with nature.

RELATED: Fresh Builds: The Coolest Houses of July 2013
RELATED: Fresh Builds: The Coolest Houses of June 2013

Location: Edinburgh
Architect: Capital A Architecture

Though the Garden Room isn't a house, we wanted to include it, because that's how good it looked.

These days, sometimes a traditional home stands out more than all the contemporary designs out there. Following the request of the homeowner, Capital A Architecture added a Garden Room, meant to be a secondary living room. Unlike the original structure, it was constructed from steel, has glass in place of solid walls, and has a nice cut-out roof.

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Location: Lagnö, Sweden
Architect: Tham & Videgard Arkitekter

This summer house's distinct design of zig-zagging rooftops is cool because it stunningly contrasts with the skyline. It also inspires a kind of warmth and energy in the interior space, which contains not just a flat ceiling but also a hollow space to gaze into. Though its exterior is gray, one side of the house consists of sliding glass doors, which allows for light to fill the living space inside.

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Location: Melbourne
Architect: Nic Owen Architects

There's a whimsical and dreamlike quality to the Kew House, located in Melbourne. At first sight, it looks like a mad house with its contorted framework and odd combination of a shingled roof and a traditional facade. After a while, though, the look begins to grow on you... especially as you step through the front doors. With its clean, white walls and hardwood floor, the interior provides visitors with a cleansing palette cleanser.

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Location: The Dolomite Mountains, Italy
Architect: Plasma Studio

The Cube Home stands out amidst the cluster of surrounding gabled, traditional-looking houses all located on top of the Dolomite Mountains. However contemporary the house may look, the guys at Plasma Studio actually intended for the cube-shaped edifice to adapt with its natural environment. The triangular extensions they added into the cube's facade merge with the mountain slope, as if to establish the roots of the structure to the earth.

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Location: Sandhill, MS
Architect: Max Pritchard

The profile view of this Sandhill house seems to mirror that of a rollercoaster. Built on a slope, the elongated building actually consists of three pavilions linked by a roofed walkway. It embodies the concept of oneness with nature. With no artificial cooling, the house relies on cross ventilation and features double glazed windows to keep cool.

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Location: Karuizawa, Nagano
Architect: milligram architectural studio

This angular holiday villa situated on a hill in the forests of Karuizawa was designed by the Japanese milligram architectural studio. The brains behind the masterpiece fused two fractured structures to form this dope foundation.

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Location: Singapore
Architect: Formwerkz

The Diamond House, fashioned by Formwerkz...is it a modish mansion or a museum? It certainly looks like the latter with its unconventional shape and massive size. The homeowners had Formwerkz design this home to include specially-placed openings that would allow them to retain privacy. In addition, the architects tilted the structure to make more room for a garden. Brilliant!

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Location: Melbourne
Architect: Wolveridge Architects

While some architects manipulate the features of a home to maximize the amount of sunlight entering the building, Wolveridge Architects installed protruding windows onto this house to limit the direct light that would filter into this Melbourne home. It resulted in this trendy design, which mirrors the inside of the home, too. Peep the geometric cabinets inside!

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Location: Bergen, North Holland
Architect: Jetty and Maarten Min (Min2)

Dutch architects Jetty and Maarten Min designed the three-storey Dune House with the intention of connecting the form and material of the house with its surrounding landscape. Therefore, the design duo fashioned the structure with an arched roof to resemble the dunes and slouching trees. It's constructed with unfinished timber and clay tiles to give it a super simple and homey feel.

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Location: Timisoara, Romania
Architect: Andreescu & Gaivoronschi Associated Architects

One of two "house in house" creations that Andreescu & Gaivoronschi Associated Architects constructed, this house was designed similarly as a residential building that the architectural firm built 13 years ago, not far from the latest one. Their idea to create a house within a house harkens back to the social phenomena of Italian and Greek young adults choosing to live with the parentals. It's quite clever, really. The bottom structure, made of stone, is the living space for parents. The wooden portion of the house on top is the living space for the youth who have recently sprouted. Cool concept, right?

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Location: Bainbridge Island, WA
Architect: Patina Design Architects

Just because a building is modern and minimalist doesn't mean it can't be homey. Case in point: the Moji Residence. It's a perfect mingle of steel and wood, cocooned in a sea of green. The L-shaped home was designed around a central patio, the perfect place for fam and friends to kick back with a case of beer so residents feel like they're on vacation while at home!

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Location: Ngunguru, New Zealand
Architect: Tennent + Brown Architects

The Ngunguru House began as a simple idea to design a house like a bush camp. Home to a family with two boys, the structure is actually a collection of small one-storey rooms or "huts" situated on a central path, cut with outdoor spaces between. Decked above the huts is a second level with mesh sides, resembling black netting. It acts as shade and also connects to the little houses below. The coolest part? In the daytime, the netting forms specks of sunlight so that it feels like you're living under a tree canopy at all times!

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Location: Lagos de Moreno, Mexico
Architect: tactic-a

From the outside, the Huit House resembles a gift box with its striped walls and yellow, white, and gray color scheme. The structure is actually a fusion of three L-shaped structures. The house itself contains barely any windows, but it sits on top of a lower level, containing full-length glass windows to allow for great views and sunlight to enter.

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Location: Sesto, Italy
Architect: Plasma Studio

The masterminds behind the Paramount – Alma Residence took a simple house and gave it, quite literally, a twist. They added a metal structure, which coils around the home, to allow for both privacy and a 360-degree view of the surrounding mountains.

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Location: Guadalajara, Mexico
Architect: Espacio Multicultural Arquitectura (EMA)

As its name suggests, the Forest House is located on a steeply inclined area, amidst a forest of pine trees. It was designed with the beauty of the surrounding landscape and Mother Nature in mind, so we're sure anyone who lives here could totally get their Henry David Thoreau Life in the Woods thing on.

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Location: Montreal
Architect: naturehumaine

The Stacked House was actually a collaborative effort by both the architects and the homeowner, who wished to help build his own home. It's located in a narrow alley of Montreal's most densely populated plateau neighborhood. Thus the designers had to design a home that extended upward rather than outward. The finished product looks like stacks of different textured houses on houses, but the design is rather ingenious, for the inside of the house remains light and airy despite the constraints.

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Location: Sydney
Architect: Andrew Burges Architects

Speaking of beach houses, here's one by Australian firm Andrew Burges Architects. Looking at it from the outside, it may seem merely like a modest, simple, two-story home, but the interior layout is actually pretty brilliant. Designed to orientate away from neighbors to allow for privacy, the home was carefully-designed to consist of big open voids and view lines. So essentially, you get your privacy and big open spaces, too.

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Location: Gifu City, Japan
Architect: Keitaro Muto

This residential home may not be the most modish architectural design we've seen, but it no doubt stands out amongst other homes in the neighborhood. The back of the home actually looks like a regular house with white siding. What makes the Cantilevers Kawate House so unique, however, is the cantilevered bottom, which makes the house look like it's floating upon first glance. The glass windows of the bottom window allow for light to filter in and for residents to glimpse out of the home...pretty sweet!

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Location: Jakarta, Indonesia
Architect: id-ea

The Interflow House gives a twist to what would usually be a rather typical modern home. The architects incorporated white fences, railings, and walls composed of spaced-out planks in order to introduce some variety into the ultra-minimalist home. Kind of reminds you of lines of stacked-up dominos, no?

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Location: Sydney
Architect: Roth Architecture

The Northridge House kind of looks like the rustic version of a beach house you'd find in Malibu, no? The open spaces, large deck, and expansive terraces make it seem like it belongs next to an ocean somewhere, but the woodwork makes it look more like a cozy cabin and less of a college student's go-to vacation spot during spring break.

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Location: Belgium
Architect: Atelier d'Architecture Bruno Erpicum & Partners (AABE)

The GENETS 3 House is a one-level rectangular home, which sits atop pillars over a little area of water. It consists of a swimming pool (which extends into the interior of the home), full-length glass windows (which allow for a whole lot of sunlight), and an apartment on the rooftop. It's the epitome of a modern man's home.

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Location: Beijing
Architect: A Chinese doctor

It looks like Ai Weiwei isn't the only badass with a complete disregard for the law in China. Six years ago, a successful Chinese doctor of traditional medicine and acupuncture decided to build an expansive mountaintop villa...on top of pre-existing high rise buildings in Beijing. No. Fucks. Given.

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Location: dongbang, Jinju, South Korea
Architect: moon hoon

For artists and architects alike, it's important not to forget your sense of play and your inner child. South Korean architect moon hoon was inspired by his client to design the "Conan House," which translates to "Toy House." From the outside, it looks like a box, which encases a spiral staircase and funky interior space. Perhaps the coolest part of the house is that the staircase consists of a railing, which features a small display space for the home owner to show off his collection of toys and knick knacks.

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Location: Geochang County, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea
Architect: studio_gaon

Sometimes living among other people can be pretty exhausting. For one family who was a part of many social movements and reforms in South Korea, retreating to a remote home atop a quiet hill was exactly what they needed to get some peace and quiet. The cozy house has been designed to integrate the architecture with nature. It's surrounded by tall dogwood trees, a running stream, and arable land, on which the home owners grow their own walnuts and produce.

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Location: Algarve, Portugal
Architect: de Blacam & Meagher Architects

Composed mainly of a series of rectilinear pillars, one side of the San Lorenzo North villa faces a huge yard of green while the southern facade extends into a monumental terrace. This airy home, with its all-white everything design and massive sliding glass doors, makes for an relaxing place to chill. The home has a crystal clean swimming pool too.

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