Hasta La Ideas

Stuck in the office in these, the waning and steamy days of August? Who needs St. Tropez or a hideaway on the Cape when you have fresh episodes of Bravo’s Flipping Out (say what you will, Jeff Lewis has impeccable comic timing) and a stack of September issues (not to mention the film version, out in limited release this Friday)? There’s something for everyone in the latest Architectural Digest, which is devoted to Designers’ Own Homes. While we can’t quite fathom Timothy Corrigan‘s overhaul of an 18th-century Loire Valley château (“It had no bathrooms, no kitchen, no modern electrical system,” says the adman turned designer), we were utterly fascinated by Christopher Noto‘s Asian-infused Paris pied-à-terre and the striking Palm Springs retreat of architect Jim Jennings. With its intimate scale, painted concrete-block grid, flat floating roof, and nautical touches, the house conjures Donald Judd and Carl Andre on a yachting trip in the desert. Learn more and savor Joe Fletcher‘s smashing photos of the place here.

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