What makes a house truly feel like a home? Aside from the events that take place between its walls, much of a home’s personality is found in the materials, textures, and accents that bring it together. While it can be time-consuming to keep up with the latest design trends—especially the perennials that come in and out with the seasons—incorporating the latest high-end materials into your home is an easy way to give a space an instant, luxurious update. From cozy fabrics to rich metals, here are seven futuristic materials to freshen any room.

These modern wine rooms go beyond mere function, tackling temperature and proper storage while incorporating eye-catching materials—such as wood, stone, and glass—to create spaces that both practical and alluring.

From an Italian-inspired compound in Woodside, California, to a beachfront villa in Dubai, these are this month’s four featured notable properties for sale over $26 million.

Whether it’s on the ocean, a lake or a river, you can’t beat the serenity of a waterfront home. With the sound of the water lapping at the shore, and the opportunity to go for a swim or a kayak just steps from your door, staying home has never been so inviting.

Fall heralds an unmatched refresh. Back-to-school excitement lingers and the season vibrates with a warm, soft potential that even New Year’s Eve can’t match. Now there is no frenzy, no internal guilt following summer’s long days that you must make the most of; just an efficient transition into a colourful new season.

Whether you’re looking to simply trim the deck with warm bulb lighting, add a new slope to your landscaping or rock garden, or linger in the private expanse of your beautiful backyard, here are some design tips to bring your home into autumn and refresh your outdoor space for fall.

Country style isn’t just an aesthetic—it’s an ethos, a route back to nature and simpler living. Get inspired to leave the city behind with these five gorgeous rustic homes, complete with spacious lots, exposed beams, generous wood-burning fireplaces, and plenty of room for daydreaming under starry skies.

As restrictions begin to lift all around the world, people are looking closely for investment opportunities. Placing their quality of life at the forefront of their decision making, some of these investments will inevitably mean relocation to a new home – and potentially even a new country. In this three-part series we’ll explore destinations around the world with benefits like residency and citizenship by investment programs, tax incentives, and more, as well as hear from local experts throughout the Sotheby’s International Realty® brand network along the way.

L.A.-based master architect William Hefner is known for his proficiency in both traditional and modernist styles and for his devotion to translating classic details for sophisticated contemporary living. His versatility and dedication are easily apparent in this new Beverly Hills home, where sleek, refined modern style is inflected with time-honored flair. Stately columns and wrought iron, arched windows, shutters, hardwood floors, and a grand sweeping staircase are among the elegant elements that bring touches of tradition to a residence that is decidedly au courant and state of the art. Chicly contrasting surfaces of black and white create a pleasingly minimalist air, yet the home feels far from spartan. Nearly every space boasts artful fixtures—from dramatic lighting to eye-catching hardware and faucets—and walls of glass afford dazzling, dynamic views.

For the home of a beloved thespian to provide space for performing and dancing seems only fitting, and this airy contemporary loft—Academy Award winner Susan Sarandon’s six-bedroom oasis—does just that. Occupying two floors of an exclusive co-op in Chelsea, the residence is anchored by a vast open living area with a mirrored wall and steps that can serve as impromptu seating—all perfectly suited for productions by performers of any age or stripe.

From a light-filled Parisian apartment to a historic Biltmore Forest home in North Carolina, these are this month’s four featured notable propertiesfor sale over $2 million.

Whether in a classic New England coastal setting or part of a stunning modern remodel of a San Francisco Victorian, a stylish fire pit can turn any backyard or balcony into an idyllic outdoor oasis.

There’s nothing like walking into a stunning hotel room. This moment is where both big and small vacations begin. Hotel rooms provide just the right mix of things you want and things you need. They usually include a good bed, luxurious sheets and blankets, tasteful decorations and a few indulgences.

Summer is in full swing, bringing with it long days, shimmering pools, cocktails, and lazy afternoons with the latest bestsellers. For the innovative homeowner, the pool patio can be so much more than a functional space for dripping on the concrete. From cozy furnishings to vivid foliage, here are some ideas to refresh your backyard and turn your major water feature into a fabulous oasis.

Italy’s Amalfi Coast has long been an attractive destination for travelers seeking sun and inspiring landscapes. The 30 miles of coast is a slice of idyllic beauty, where winding roads lead to historical villages, inviting town squares, pebbled bays, and hidden beaches. From Sorrento to Salerno, the palette of the Amalfi Coast is a rainbow to lift any spirits.

Whether it’s the sea-inspired sapphires or the mountainous greys that catch your eye, there’s a way to bring a bit of Italy into your home no matter where in the world you find yourself. Here are the shades we recommend to make the Amalfi Coast feel closer.

Floral paintings are making a contemporary comeback, farmhouses are getting modern face-lifts, and rooms are offering design “experiences.” Here are the latest trends in art, architecture, and design.

Compound Interest: 5 Private Estates | Whether the goal is swimming or stargazing, each of these vast, stylish estates—from Florida to California wine country with the mountain town of Taos in between—is ideal for creating a private community.

Sea of Dreams offers luxurious Caribbean living for the savvy, discerning home buyer; the perfect balance of simplicity and first class living, privacy and connectivity, all within the world-class, tax neutral jurisdiction that is the Cayman Islands.

In March, for only the fourth time in its 43-year history, the Pritzker Architecture Prize was awarded to a woman—two women, in fact. Irish architects Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara were named the 2020 Pritzker Prize Laureates, a designation that reflects the important work being done by women across the world to bring new perspectives and boundary-defying vision to the buildings that influence our skylines.

But women in architecture are not an exception to a rule: they have been changing landscapes for decades. Farrell and McNamara are co-founders of Grafton Architects, a firm they established in 1978. Specializing in rationalist architecture styles and sustainable design, their selected works include the Universita Luigi Bocconi in Milan—named the World Building of the Year in 2008—and the Medical School at the University of Limerick. They also served as the co-curators for the 16th International Architecture Exhibition at La Biennale di Venezia in 2018.

Ah, condo patios—that beautiful little slice of outdoors in the sky, the oasis built into your urban home. An oasis that can quickly become overrun with pots of neglected plants, mismatched garden furniture, and bikes waiting to be stored.

When you first move into a condo, the patio seems filled with limitless possibilities. But if you’re not careful, it’s easy to start using the space as a form of fresh air storage. Follow these steps to make sure you get the most of your condo’s balconies and outdoors spaces.

Circular homes make a striking statement.

These high-design residences are often one-of-a-kind, with interiors as novel as their curving facades. “When you’re buying luxury, you don’t want it to be a cookie-cutter home,” says Michael Pallier, the managing director of Sydney Sotheby’s International Realty. “You want something unique. A distinctive home means something to a buyer.”

Round residences certainly qualify. They are also somewhat rare, according to Pallier, giving them a rarified vibe. He is currently representing the Oculus, an “interstellar” Sydney, Australia, home that melds an expansive circular entertaining area with a more traditionally shaped wing that encompasses the kitchen and bedrooms. The six-bedroom, five-bathroom home was by architect Frank Fox in 1961. The circular entertaining area is at the center of Fox’s design.