There is one condo on the first floor, two on the second and one on the third. This view, which shows half the building, displays the edgy use of materials, including metal siding, and color. The interiors offer a palate of tangerine, pistachio, sky blue and other vibrant shades.

Builder: Cobalt Construction

Construction cost/size: $1,122,000/4 2- and 3-bedroom units ranging from 857 to 2,036 square feet

The intent: What once was a worn single-family home in a residential/commercial area a block off Aurora Avenue has morphed into four stylish condominiums. The biggest challenge was getting four units on a 5,000-square-foot lot and making them "feel like single-family homes," explains Serra. The solution: instead of designing narrow, claustrophobic townhouses, the architects stacked them, one on the ground floor, two on the second and one on the third. This added great light and some views. Because the neighborhood is transitional, they felt they could take some design chances such as using industrial-grade steel siding.

This is the top-floor condominium's kitchen and living room, which provide a view of Mount Rainier. The kitchen's sloping skylights, right, allow for light and head room in the vaulted ceiling. The floors are heated concrete.

Exterior finishes are both stylish and rugged — fitting for the home's prominent Alki Beach location. The roof and some of the siding are corrugated metal. Cedar is also used, and the windows are mahogany and aluminum.

	The top-floor living, dining and kitchen areas are sheltered under a vaulted ceiling the owner jokes reminds him of a high-class picnic shelter. Corner glass doors accordion back to provide a seamless view of Elliott Bay.

Builder: Constructive Energy

Construction cost/size: $900,000/2,675 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths

The intent: To realize a dramatic house on a difficult lot. Just anchoring the house on the last developable Alki Beach lot cost $100,000. Because the property is adjacent to a public beach, Christofides' challenge was to provide privacy for owners Steve and Pam Zeasman while maximizing views of Elliott Bay. The solution: "an inverted floor plan with the more public rooms — the kitchen, dining and living room — located at the top or third floor, with bedrooms and baths located on the lower levels." Window walls that fold back and an intricate timbered ceiling add drama to the top floor.

	The owners jokingly call this the "I love wood" house because of the extensive use of it. This view shows the kitchen, with its barrel-vaulted ceiling that continues past the columns into the living room.

Builder: Les Swick

Construction cost/size: $500,000/2,262 square feet, 1 bedroom, 2 baths

The intent: After realizing they didn't need the planned 3,500 square feet, Steve and Teresa Swick Hansen told Sanford they wanted a "not so big house" that would do double duty as work and living spaces. Thus the entire first floor of this waterfront home is offices. The second-floor living area includes sleeping, cooking, dining, resting and entertaining spaces "all integrated in a relatively transparent design where the spaces were defined less by walls than by other elements, such as the fireplace, dividers and ceiling treatments," Sanford explains. Extensive use of warm colors and numerous woods give the spaces both drama and intimacy.

	The main floor's open floor plan provides generous light and views of Lake Washington. The two-sided fireplace is open both to the living room, seen here, and the entry on the other side.

Builder: Kohl Construction and Remodeling

Construction cost/size: $730,000/3,883 square feet, 2 bedrooms, 3 baths

The intent: What was originally envisioned as a remodel of an old beach cabin instead became a new custom home that takes full advantage of Lake Washington views and does it in a way that's both old and new. Old: the Craftsman exterior, which well suits the neighborhood, and such interior details as window seats and period Arts & Crafts-style fixtures. New: the open floor plan, with its two-story living room that flows easily to the kitchen and dining areas and two home offices for the owners, a professional couple. Other personal touches include a basement dog shower and a top-floor reading area on a balcony adjacent to a small fireplace.

The home's front features a welcoming covered porch with a swing. Because the house is in one of Seattle's oldest neighborhoods, the owners wanted a home that fit in stylistically.

Next: Runners-up 9-13