This week, we have the pleasure of officially announcing the winners of our 2015 HOUSES Awards. Each embodies in its own way the values we pursue in every issue of Fine Homebuilding: smart design, top craftsmanship, quality construction, and respect for the human and natural environment. Without further ado, here they are.

Best New Home: Caleb Johnson, architect

This coastal cottage in Biddeford, Maine, succeeds admirably in balancing traditional expectations and contemporary demands. It encapsulates an easy-going floor plan within a time-honored form that’s modernized with unexpected curves and carefully considered window placement. All this adds up to a new home that challenges cherished architectural assumptions without abandoning its local vernacular.

Learn more about the 2015 Best New Home

Best Remodel: John Klopf, architect

In this sensitive remodel of an iconic midcentury home in Burlingame, Calif., we see how it’s possible to reimagine a home’s original aesthetic to meet contemporary needs and sensibilities. Not just restored but improved, this home built by developer Joseph Eichler exudes a contemporary vibe as appealing to today’s generation as the original was to its very first owners in 1964.

Learn more about the 2015 Best Remodel

Best Small Home: Emory Baldwin, architect

Beyond its smart and flexible floor plan and its natural finishes, we were drawn to this project for its relevance. This 550-sq.-ft. cabin in Sagle, Idaho, is a stock design that aims to satisfy the housing needs of homeowners in an incalculable number of settings. To us, it reinforces our belief that sound home design, when done well, is universally applicable.

Learn more about the 2015 Best Small Home

Best Traditional Home: Jeffrey Dolan, architect

Modern necessities are successfully fused with the hallmarks of early American style in this remodel of a 1776 fieldstone Georgian in Media, Pa. Adapting a home built more than 200 years ago to the demands of contemporary living is hard enough; doing so while faithfully restoring the original spirit of the structure requires an exceptional understanding of traditional architecture and an unwavering commitment to the process.

Learn more about the 2015 Best Traditional Home

Best Energy-Smart Home: Tom and Peggy Kolnowski, homeowners; Donovan Davis, architect

Our award for best energy-smart home goes to homeowners Tom and Peggy Kolnowski, who worked closely with their architect and builder to create a home in Driftwood, Texas, that draws its power from the sun, its heat from the ground, and its water supply from the clouds–all while adhering to a down-to-earth construction budget.

Learn more about the 2015 Best Energy-Smart Home

Editor’s Choice: Susan Stoltz and David Kau, architects

This year’s editor’s choice award goes to a new home on Orcas Island, Wash., whose winsome, meticulously crafted interior is belied by its unassuming exterior. Perched on a precipice 1200 ft. above sea level, this charming home is equally suited to its natural surroundings and to its owners’ distinctive sensibilities. It is, at once, both subtle and sophisticated.

Learn more about the 2015 Editor’s Choice

You can explore each of these high-achieving homes (along with the Reader’s Choice Award winners selected by visitors to FineHomebuilding.com) by going to our HOUSES Awards microsite at FineHomebuilding.com/HOUSES. There you’ll find a summary of each project, expanded photo galleries, and on-site video tours offering unique glimpses into these homes and the work behind them. You’ll also find each of the award winners profiled in the print edition of our HOUSES issue, available on newsstands in early May. Online members can read the article about each home on the microsite.

Congratulations to our winners, and thank you to the many homeowners, builders, and architects who shared their best work with us. We owe our inspiration to you.

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