The T List: Our Favorite House Stories of 2021

December 22, 2021

There are only so many times in a year — or 21 months, rather — that you can rearrange your furniture, freshen up a gallery wall or reorganize a home office space. But you can always be inspired by the entirely unfamiliar homes of others, whether once-crumbling estates, Modernist beach houses or eclectic apartments. For this week's edition of the T List, we're looking back at some of our favorite homes, from a centuries-old Italian villa with expansive views of Florence to the designer Betsey Johnson's ballerina-pink Malibu dream house, that were featured in T this year. And wherever this newsletter may be finding you, we hope that these highlights might offer a brief respite from the momentary heaviness of the world around us.

Did we miss one of your favorites? Let us know at tlist@nytimes.com, and catch up on the rest of this year's design stories at tmagazine.com. Sign up here to find us in your inbox every Wednesday.

Maurizio Strippoli

A Florentine Villa Whose Story Is One of Family

For three generations, the Caponis' 15th-century home has been a repository of history, style and togetherness.

By Isabel Wilkinson

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Sean Donnola

T's 2021 Art Issue

This Modest New York Apartment Holds One of the Best Art Collections in Town

Over the course of 40 years, Alvin Hall has amassed a trove of blue-chip artists merely by trusting his eye.

By Sandra E. Garcia

Anthony Cotsifas

In and Around Guadalajara, Homes Like Sanctuaries

As the Mexican city has grown into a creative epicenter, architects have built on the legacy of Luis Barragán, constructing residences that encourage introspection.

By Michael Snyder

Jerome Monnot

A Designer Who Lives With 'Pickled' Balloons and a Jellyfish-Shaped Lamp

Bethan Laura Wood has made her name dreaming up transportive rainbow-hued furniture and housewares. Her own London home is just as fantastical.

By Meara Sharma

Thibault Montamat

By Design

A Paris Apartment That Spans Styles and Centuries

Blending French Empire pieces and more recent ones, the home of the antiquities dealer Jean-Paul Beaujard is as enchanting as the objects he collects and sells.

By Nancy Hass and Thibault Montamat

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Federico Ciamei

In Rome, an Apartment Rich in Color and History Opens to the Public

One of the leading figures of Italian Futurism, Giacomo Balla turned his home into proof of his idea that art should live in all things.

By Gisela Williams

Jason Schmidt

In Southampton, a Beach House Not Like the Others

Designed in the 1960s by the underrecognized talent Ward Bennett, this Modernist home remains a paragon of minimalism and grace.

By Christopher Bollen

Scott J. Ross

Inside Betsey Johnson's Malibu Dream House

The designer gives T a tour of her pretty but punk home in one of California's most scenic trailer parks.

By Molly Creeden

Simon Watson

A Tangier Home That Has Passed Between Design Legends

A 300-year-old house in Morocco has become a palimpsest of ideas and aesthetics, while both subverting and respecting the city's own colorful legacy.

By Christopher Garis and Simon Watson

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ADVERTISMENT

Simon Bosch

In Bogotá, a Designer's Eclectic Home and Bonsai-Filled Garden

Eight years ago, Danielle Corona moved production for her accessories brand, Hunting Season, to Colombia, and then she set up house there herself.

By Mimi Vu

Correction: Last week's newsletter omitted one of the founders of LilaNur Parfums. The company was founded by Anita Lal and Paul Austin, not solely Ms. Lal.

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