South African architects Gawie and Gwen Fagan designed and built their family home on a dramatic spot between Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean. Die Es is an ode to vernacular architecture with a difference. To celebrate the publication of The Monocle Guide to Cosy Homes, Monocle films explores the sculpted forms, palpable materiality and harmony with nature that make this eclectic residence stand out.

In the first of two films to celebrate the publication of [The Monocle Guide to Cosy Homes](https://monocle.com/shop/books/books/the-monocle-guide-to-cosy-homes/), we visit the residence of Knud Erik Hansen, managing director of Carl Hansen & Søn and grandson of the company's iconic founder. Hansen has transformed an impressive Danish estate into a comfortable family home, filling it with beautiful furniture and preserving the property’s charm.

We look back at the hushed world of the iconic Hotel Okura in Tokyo. Monocle Films was granted exclusive access to capture the gracious ways of this much-loved modernist gem just before it was demolished in 2015 to give way to a new iteration of the building.

As an unprecedented heat wave beats down on France, fashion exhibitors are back in Paris’s tradeshows and showrooms to present their 2016 spring-summer menswear creations. Here are some highlights.

As the mercury rose in Milan, we toured the showrooms and palazzos to take the temperature of the best 2016 spring/summer menswear collections. Here are 10 of our favourite finds.

As the sun shines on Florence’s Fortezza da Basso, we visit the 88th edition of fashion trade show Pitti Uomo. Style is always on the agenda but substance, colour and comfort are also at the fore for spring/summer 2016. Here are our highlights.

It was designed by a suspect bohemian, houses a coup plotter and is today favoured by young, liberal creatives. Madrid's Edificio Princesa, once both bunker and luxury home for Franco's loyal cadre, is a concrete testament to the contradictions and bold optimism of Spain's transition to democracy.

Be it near or far, classic or contemporary, monochrome or multicoloured, the following hotlist represents our favourite design pieces – and people – around the world.

As employers increasingly acknowledge the quality of life of their workers, Monocle's Quality of Life Conference in Lisbon addressed the topic of the modern workplace. In this visual essay, Josh Fehnert explores what can be done to create offices that make clocking in a joy.

How can architects, developers and builders make spaces that reflect our shifting needs and make us feel good about our lives? For Monocle's Quality of Life Conference in Lisbon, Tom Morris explored the role of responsible house-building in keeping cities colourful, layered and full of life.