Cabins

Helsinki-based architectural firm Studio Puisto has recently completed the first of 25 tiny tree-top cabins. The 30-sq-m Niliaitta prototype balances on a single central pillar and was inspired by traditional Niliaitta food storage huts.

We've seen tiny houses that extend upward, tiny houses that extend outward, and even tiny houses that take the roof off, but Brette Haus puts a new spin on the small living movement with a folding design intended for easier transportation.

While 2020 has given us serious cabin fever, it's also provided some antidotes. The new Jupe shows that sometimes the cure to cabin fever is ... a cabin, albeit one with a better view. The modern prefab shelter serves as an escape from city life.

While handy types can build an A-frame cabin themselves, the less DIY inclined who would rather follow a plan and have the materials supplied can do so with the Den Cabin Kit. Costing $21,000, it's claimed very easy to build even by amateurs.

Woodnest is a stunning forest dwelling perched high on a hillside in rural Norway. Supported by a living pine tree that runs through its center, it offers a well-stocked interior that sleeps up to four people.

Designer Caspar Schols puts a fresh spin on the classic wooden cabin with his recently-completed Anna Stay. Though it looks like a normal cabin at first glance, the unusual dwelling's walls can be slid apart to open it up to the outside.

The SynVillan is a striking addition to Sweden's Eriksberg Hotel and Nature Reserve. It runs off-the-grid with solar power and lets visitors get up close and personal with bison, deer, and other wildlife thanks to its a glass-bottomed living room.

Australian outfit Cabn looks to lure busy folks into quiet corners of the country by way of charming off-grid cabins tucked away in idyllic settings, and built with a strong emphasis on sustainability and respect for the local landscape.

Hungarian design collective Hello Wood has created a compact cabin inspired by the tiny house movement. The Kabinka is intended to serve as a no-frills weekend retreat, additional bedroom, or office, and starts at €10,000 (roughly US$12,000).

On December 25, 2011, a cyclone destroyed Norway's Tungestølen Tourist Cabin, which had served hikers for over a century. Commissioned to create its replacement, Snøhetta designed a cluster of cabins that are shaped to mitigate the wind's effects.

Ashen Cabin has a striking appearance but the really interesting thing about it is how it was made. Its concrete base was created with a 3D printer and its wood is beetle damaged ash that was cut using a robotic arm once used in the car industry.

The Lakeside Cabin in Quebec, Canada, looks like a great place to hang with friends, thanks to a climbing rope. Besides this fun little addition, it's designed to maintain a comfortable interior temperature, even in the harshest winter conditions.