A Tiny Cabin Enhances a Family Retreat on the Edge of a Pine Forest in Southern France
The 376-square-foot Pine Nut Cabane by Daab Design adds a minimal guest suite with plywood interiors and matte-black finishes to a multigenerational family getaway.
Tucked between a pine forest and olive grove in the Mediterranean countryside, the Pine Nut Cabane doesn’t announce itself—it sits quietly amid the landscape and blends into the vegetation, creating a hidden surprise that both celebrates and defers to its surroundings.
The Pine Nut Cabane by Daab Design sits just a short walk from the main farmhouse on a multigenerational family property outside of Marseille, France. The carefully placed structure is hidden from local roads and not visible from the existing residence.
Photo: Henry Woide
This innate connection to the land was at the heart of the tiny cabin London studio Daab Design created for a multigenerational family outside of Marseille in southern France. The clients had owned the bucolic property for a long time, using it for holidays and summer vacations, but in recent years they’d outgrown the main farmhouse on the site. The family needed more space, but they didn’t want to extend the existing home or detract from the landscape.
The cabin’s exterior is clad in scorched pine, which allows it to blend into the surrounding landscape and offers protection from the elements.
Photo: Henry Woide
"They are nature lovers," says architect Anaïs Bléhaut, director and cofounder of Daab Design with architect Dennis Austin. "Together, we chose the location of the cabin so they could enjoy more of the beauty of the grounds from an elevated zone that’s not immediately visible from the main house."
Native landscaping by Tamaris incorporates palms and tussock grasses.
Photo: Henry Woide
The family’s only requirement for the new accommodation was that it include sleeping quarters, which allowed the team at Daab Design to keep the footprint small. "The idea was to stay simple, but we ensured there’s still space to make a coffee," Bléhaut says. The firm enlisted the help of French manufacturer Moustache Bois to construct a humble, rectangular cabin with a gable roof that’s reminiscent of the rural vernacular.
The main bedroom features a tall corner window and a sliding glass door that leads to a deck.
Photo: Henry Woide
Inside, the 376-square-foot cabin is essentially one large space split by a central bathroom. At one end of the structure, there’s a large bedroom that incorporates plenty of storage to avoid clutter in the small space. Sliding glass doors lead out to a small deck. The other side of the cabin holds a second room that could be used as an artist’s studio, reading room, or children’s bedroom.
"We took inspiration from the surrounding woodland landscape, seeking to create interiors that worked with the senses and allow occupants to truly relax," says Anaïs Bléhaut, director and cofounder of Daab Design.
Photo: Henry Woide
The design team kept the bathroom minimal, with natural ventilation and a shower nook lined with terra-cotta zellige tiles. They eliminated a kitchen and dining room since the main house satisfies those functions and "it would’ve meant a large section of the cabin would need to work much, much harder, which goes against the function of the retreat," Bléhaut says.
A matte-black finish on the inner walls of the cabin balances the bright Mediterranean sunlight that floods inside.
Photo: Henry Woide
The shower nook is lined with terra-cotta zellige tiles.
Photo: Henry Woide
The design team kept the bathroom minimal and incorporated a shower nook lined with terra-cotta zellige tiles. They refrained from including a kitchen and dining room in the plan, since the main house satisfies those functions. "It would’ve meant a large section of the cabin would need to work much, much harder, which goes against the function of the retreat," Bléhaut says.
Thick insulation, double glazing, and deep eaves minimize heat gain. The polished concrete floors are key to the cabin’s thermal heating and cooling.
Photo: Henry Woide
Full-height black doors can be opened or closed to separate the bedrooms for privacy.
Photo: Henry Woide
Most of the interior is clad in plywood, but a matte-black finish on the inner walls adds contrast while counteracting the harsh summer light. A polished concrete floor helps to further cool the space. "We focused on sensorial comfort and stimulation through interesting materials and colors," says Blehaut. "The evolving perspectives as you flow through the space create an atmosphere that feels restful and at home in its setting."
A pathway of local limestone runs along the front of the 376-square-foot structure.
Photo: Henry Woide
Outside, a scorched pine cladding lets the cabin melt into the forest, while also offering natural protection from the elements. "The scorching brings out natural resins and sap that provide the timber with an organic, weatherproof membrane," says Bléhaut. New York– and Marseilles-based landscape design studio Tamaris incorporated drought-tolerant plantings such as tussock grass and palms alongside a limestone path.
"This place is the family’s favorite on the property, so the cabin became as much a guest suite as a celebration of the years the family has enjoyed there," says Bléhaut.
Photo: Henry Woide
"We enjoyed the challenge of working with a sentimental site and doing it justice by thinking through the seasonal aspect of the cabin and creating a very intentional relationship to its surroundings," says Bléhaut.
The building site was chosen so the family "could enjoy more of the beauty of the grounds," says Bléhaut.
Photo: Henry Woide
Daab Design enlisted the help of French manufacturer Moustache Bois to construct the tiny cabin.
Photo: Henry Woide
Related Reading:
A Tiny Glass Cabin Perches for Wilderness Views in Remote Finland
An Understated A-Frame Does Double Duty in Southern Chile
Project Credits:
Architect of Record: Daab Design / @daabdesign
Builder/General Contractor: Moustache Bois
Landscape Design: Tamaris / @tamarisdesign
Interior Design: Daab Design / @daabdesign
Cabinetry: Joos