Architects and designers have long turned to industrial materials like steel and plywood to create long-lasting projects on tight budgets—and lately we’ve seen a rising trend toward oriented strand board (OSB) interiors.

Like its cousins plywood and particleboard, OSB is an engineered wood that was born in postwar America, when many new construction materials were developed. OSB consists of compressed layers of large wood strands, or flakes, that are held together with adhesives, wax, and resin in specific orientations to create stability and strength. Due to these qualities, OSB is usually used as sheathing in walls, flooring, and roof decking—where it’s concealed by other finish materials—however adventurous architects and designers are also showcasing it front and center.

OSB’s irregular wood flakes give it a rough, variegated surface, which can be played up for a lively, unexpected texture. The material offers a unique combination of an industrial, almost unfinished aesthetic with earthy wood undertones. We’ve rounded up a few of our favorite spaces that shine new light on this material that’s usually hidden in plain sight.

A Pair of English Barns Hide Unabashedly Bold and Budget-Friendly Interiors

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A Hive-Like Faceted Structure In Brooklyn

This Island Retreat Embodies Simple, Rugged Scandinavian Design

An OSB-Clad Bathroom In A Sustainably-Designed Arizona Home

Green Living in Barcelona

Explore Namibia’s Skeleton Coast With These Luxe Prefab Cabins

A Tiny Parisian Loft Strikes Industrial Vibes With a Surprising Material Palette

An Architect Revives a Dreary, Prefab A-Frame Cabin in the Hamptons for $300K

A Snug Garden Studio Makes Room for a New Zealand Family’s Growing Sons

A Porch in Italy Is Reborn as a Tiny Cabin With Eye-Popping Interiors

A New Type of Modular, Affordable Housing Is Coming to London’s Vacant Buildings

The Hill Street Design House in Edinburgh

Shop the Look

A Flat in Old Town Gdansk

Related Reading:

30 Comforting Interiors That Have Us Pining for Plywood

11 Wood-Wrapped Interiors That Radiate Warmth