Cabin

The House for a Musher is all about taking advantage of its hilltop site. The courtyard in the front has vast views and the house itself is oriented toward the surrounding landscape.

"We did our best to tuck the buildings into the site—the goal was to get up high on a perch. It was a matter of setting that elevation and working back down with the topography," says architectural designer Riley Pratt.

Tiny houses are spreading across the world—and probably because it really just makes sense. The tiny home lifestyle is the ultimate application of creative resourcefulness, and allows residents to reduce their environmental footprints without sacrificing good design.

Subtle features incorporated into the design, including an elevated terrace and jetty, help the home float above the island.

“We talked a lot about the idea of being on a campsite. Everything is very functional; everything can be made into something else.”—Karen Stonely, architect

Anka Lamprecht and Lukas Wezel shared their rustic domicile in a valley in Grotli, Norway. Boasting an enviable view, it’s the first cabin archived in the book’s “Backcountry” category that features homesteads in the wilderness.

Estate Bungalow in Matugama, Sri Lanka, by Narein Perera as published in Cabins (Taschen, 2014).

“They wanted the new cabin to make a ‘L’ shape with the older cabin, but I convinced them to mimic the old cabin on the opposite side,” architect D’Arcy Jones says. “So the new site has two buildings across from each other, like an equal sign.” Birch trees grow between the cabins in a shared courtyard.