Collection by Diana Budds

Creative and Cozy Countryside Homes

Paul McCartney sang it best on Ram: "I look high, I look low // I'm lookin' everywhere I go // lookin' for a home in the heart of the country." In honor of the epic search for that idyllic rural abode, we've corralled 10 modern spaces that are sure to get you house hunting.

The kids room is outfitted with built-in bunk beds.
The kids room is outfitted with built-in bunk beds.
Doors and triple-glazed casement windows from Loewen work hard to form a tight thermal envelope.
Doors and triple-glazed casement windows from Loewen work hard to form a tight thermal envelope.
Though small, Treanor’s house feels spacious thanks to an open kitchen and a tranquil mezzanine.
Though small, Treanor’s house feels spacious thanks to an open kitchen and a tranquil mezzanine.
Adding 290 square feet to this already small (just 566 square feet) black A-frame in Brecht, Belgium, was all the local building ordinances allowed, but the architects at dmvA found that a single wing extended out to the side gave resident Rini van Beek all the storage and living space that she needs.
Adding 290 square feet to this already small (just 566 square feet) black A-frame in Brecht, Belgium, was all the local building ordinances allowed, but the architects at dmvA found that a single wing extended out to the side gave resident Rini van Beek all the storage and living space that she needs.
For this tiny house in the Belgian forest, a little extra square footage comes in the form of a glassed-in addition with a stellar view. Photo by Frederik Vercruysse.
For this tiny house in the Belgian forest, a little extra square footage comes in the form of a glassed-in addition with a stellar view. Photo by Frederik Vercruysse.
In Sweden, architect Bengt Mattias Carlsson created a pavilion adjacent to a residence dating from the late 1800s. The pergola is made from glue-laminated timber beams set atop steel posts; it protects the pool from falling pine needles. George Nelson benches offer places to sit.
In Sweden, architect Bengt Mattias Carlsson created a pavilion adjacent to a residence dating from the late 1800s. The pergola is made from glue-laminated timber beams set atop steel posts; it protects the pool from falling pine needles. George Nelson benches offer places to sit.
A wood-burning stove from Harvia, of Finland, heats the sauna. The pavilion’s rough-cut pine walls are treated with tar, a preservative that yields a time-worn aesthetic.
A wood-burning stove from Harvia, of Finland, heats the sauna. The pavilion’s rough-cut pine walls are treated with tar, a preservative that yields a time-worn aesthetic.
Built-in benches function both as seating and as spare beds in the living room. Holm says the striped, hand-woven fabric she found in Greece is indestructible, and the cork flooring throughout the house has gone 40 years without needing replacing.
Built-in benches function both as seating and as spare beds in the living room. Holm says the striped, hand-woven fabric she found in Greece is indestructible, and the cork flooring throughout the house has gone 40 years without needing replacing.
Blocked from the wind, a deck at the rear of the house is a favorite place for sunbathing and also shelters planters of herbs.
Blocked from the wind, a deck at the rear of the house is a favorite place for sunbathing and also shelters planters of herbs.
A narrow building next to the main structure houses storage and an outdoor kitchen.
A narrow building next to the main structure houses storage and an outdoor kitchen.
The restrained 820-square-foot interior is defined by the angular ceiling. Garlick left the prefabricated structural panels unfinished to save on material costs. A True North wood stove from Pacific Energy heats the house. Max, the family’s cat, naps on a vintage rug purchased on eBay.
The restrained 820-square-foot interior is defined by the angular ceiling. Garlick left the prefabricated structural panels unfinished to save on material costs. A True North wood stove from Pacific Energy heats the house. Max, the family’s cat, naps on a vintage rug purchased on eBay.
North Haven locals nonplussed by Bobbie Callahan and Ed Hayes’s unusual retreat lit upon its cinematic qualities, calling it “the Strand” after the nearest movie theater on the mainland.
North Haven locals nonplussed by Bobbie Callahan and Ed Hayes’s unusual retreat lit upon its cinematic qualities, calling it “the Strand” after the nearest movie theater on the mainland.
Campbell’s Little Bird swing flies high alongside modern classics like the Eames shell chairs and Saarinen Tulip table.
Campbell’s Little Bird swing flies high alongside modern classics like the Eames shell chairs and Saarinen Tulip table.
Arba, the architecture firm founded by Jean-Baptiste Barache and Sihem Lamine, designed a 1,786-square-foot residence for Dominique Jacquot 45 minutes outside Paris. The house is her sanctuary from city life.
Arba, the architecture firm founded by Jean-Baptiste Barache and Sihem Lamine, designed a 1,786-square-foot residence for Dominique Jacquot 45 minutes outside Paris. The house is her sanctuary from city life.
Glass doors printed with a serigraphy technique (above) are on two sides of the house. Jacquot sits at a dining table and benches designed by Arba and built by Menuiserie Ressy.
Glass doors printed with a serigraphy technique (above) are on two sides of the house. Jacquot sits at a dining table and benches designed by Arba and built by Menuiserie Ressy.
Prefab house in Muskö, Sweden
Prefab house in Muskö, Sweden
The home is made up of two parts: a rear wing containing the studio and a guest room, and the north-facing living quarters (which, in the southern hemisphere, attract the most sun) overlooking the lake.
The home is made up of two parts: a rear wing containing the studio and a guest room, and the north-facing living quarters (which, in the southern hemisphere, attract the most sun) overlooking the lake.
The kids, Archie, Linus, and Olive, stand in the kitchen, beneath the strand board–clad stairwell that leads to the bedrooms. Kerr and Ritchie initially envisaged rich materials for the interior, but changed their minds in favor of what they call a “cartoony” approach with cheaper, hard-wearing elements. “We didn’t want the space to feel too grown-up,” Kerr says.
The kids, Archie, Linus, and Olive, stand in the kitchen, beneath the strand board–clad stairwell that leads to the bedrooms. Kerr and Ritchie initially envisaged rich materials for the interior, but changed their minds in favor of what they call a “cartoony” approach with cheaper, hard-wearing elements. “We didn’t want the space to feel too grown-up,” Kerr says.