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Scalar Architecture included a covered deck with tall ceilings and large apertures that enhance the floating sensation.

After: When designer Michael Corsar converted a late Victorian utility building in Suffolk into a home for his friend Sandy Suffield, he kept the charming features, like the 17-foot ceilings, while making the space habitable after years of neglect. Deben Joinery built the kitchen cabinetry. The vintage Optima pendants are by Danish designer Hans Due.

The airy, light-filled interior is made of reclaimed timber and siding from a 19th-century barn.

The living room is anchored by a sofa and lounge chair, both by Børge Mogensen, as well as a Conoid bench by George Nakashima. An Isamu Noguchi pendant lamp casts a warm glow onto the Brasilia coffee table, designed by Claesson Koivisto Rune for Swedese.

The 820-square-foot interior was designed as a place for the family to reset from city life—and “in the spirit of a contemporary log cabin,” Jesse says.

The group continued the weathered steel elements throughout the landscape, designed by friend Catherine Howell, such as in the planter beds at the “afternoon” patio, which faces West.

New concrete pathways, all built by Jake and Antony, are arranged around an artful tool shed, which has a weathered steel wall punched with a pattern from the Faroe Islands in Denmark, where Sigrid is from. “That was a nod to Sigrid’s heritage,” says Bassett. The shed also acts as a privacy screen for the patio below it.

The kitchen cabinets are Birch plywood with medium-pressure laminate, and part of a cabinetry package for the house that amounted to $82,000 NZD, or $55,218 USD. The counters and backsplash are stainless-steel. The kitchen is a favorite spot for the architect. “We do a lot of cooking. We really enjoy our food. So, the practicalities of how the kitchen works is really key, with the nooks and crannies where we can put all our stuff,” says Maclean. Open cubbies keep tools and cookbooks close at hand.

Maclean opted to wrap the building in zincalume corrugate, or corrugated iron. “Dunedin is not the sunniest spot in the world. It rains a lot,” says Maclean. “So, having something that sort-of shimmed in the bush was quite attractive, rather than it being dark and stealth or another color that mimicked greenery.”

Natural light pours into the stairwell.

The Ikea Sektion cabinets have blue acrylic fronts from The Cabinet Face. Astrid and Alessandro ordered extra material to create a matching island, which is topped with Lapitec, a stone composite. The faucet fixture is from Brizo.

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Of the home’s rustic feel, Ben (here with the family dog, Hawkeye) says, “I grew up in Maine, and I wanted the cabin to feel like a camp.”

The home is nestled in a stand of cedar, pine, and Douglas fir trees. The family relocated a smaller cabin to make room for their new retreat, and they plan to convert the original structure into a game room for the kids.

“Using a very simple white oak material in repetition added a lot of texture without adding busyness,” says Solk.

Three large, pivoting glazed doors connect the kitchen/dining area to the courtyard garden.

To reflect light around the room, Alper chose to use two shades of white in this space. The warmer of the two, Cotton Balls, was used on the walls.