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After passing through Tartago's ancient village, visitors approach The Hermitage by walking down slope. Access to the front door is via a hovering footbridge.

With the average tiny home measuring under 500 square feet, these mini abodes often have to be designed radically different from larger traditional houses. We take a look at seven of the biggest lessons one can learn from tiny home design. No matter if you plan to call a tiny house "home" or not, these key tips are relevant to just about any space, large or small.

Rast provides the feeling of being outdoors wile remaining inside.

The Roost26 tiny house features a lightweight, black AG metal roof and facade with a “detachable garden” on one side and bike racks on the other.

Hundra Kubik by Arkitektstudio Widjedal Racki Playing off the Swedes' love of nature, this concept with a lofted bed opens up to the great outdoors, and is so flexible that it could be closed, folded up, and shipped off to a new locale on the back of a truck.

Every Dimensions home is completely customizable.

Stutchbury, Martin, along with their lead-architect and collaborator, Alejo de Achaval, designed the first prototype, a 968 square-foot space with skylights called OM-1, which has been shortlisted for the New South Wales Australian Institute of Architects 2022 awards for sustainability and new houses.

The curve in the dining room cabinetry was carved out to hug the dining room table. "The clients wanted lots of storage and were initially concerned about the curve, but appreciated that it was needed for the flow of the plan," says architect Ben Peake, "so we managed to fit more storage into the dining room and living room pieces, and now they love the curve just as much as we do."

The primary bathroom features brass fixtures and teak details that are accentuated by a smooth plaster finish. "The continuity of the finishes creates visual balance within the space," says Mac.

A view from the top of the main residence’s staircase reveals a serene internal courtyard situated between the garage and the home.

Birdseye designed the home to be "as visually quiet as possible," says Mac.

"The wife’s vision was to create a very calming interior using a minimalist material palette," explains Mac. "The custom kitchen was designed to be elemental—we wanted [it] to feel more integrated [with the rest of the space]. The oak cabinets, concrete countertops, and appliance placements all reinforced this aesthetic."

A narrow and long 8 by 40 feet empty steel shipping container in an artists’ community in San Antonio, Texas serves a playhouse, garden retreat, and guesthouse for visiting creatives.

For 2015, Vipp, the Danish industrial design company known for its iconic trash cans and all-black kitchens, introduces a 592-square-foot prefab unit called Shelter.

Reilly slotted a utility room behind the kitchen to house the oven, an extra fridge, pantry cabinets, and the laundry. A Navajo rug that Reilly found at a local yard sale adds a touch of color. The countertop and backsplash are stainless steel. She found the counter stools at a local thrift shop. “I scour every secondhand shop and go to ever yard sale in the Hamptons,” she says. “Each piece is the result of weeks of searching.”

In the primary bath, the vanity countertop and integrated sink is done in the same micro-topping material as the room’s walls and floors.

A huge Moroccan rug sourced from a dealer on Etsy anchors the living area. The Afra & Tobias Scarpa Soriana lounge chairs for Cassina were designed in 1969, but fully embody 1970s style. The Donald Judd Single Daybed 32 fits a twin mattress.