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The open-plan interior is outfitted with a round wood table and upholstered chairs in the dining area and a leather-covered sofa and a wood bench-turned-coffee table in the living space.

When the roll-up garage-style door is open, the living room links to the porch, creating an indoor/outdoor living experience.

Lookofsky painted the exterior of the house a bright red tone that pays tribute to the other red, more traditional, houses in the area.

A tiny outbuilding offers a cozy living space inside a simple shell.

De Rosee Sa designed and built this black timber cabin on a budget of $32,872. The home’s exterior, which was stained using tractor engine oil, references the rural vernacular of its locale.

The couple also built an outhouse for the bathroom area.

An upcoming visit from a friend who needed a break from wedding planning gave the couple the incentive to finish the tree deck, which has a wood-fired hot tub on the lower level.

The couple and their friends spent hours clearing brush and felling at-risk oak and madrone trees. “There was no view at all,” Molly says. “You had to duck and peek through thick oak brush just to see that there was anything on the horizon.”

A sleeping area is tucked away underneath the rafters. Large windows brighten the space and provide views of the forested surroundings.

To date, the pair and their pals have built a compound complete with sheds, tree decks, a pavilion, a wood-fired hot tub, an outhouse, an outdoor shower, and, now, a redwood cabin where an ever widening network of friends gather for skill-sharing workshops and events.

After renting in San Francisco for a decade, DIY couple Molly Fiffer and Jeff Waldman bought 10 acres in the Santa Cruz Mountains, where the pair and their friends built a cabin compound complete with sheds, tree decks, a pavilion, a wood-fired hot tub, an outhouse, and an outdoor shower. The cabin is made from locally sourced, rough-sawn redwood, which the couple stained with nontoxic Eco Wood Treatment to give the panels an aged appearance and a dark patina.

The mezzanine above the open-plan kitchen is a loft bedroom with a set of twin beds, where guests can sleep.

Both ÖÖD Iceland houses have a hot tub at the front overlooking the spectacular scenery. “This makes the experience even more surreal,” says CEO Andreas Tiik.

ÖÖD Iceland has a number of sustainable features, including substantial insulation, triple-glazed windows, thermally modified timber, programmable thermostats, and LED lighting.

The gable decoration is a Viking element traditionally used to protect homes from danger. The “moon” shape comes from the shape of Viking horns.

Two cabins sit in the vast, empty landscape overlooking the Hekla volcano, around three hours’ drive from Reykjavík. The front part of each cabin—for sleeping—is almost entirely glass, while the rear—where the living, kitchen and bathroom spaces are located—is clad in timber for privacy.

Watch the Northern Lights from the comfort of your warm bed at Panorama Glass Lodge Iceland. Designed by the Estonian company ÖÖD Homes, the two 200-square-foot prefab cabins are thoughtfully made for small-space living. Each has a bedroom, living room, bathroom, and kitchen.