Collection by Jaime Gillin
Tiny Architecture: 5 Modern Outbuildings
Who doesn't fantasize about a small place of one's own—a retreat, an escape, a house built for one? Here, five small modern outbuildings that don't skimp on design—and offer a chance to be alone, even if it's just in your backyard.
Check out our guide to 7 (not so tiny) small house resources here + 10 of our favorite homes from Tiny House Swoon!
Work It
“We wanted to open up the back of the house, but there’s nothing to look at,” says Dana. “So we decided to put something in our yard as a focal point, to create our own view.” The architects came up with a glass-walled studio, which Dana uses as
her home office. The architects mounted a steel I-beam that spans the yard, with holes drilled at eight-inch intervals for maximum flexibility of use. Right now it’s used for Ikea play equipment, but later they plan to hang a hammock and a movie screen.
ikea.com
Megan Lea built a backyard retreat with reclaimed materials figuring prominently into the design. What resulted is a polychrome of salvaged 100-year-old barnwood by West Salem-based Barnwood Naturals that makes the facade of this Bernard Maybeck-inspired design as unique as it is environmentally friendly.