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1,391 Exterior Cabin Design Photos And Ideas

The cabin is clad in untreated, locally sourced pine that will develop a silvery-gray patina over time.
Multiple Hytte cabins can be clustered together to create a village layout.
Wooden decks can be added to heighten the indoor-outdoor living experience.
“Escapism for us is about exploration and immersion in nature,” says Little. “We have designed beautiful buildings that sit in harmony within the natural environment and offer an interior sanctuary, a space that lends itself to quiet, contemplative reflection, a space to mindful of our wellbeing.”
All interior and exterior finishes can be customized to suit different needs. The Hytte can also be co-branded to match a clients’ existing aesthetic.
Each Hytte will be clad in shou sugi ban-treated larch to recede the buildings into the landscape.
Hytte's prefab construction allows for faster setup with lower site impact.
Treehouse Water
"I love the flexibility of the modular space: The same space can be used for sleeping, meetings, or yoga and meditation," says Teke. "The house is surrounded by decks, which further connect inside and outside, and I love that different times of day and seasons of the year create almost different microclimates on the decks. On the technical side, I enjoy how the house runs as a machine, a shell with all its mechanical needs housed in the core and underneath the structure for optimal flexibility, ease of adjustment, and efficiency of distribution."
The piston-operated pine sunshades lift upwards to protect the exterior deck and give residents the ability to manually modulate the home’s access to daylight and shade as the sun moves across the sky.
CNC-milled teak was used for almost all of the exterior, from the cladding and sunshades to the 430-square-foot exterior decks.
The laminated wood roof structure is topped with thermal insulation and waterproofing in addition to the copper enclosure.
"Prefabrication allows us to control quality while reducing error margins," explains Teke, who partly credits his interest in prefab to his work experience at Renzo Piano’s firm. "It helps us save time, reduce waste, and use materials to their maximum efficiency, allowing for a sustainable process of production—an easier and faster way to build."
The prefab roughly measures 35.5 feet by 15.7 feet and comprises an open kitchen, living room, bedroom, and bathroom.
Designed to sit lightly on the land, the transportable MU50 prototype is nestled into a pine-covered cliff overlooking the Aegean Sea.
Clad in natural pine, the building is designed to weather as it may. “As artists, Donna and Oliver love that idea of something living,” says Lolley. “The house is sort of like an art piece in itself. What will it look like next year? What will it look like tomorrow?”
The remote location offers incredible views of the stars.
Solar panels clip on easily to the steel roof, and rainwater runs off smoothly into collecting barrels. The reflectivity of the material also helps bounce the heat off.
The home is a huge step up from the handmade bunkies that used to exist on the property. "We were basically glamping," says Donna.
The office and studio doubles as a guest room for those who make the trek out.
Plans for a separate artists' studio on the property are currently in the works.
The roof is made of simple sheet steel, another sustainable choice. “In two generations from now, whoever wants to replace the roof can just recycle it," says Lolley.
With windows facing the lake, Donna and Oliver have a front-row seat to the action every day. "It’s water that you just want to look at every day because even though it's a vast plane it changes all the time," says Lolley.
The resort includes just under 27,000 square feet of wild habitat, so there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy all that nature has to offer in Kivijärvi, Finland.
The gable-framed cabin hovers gently above the ground, blending in with the tall trees.
The simple walkway paired with the single post impose minimally on the forest terrain.
Water, sewer pipes, and electrical cables all run under the external staircase in an enclosure, leaving the exterior as clean as can be.
A simple staircase leads to the cabin’s warm and cozy interior. The structure is supported by a single steel post and corresponding steel framing.
The full-height glazing places the focus on the outdoors. From the exterior, the lush foliage is reflected. The rest of the building is wrapped in pine board with a natural, black-tone wood oil finish.
The simple architecture poses minimal disturbance to the natural growth of the forest.
The cabin is an ideal retreat where nature lovers can enjoy the sights and sounds of great outdoors all year round.
At night, the large window in the dining area creates a lantern-like effect for the cabin.
An expansive wood deck on the front facade extends the living space and creates an indoor/outdoor experience.
The blackened timber–clad cabin that arba designed in Longueil, Normandy, France, is marked by large glass doors, layered with wood slats that slide open and connect the home to its lush landscape.
With its emphasis on the outdoors, the petite shelter in Normandy offers room to roam.
Elina and Otto paired their Iniö model with a sauna from Pluspuu and an adjacent hot tub that sit just down a path beyond the home. In winter months, guests can skinny dip before warming up again.
The three-bedroom Iniö model from Pluspuu features floor-to-ceiling windows, a loft-like interior, a wraparound deck, and a gable outline reminiscent of a traditional log cabin.
As the sun goes down, the small structure’s interior casts a cozy glow.
An aerial view of Kynttilä, which showcases its close proximity to the nearby lake.
“The inspiration for Kynttilä was fully derived from its unique setting,” the Helsinki-based firm states. “The place chosen for Kynttilä, in the middle of a pristine forest, on a narrow arm of the peninsula, provides views over the water in both sides of the cottage.”
Kynttilä, which translates to “candle,” is a wood-clad prefab cabin tucked away in an untouched forested area in Eastern Finland. The structure was recently built by ORTRAUM Architects.
The Meteorite’s CLT is locally sourced, and the exterior is finished with black-tinted Rubio Monocoat oil. Ateljé Sotamaa used digital design tools to render the structure’s 272 panels, which were prefabricated in a factory before being shipped to the site and assembled.
Set in a clearing surrounded by spruce and birch trees in Kontiolahti, Finland, a cabin known as the Meteorite cuts a striking profile. The structure is made entirely of cross-laminated timber (CLT). Air gaps of various sizes behind the facade keep the interior warm without conventional insulation, even during Finland’s freezing winters, and give the Meteorite its out-of-this-world shape.
Natural hemlock cladding allows the cabin to blend into its natural setting.
A mix of horizontal and vertical cladding gives the exterior a sleek, dynamic appearance.
The 1,000-square-foot contemporary structure overlooks a nearby lake through floor-to-ceiling windows.
Peter Braithwaite Studio crafted this peaceful retreat for a couple in Seabright, Nova Scotia.
Winkelman Architecture delivers grown-up summer-camp vibes with this unassuming retreat on the coast of Maine.
Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP created a sunken retreat in Karuizawa, Japan. Its glass lookout allows the residents to study wildflowers blanketing the forest floor.
On Bainbridge Island, Jim and Hannah Cutler created a cabin for reading and working. Sited just steps from the main house, it’s a welcoming retreat that the father and daughter share.
In winter, snow can pile up to five feet.
“The big glass panes make the extension very light and spacious, contrasting with the old cottage,” say the architects.
The doorframes are painted with the color palette used by the Norwegian Trekking Association for marking trekking routes.
The cabin is “an inhabitable beacon, a man-made peak in the rolling fells of Hardangervidda, worn down by glaciers during the ice age,” say the architects.
Thirty steps connect the ground with the top of the roof, which provides panoramic views of the lake and the plains of Hardangervidda.
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Zoom out for a look at the modern exterior. From your dream house, to cozy cabins, to loft-like apartments, to repurposed shipping containers, these stellar projects promise something for everyone. Explore a variety of building types with metal roofs, wood siding, gables, and everything in between.