The "Cabin ANNA" is a versatile and innovative prefabricated dwelling designed by Dutch designer Caspar Schols. It is an evolution of a garden house Schols originally created for his mother in 2016, which was celebrated for its reconfigurable, sliding layers. The design allows inhabitants to interact with nature by adjusting the cabin's shells to suit different weather conditions, occasions, or moods. The cabin is defined by its two main sliding "shells" that move on a rail system. Outer shell: A protective, insulated wooden layer made of sustainable Accoya wood. Inner shell: A transparent glass layer featuring high-quality, double-glazed windows. This dynamic design allows for several different configurations: Fully closed: Both the wooden and glass shells are closed to create a cozy, insulated space. Glass mode: The wooden outer shell is retracted to reveal the inner glass shell, offering panoramic views while remaining protected from the elements. Open-air: Both shells are slid open to fully expose the interior to nature, creating an open-air living platform. The flexibility enables residents to live with the elements rather than against them, fostering a deep connection with nature. The modular design is built on a wooden platform and relies on high-quality, natural materials. The structure draws inspiration from railway station trusses, relying on the side walls for stability. Minimal ecological impact is ensured through a screw foundation, which allows the cabin to be disassembled and relocated without a trace. The interior features birch plywood, creating a warm, light-filled atmosphere. A fixed section of the cabin houses essential facilities, including a kitchen, shower, toilet, and storage space. A loft provides a second sleeping area. Some versions of the cabin include a sunken bathtub integrated into the floor, which can be concealed when not in use. Cabin ANNA can be equipped for off-grid living with a fire-heated boiler, a solar energy system, and a water treatment system. Project credits Designer: Caspar Schols. Company: Cabin ANNA.

In 2015, Amsterdam-based CC-Studio unveiled "Thoreau's Cabin," a discreet off-grid shelter nestled within the expansive 5,900-acre Noorderpark in Utrecht, Netherlands. Conceived as a warm and dry retreat for the volunteers who maintain the park, the 35-square-meter cabin was designed to harmonize with its natural surroundings, rather than dominate them. The cabin's design cleverly employs a strategy of camouflage, making its presence barely perceptible until one is close to it. The volume is shaped and the exterior is clad in a green aluminum envelope to allow it to be concealed by the forest's lush foliage. Two large sliding doors on one corner can be fully opened, seamlessly blending the interior with the surrounding meadow where sheep graze. This allows occupants to control their level of exposure to the outdoors. A sculptural hearth at the cabin's center supports a folding aluminum-clad roof structure, creating an open canopy that extends the protected space outwards. The cabin was built without requiring a permit because it replaced a pre-existing 1966 cottage of a similar size and function, which had served as a break and storage shelter for park maintenance. The new design, however, features thoughtful updates and sustainable touches. The cabin was intentionally designed without electricity or running water, reinforcing Thoreau's ideals of simplicity and self-sufficiency. A sculptural hearth functions as the central element, providing heat from local firewood. It serves as a combined kitchen and fireplace. The interior includes a washroom with a washbasin, a small storage area, and a larger general space centered around the stove. Wooden panels line the interior walls, providing a sense of warmth and natural elegance that contrasts with the minimalist metal exterior. Project credits The project was designed and executed by the team at CC-Studio. Architects: Peter Heideman and Danny van Kessel. Engineering: Gerald Lindner. Contractor: Van Zoelen bv.

House MM, designed by Chris Collaris Architects and completed in 2017, is a sustainable and minimalist dwelling in the north of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Working within the tight 60-square-meter footprint of a dilapidated brick house, the architects created a modern and deceptively spacious three-level home that prioritizes natural light, clean lines, and an integrated indoor-outdoor experience. The design of House MM is a masterclass in maximizing space within a small area while adhering to a passive-building philosophy. The structure's asymmetrical, steeply pitched roof is cantilevered, increasing the upper-level ceiling height and creating an extra mezzanine and attic, which adds to the perceived spaciousness of the interior. The exterior is entirely clad in blackened, wax-conserved pine, giving the home a sculptural, minimalist appearance. Details like the roof edges and gutters are integrated to keep the lines as clean as possible, creating a seamless, monolithic form. The design embraces passive building technology. The facades and roof are constructed with high-density insulated sandwich panels—materials typically used in large industrial buildings but tailored here for a smaller residential application. Full-height glazing at the rear of the house opens onto a terrace and garden, visually and physically extending the interior space outdoors. In a nod to the home's history, bricks from the original house were salvaged and reused to create a central core in the interior, anchoring the design in its past. A refined palette of materials enhances the home's contemporary feel while retaining a warm, natural character. Wax-conserved and black-stained pinewood was used for the facade and roof, providing a low-maintenance, elegant finish. Salvaged interior bricks form a central core, which houses a staircase and divides the living, kitchen, and dining areas. Birch multiplex cabinetry and built-in units are used for storage throughout the house. Polished concrete provides a sleek, modern, and durable finish. The central stair void, topped by a skylight, allows natural light to filter down and maximize the brightness of the ground floor. Project credits Architects: Chris Collaris Architects Client: Marjon Helder and Martin Blankendaal Photography: Tim Van de Velde Contractor: Hagoort Bouw B.V. Structural Engineer: Vissers & Vissers B.V. Interior Carpentry: Luc Schoenmakers Interieur/Decorbouw Manufacturers: Kingspan Insulated Panels, Kawneer, Waxedwood pine wood

Completed in 2020, the Four Seasons House is a prefabricated, negative-carbon family home located in the Drijflanen nature reserve in Tilburg, Netherlands. Designed by architect Joris Verhoeven for himself and his family, the 70-square-meter house was built to intensely experience the versatile Dutch seasons while fitting seamlessly into its natural surroundings. The small, black-clad structure was built on a site that once served as a sheep-grazing heather field for the local wool industry, and the design intentionally lacks barriers to fully connect with the nature outside. The house was constructed using sustainable and efficient techniques, featuring a prefabricated structure made of wood framing cassettes filled with flax insulation, which has a negative carbon footprint. This prefabricated method allowed for rapid construction, with the entire structure erected in just three days after the foundation was poured. The exterior is clad in black-stained timber, which helps the house blend in with the dark trunks of the surrounding trees. A unique feature of the exterior is a natural fungal coating specially cultivated to protect the siding, which also possesses a self-repairing capability. Inside, the interior is finished with birch plywood, reflecting the minimalist and natural aesthetic of the design. The pure construction method, where the structural framework serves as the finishing layer, contributed to a faster and more cost-effective build. Large, carefully placed windows act as "changing landscape paintings," providing dynamic views of the reserve throughout the year. Matte black accents on the interior doors, kitchen, and stair railings tie the inside aesthetic to the black exterior. The home is entirely self-sufficient, relying on solar and thermal panels for energy. Credits Architect: Joris Verhoeven Architectuur Contractor: Cloïn totaalbouw Prefab Structure: Isovlas Oisterwijk BV Photography: William van der Voort and John van Groenedaal

Completed in 2020, the Transformation House by Lautenbag Architectuur and De Stadsmeubelmaker is the conversion of a 1920s-era expressionist transformer house into a contemporary 25-square-meter hiker's cabin. Located just south of Wirdum in the Netherlands, the building had been empty for over 30 years and was scheduled for demolition before the current owner, Ronald van der Zwaag, conceived the idea for its transformation. The project sought to preserve the unique Dutch cultural heritage of the building while adapting it for modern use, offering a secluded retreat with views of the spectacular surrounding landscape. The architects expanded the small internal floor plan by adding three prefabricated steel bay windows to newly created openings. These bay windows, featuring cross-laminated timber on steel beams, use contrasting materials and detailing to both respect and enhance the existing expressionist structure with contemporary elements. The ends of the bay windows are filled with insulated glass, framing the landscape like paintings, while their sides are covered with galvanized steel panels with slats. The slats were designed to reference the cooling fins of a transformer and direct rainwater to the earth below. Inside, the interior is a unified wooden structure, functioning as a single large piece of furniture with clean, contemporary details. The original tiled floor was preserved, and light-colored materials were used to enhance the sense of space. The original chimney was repurposed with a glass cover to function as a skylight, and ventilation was integrated into the steel slats of the bay windows. The result is a hiker's hut that was saved from demolition and given new life for another century. Credits Architects: Diana Lautenbag (Lautenbag Architectuur) and Ronald van der Zwaag Interior Designers: De Stadsmeubelmaker Photographer: Bas Gijselhart

"Nestled in an ecological allotment garden in Groningen, the Netherlands, the Poplar Garden House is a small, contemporary shed designed by architect Haiko Meijer of Onix for his own family. Completed around 2011, the 32-square-meter cabin was conceived as a low-impact, off-grid retreat within the Tuinwijck allotment gardens, a green space where city residents can rent plots for gardening and leisure. The design prioritizes simplicity and sustainability, using materials and energy systems that respect its natural setting. The house features a simple gabled roof but is modernized through large openings and vertical glazing strips that echo the poplar panels used for its construction. Constructed entirely from uniform poplar planks, the house is both a functional living space and an artistic sculpture, with the boards covering the interior and exterior. This unified material palette, from the walls and floors to the foundation and roof, creates a consistent and warm aesthetic. The planks are designed to be removable, allowing for future artistic customization. Its L-shaped floor plan and strategic placement create two distinct outdoor areas: a sunny, extroverted space facing a playground and a private, introverted, and shaded space facing a drainage ditch. The interior features a central living space, a compact kitchenette with a gas cooktop, and a concrete counter that merges with a built-in fireplace. With no electric power supplied to the allotment, the house is completely powered by natural daylight and rooftop solar panels. A circular skylight and narrow vertical windows illuminate the space, while a raised sleeping loft offers a cozy, elevated sleeping area. Project credits Architecture: Onix Principal Architect: Haiko Meijer Photography: Peter de Kan"

"Situated on the Dutch island of Texel, the Holiday Home by Orange Architects is a compact, 70-square-meter cabin designed to offer a flexible and sustainable retreat close to nature. Designed for a client who wanted to maximize the experience of their vacation, the house prioritizes social spaces during the day and adapts to become private sleeping quarters at night through a clever system of rotating panels and doors. The exterior is a striking, sculptural volume clad in black-stained timber, which allows the house to recede into its woodland surroundings while creating a bold aesthetic. In contrast, the interior features a bright and warm material palette of light-colored birch plywood, creating a seamless and spacious feeling throughout the compact home. During the day, the ground-floor living area, kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom can be opened to create a single, fluid space. Large, five-meter-high glass windows and doors on the southern façade connect the living area to a covered terrace and the surrounding forest, dissolving the boundary between indoors and out. At night, movable wooden panels can be rotated or closed to create private rooms, including an en-suite bathroom. A lofted level provides additional sleeping or living space. The design of the Holiday Home was guided by sustainability from the outset. The structure was prefabricated by a contractor on the mainland to minimize on-site waste and construction time. The use of all-electric systems, including rooftop solar panels, concrete floors for thermal mass, and a well-insulated envelope, ensures the home is fossil-fuel-free and energy efficient. Project credits Architecture: Orange Architects (Patrick Meijers, Jeroen Schipper, Elena Staskute) Photographer: Sebastian van Damme Contractor: Cor Koper Bouwbedrijf Location: De Koog, Texel, Netherlands"

"Petit Place is an entirely modular and sustainably constructed tiny house project designed by the Dutch firm RoosRos Architecten in 2018. It was conceived as a self-sufficient and customizable housing solution based on the open-source WikiHouse principle, allowing for easy, do-it-yourself assembly using a kit of milled wooden elements. The design is highly flexible, with floor plans ranging from a compact 25 square meters up to 1,000 square meters, allowing occupants to adapt the space to their specific needs. The core concept emphasizes the ability to ""live wherever you please,"" with the structure being suitable for various locations, from cities and villages to fields and waterfronts. The prototype of the project is a 40-square-meter model located next to the water tower in Zwijndrecht, Netherlands, which offers views of the three-rivers-point. Sustainability is a key feature of Petit Place. The prototype model's exterior is clad in solar panels that can generate approximately 9,000 kWh annually, which is three times more energy than the tiny house is expected to consume. This cladding system, dubbed the ""Powerplant,"" also insulates the building and uses breathable Gore-Tex foil to protect it from the elements. Other exterior options include a ""Green Machine"" version covered in vegetation and a ""Zero Waste"" option made from reclaimed wood. The design uses natural, high-performance materials throughout, such as ISO flax insulation. According to architect Stefan de Vos, the goal was to create a sustainable home that ""gives something back"" to the user and the planet, providing a healthy living environment and low monthly utility bills. Credits Architect: RoosRos Architecten Lead Architect: Stefan de Vos Photography: Christian Fielden Partners: Petit Place, ISA Beheer Manufacturers: VELUX Group, Gore, Iroko, Isovlas, LOCI integrated Solar Roof "

"Located in Olst, the Netherlands, the Sprout Ruben & Marjolein is a bio-based, compact home created by Amsterdam-based studio Woonpioniers. Completed as a prototype for the studio's flexible and transportable Sprout concept, the house was developed for actual clients Ruben and Marjolein. The design is based on a prefabricated, modular system that can be lengthened, shortened, or stacked, with the specific build in Olst comprising a two-story volume topped with a mono-pitched roof and an open, greenhouse-like volume. The project emphasizes sustainability by utilizing as many bio-based materials as possible, including a wooden frame structure and a hemp insulation system. The modular approach not only makes the home transportable and adaptable but also provides affordable square meters and energetic benefits. The greenhouse element is integrated into the living and dining area, which opens to the outside and, in turn, provides extra living comfort. The interior features a flexible floor plan with minimal rooms and maximum open space, and a natural collection of materials is used to connect the home with its environment. The interiors are highly personalized to the clients' wishes, with the greenhouse section of the home featuring an interior mezzanine terrace suspended above it. Skylight windows in the mezzanine open to create an indoor/outdoor space that looks out to the horizon and up to the sky. Woonpioniers is leveraging the insights gained from this prototype to develop more custom tiny housing projects in Europe. Credits Architect: Woonpioniers Client: Ruben and Marjolein Photographer: Jonah Samyn Location: Olst, The Netherlands"

"Utrecht Cabin, or Recreational House, is a 40-square-meter contemporary cottage in a rural area north of Utrecht, Netherlands. Completed around 2014, the cabin was a collaboration between Zecc Architecten and interior designer Roel van Norel. It is built on the footprint of a former greenhouse and offers a serene getaway for the owners. The cabin features an asymmetrical gable roof clad in slate stone, with a chimney. The exterior combines a largely closed side with one that is highly adaptable, featuring movable horizontal shutters made of Western Red Cedar. When closed, these shutters blend seamlessly with the building's facade, offering privacy and a homogenous appearance. When open, they reveal a full glass wall, connecting the interior with the surrounding woods and a grassy clearing. The interior of the tiny house is defined by fine wood craftsmanship and clever use of space. All facilities—including the kitchen, wood stove, bathroom, and storage—are integrated into a single, handmade oak wall. The space is divided into a front living and dining area and a rear bedroom and bath. A sliding wooden panel can separate these sections for greater privacy. Above the rear section, a mezzanine provides extra sleeping space. Light enters through the full glass wall and a vertical window in the bedroom that extends to the roof's ridgeline. Credits Architects: Zecc Architecten Interior Designer: Roel van Norel Photography: Stijn Poelstra Contractor: Bert Oostenbruggen (for basic structure) Clients: Hanne Caspersen and Roland Manders Manufacturers: Duravit, Grohe"