Tag Archives: house

This Dutch A-Frame Shares Its Space With Bats, Birds, and Nature

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There’s something quietly radical about a house that invites wildlife to move in when its owners move out. In the forest park near the Herperduin nature reserve in the Netherlands, a 1984 A-frame holiday home has been transformed into something more than just a weekend escape. It’s become a shared space between humans and the natural world, and the design reflects that unusual partnership.

Kumiki Architecture took on the challenge of extending and renovating this classic triangular structure, working closely with the family who owns it and an ecologist to create what they call a “biobased holiday house.” The result is a fascinating case study in how architecture can do more than just minimize its environmental impact. It can actively contribute to the ecosystem around it.

Designer: Kumiki Architects

The original A-frame, with its steeply pitched roof and cozy woodland vibe, had all the charm of 1980s vacation architecture. But it needed more space for a young family looking to escape city life and reconnect with nature on weekends. Rather than fighting against the distinctive character of the original structure, Kumiki’s design team embraced it. The extension follows the same A-frame logic, repeating the rhythm of those dramatic triangular forms across two stories. But here’s where it gets interesting: the new roof is cut diagonally, creating a contemporary twist on the traditional design that makes the house feel both familiar and fresh.

The diagonal cut isn’t just a visual flourish. It demonstrates how architects can honor the past while moving forward, respecting the language of the original building while speaking in a slightly different accent. The renewed roof received insulation made from wood fiber and new roofing tiles, updating the structure for modern energy efficiency without abandoning its fundamental character.

What really sets this project apart, though, is the integrated ecological plan developed in collaboration with an ecologist. This isn’t greenwashing or a token gesture toward sustainability. The guiding principle for the entire project was “sharing the house with nature,” and Kumiki took that literally. Nesting boxes are built directly into the eaves. A “bat hotel” (yes, really) is incorporated into the facade. When the family heads back to the city, birds, bats, and other forest creatures essentially take over the property. The house becomes part of the habitat rather than an intrusion into it.

For the family’s children, this creates an unexpected educational opportunity. Living alongside these creatures, even temporarily, teaches them about forest biodiversity in a way no textbook or nature documentary could match. It’s hands-on environmental education built directly into the architecture of their vacation home. This approach reflects a broader shift happening in contemporary architecture, where the goal isn’t just to reduce harm but to create buildings that actively support the ecosystems they inhabit. The construction timeline stretched from 2022 to 2025, with main structural elements built from wood, reinforcing the project’s commitment to natural, sustainable materials.

The location itself is spectacular. Surrounded by heathlands, ponds, and sand drifts near the nature reserve, the house sits in a landscape that feels worlds away from urban life. It’s exactly the kind of place where you’d want to disconnect from screens and reconnect with the slower rhythms of the natural world. The architecture acknowledges this context by creating a building that doesn’t just observe nature from behind glass but participates in it.

Kumiki Architecture, based in Amsterdam, has been developing innovative building techniques that aim for net-positive effects on landscapes rather than simply neutral ones. This Herperduin project showcases that philosophy in action. It proves you don’t need to choose between human comfort and environmental responsibility, between contemporary design and respect for architectural heritage.

The diagonal A-frame extension manages to be multiple things at once: a family retreat, a wildlife habitat, a teaching tool, and a thoughtful piece of contemporary architecture. It’s a reminder that the best design solutions often come from asking different questions. Not “how do we minimize our impact?” but “how can we share this space?” Not “how do we preserve the old building?” but “how do we continue its conversation?” In an era of climate anxiety and environmental crisis, projects like this offer something genuinely hopeful. They suggest that living alongside nature, rather than separate from it, isn’t just possible but can actually enhance both human life and biodiversity. And that’s a vision of the future worth building toward.

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This $2,500 Home Uses Clay Pots to Beat the Heat

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When you think of award-winning architecture, your mind probably jumps to glass towers or sleek minimalist villas with price tags that could fund a small country. But here’s something that’ll flip that script: designer Xinyun Li just proved that brilliant design doesn’t need a massive budget. In fact, she did it for less than the cost of a decent used car.

The $2,500 Vernacular Home sits in Para Dash, a bamboo village in Modonpur, Bangladesh, and it’s basically a masterclass in working with what you’ve got. Built for a multigenerational family of four (parents, their son, and his wife), this isn’t some stripped-down minimalist box. We’re talking two bedrooms, a kitchen, toilet, two cow sheds, a future child’s room, a weaving space, and even a roadside teahouse and shop. All for under $2,500. That includes materials and labor.

Designer: Xinyun Li

So how did Li pull this off? By going hyperlocal. Every single material came from the surrounding area. Mud, straw, and bamboo were literally gathered from nature, while bricks and tin sheets were produced nearby using local resources. No shipping costs, no imported materials, just what the land and community could provide. It’s the kind of approach that sounds simple but requires serious design chops to execute well.

But here’s where it gets really interesting. Bangladesh isn’t exactly known for mild weather. The climate is hot, the monsoon season is long, and flooding is a legitimate concern. Li didn’t just slap together some walls and call it a day. She designed the entire house to work with (not against) these environmental challenges. The structure sits on raised plinths to protect against flooding, while steeply pitched roofs ensure rainwater runs off efficiently rather than pooling. The room layout itself is strategic, arranged to maximize cross-ventilation. Windows are placed at varying heights on windward and leeward sides, creating a natural airflow that pushes hot air out. No AC needed.

Then there’s my favorite detail: those clay pots you can see dotting the mud walls of the teahouse. They’re not decorative (though they look pretty cool). These locally made pots from a neighboring village are actually functional. When inserted into the wall, they compress airflow and help cool the incoming air, creating a more comfortable microclimate inside. It’s ancient technology meets contemporary design thinking, and it’s genius.

Since electricity is limited in the area, Li integrated something called “liter bottles of light” into the roof. These simple devices (basically plastic bottles filled with water) refract sunlight and illuminate interior spaces during the day without requiring any power. It’s the kind of low-tech, high-impact solution that reminds you innovation doesn’t always mean adding more technology.

The layout also reflects a deep understanding of how this family actually lives. The daughter-in-law has a small weaving space on an upper-level balcony right outside her bedroom. She can work on her craft while staying connected to what’s happening with the rest of the family below. Meanwhile, the parents’ teahouse and shop sit at the edge of the courtyard along the village road. It’s positioned perfectly to give the main home privacy while remaining accessible to community members who stop by.

What makes this project so compelling isn’t just the low price tag (though that’s impressive). It’s that every decision, from materials to building methods, is rooted in local knowledge and ecology. The brick openings aren’t random; they’re carefully designed to enhance ventilation. The bamboo screens filter light beautifully while maintaining privacy. Even the tin roofs, which might seem like a purely practical choice, become part of the home’s aesthetic identity.

This is what true vernacular architecture looks like when it’s done right. It’s not about imposing some outside design vision onto a place. It’s about listening to the land, the climate, the culture, and the people who will actually live there. Li created a home that’s resilient, adaptable, and beautiful, all while proving that thoughtful design can be radically affordable.

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3 Rammed Earth Homes in Brazil Just Solved Sustainable Living

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Picture this: walls made of compressed earth, windows that frame the Brazilian hillside, and a roof that collects rainwater like nature always intended. It sounds like something from a utopian novel, but Arquipélago Arquitetos just turned it into reality with the Piracaia Eco-Village, and honestly, it might be the coolest thing happening in sustainable architecture right now.

Located about two hours from São Paulo in the village of Piracaia, this project isn’t just another eco-home talking the talk. It’s three distinct residences built using rammed earth construction, a building technique so old it’s new again. We’re talking walls made by literally compressing soil into wooden frames, creating structures that are both load-bearing and breathtakingly beautiful.

Designer: Arquipélago Arquitetos

The genius behind this approach comes from Arquipélago Arquitetos, who developed a modular system that makes sustainable building actually scalable. They created three different home sizes (a studio at 538 square feet, a one-bedroom at 1,076 square feet, and a two-bedroom at 1,245 square feet) using the same basic building blocks. Think of it like architectural Lego, except instead of plastic bricks, you’re working with earth and wood.

What makes these homes special isn’t just the eco-friendly materials. The architecture firm cracked the code on making rammed earth construction repeatable and adaptable. They use wooden frames repeatedly to build foundations and walls, then grow the number of rooms with each consecutive plan. The rammed earth walls aren’t just pretty; they’re the primary load-bearing elements supporting wooden roof panels through compression. Steel tie rods connect the roof to the footings, balancing all those forces to keep everything stable.

The homes nestle into the hillside with a row of clerestory windows at the back, letting in natural light while maintaining privacy. The aluminum roofs do double duty, collecting rainwater that the homes use throughout. It’s that kind of thoughtful design where form and function aren’t just friends; they’re best friends who finish each other’s sentences.

This project had a pretty interesting start. A psychologist named Lia, living alone in São Paulo, watched a Netflix documentary about rammed earth houses and thought, “That’s it. That’s what I want.” She wasn’t just looking to escape the city; she wanted a home that connected her to nature in a meaningful way. After experiences with psychedelics that deepened her understanding of how humans relate to the natural world, she sought a living space that embodied that connection. Lia built one home for herself and two others to sell to people who share her vision, creating an actual ecovillage rather than just a single sustainable home. There’s something powerful about that; building community around shared values instead of just personal retreat.

The construction process itself is fascinating. Artesania Engenharia and engineer Alain Briatte consulted on the rammed earth work, bringing specialized knowledge to compress local soil into walls that will last generations. The wooden structures came from Stamade Estruturas, with detailed installations by Jarreta Projetos. Photography by Pedro Kok captures how these earthy structures seem to grow organically from the landscape rather than imposing on it.

What’s striking about Piracaia Eco-Village is how it challenges our assumptions about sustainable living. We often think going green means sacrificing aesthetics or comfort, but these homes prove you can have both. The natural materials create spaces that feel warm and lived-in, not sterile or performative. The modular design means this approach could theoretically be replicated anywhere with suitable soil conditions.

Projects like this feel important since we’re living in a time of climate anxiety and housing crises. They show us that sustainable architecture doesn’t have to be expensive, complicated, or ugly. Sometimes the answer is literally beneath our feet: good old dirt, thoughtfully compressed and beautifully arranged. Arquipélago Arquitetos took an ancient building technique, applied modern engineering, and created something that feels both timeless and urgently necessary.

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Concrete house lets you live in the middle of the forest

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Having lived in a city all my life, I’m used to waking up in the morning, looking out the window, and seeing nothing but buildings. So of course it’s my dream that one day, I’d be able to live in a place where I am surrounded by nature but still have the conveniences of “civilization”. We’re seeing a lot of house concepts right now where all you need to do is step out of your front door or sometimes even just look out your window and you’re one with nature.

Designer: Pérez Palacios Arquitectos Asociados

One such house is Copas, a contemporary and minimalist concrete house located in the forests of Valle de Brava in Mexico so you get the best view of nature from your window and especially from the rooftop terrace, where you feel like you’re part of the forest. The colors of the house are similar to the tree trunks and rock formations that surround it. The overall design of the house gives you the impression like you’re climbing a mountain.

The private bedrooms on the lower level has glazing that frames the forest while the kitchen, dining room, and the lounge space also give a beautiful view of the surrounding woodlands. The terrace on the roof extends towards the trees while the swimming pool on the higher volume is the perfect way to cap off a relaxing day in your abode.

The two-volume house is integrated into the slope so there’s not much excavation that will disturb the surroundings. The house has also different finishes to complement the concrete look, including wood furniture, natural rugs and fabrics so you get an even cozier feeling. This is such an interesting house to live in especially if you’re sick and tired of the concrete jungle.

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Flat-packed accordion-style house can be easily deployed in emergencies

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While a permanent mode of residence is always ideal for most people, there are times when that is a luxury that they can’t afford. This can happen in times of natural disasters like floods or earthquakes, military deployment in remote locations, or even shelter in a tourist or pilgrimage spot. Temporary housing, on the other hand, feels nothing like a house at all, especially since they’re often made with low-quality designs to make it cost-effective and easy to tear down when no longer needed. A better and longer-lasting solution would be a portable home that can be extended, set aside, and reused as needed, such as this housing concept design that takes inspiration from flat-packed furniture that can easily be set up even by just a handful of people.

Designer: Komal Panda, Suyash Chavan

There has always been a need for portable or easy-to-assemble housing, even outside emergencies and disasters. Being able to put up a roof over people’s heads in a quick and efficient manner never goes out of fashion, and there is an almost never-ending number of attempts to make that practical and cost-effective. Prefabricated housing is one such possible solution, but it still takes a lot of time and effort to put the house together. These types of houses can’t be easily moved once they’ve been built either, which makes them less ideal for less permanent abodes.

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Baadi is a concept that takes the popular flat-pack furniture design to houses, though you don’t exactly assemble one from disparate parts. Instead, you pull out one side of the house, and the rest of the walls expand and unfold like an accordion. This mechanism allows a house that’s big enough for two to four people to be collapsed down to a very flat structure and moved around as needed. The design also makes it possible to deploy multiple houses quickly with only a few people involved, which is a key element when the houses are indeed needed for emergencies.

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Just like flat-packed furniture, however, there is a connotation of such designs being soulless and dry, especially from lack of customization options. Baadi, however, is designed to be modular and flexible, such as in how many panels can be used to extend the size of the housing, as well as colors for the panels. The latter aspect is actually critical when the houses need to be very visible even from a distance, in case identification and location are needed during natural disasters.

Admittedly, the concept doesn’t leave much room for using different materials, though it’s not that hard to imagine how the design can be extended to support a wider variety, as long as they meet the requirements of durability and resilience. After all, such a housing system places greater emphasis on portability and flexibility, while still providing the necessary protection and comfort when regular houses are near impossible to have.

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This Pavilion-Style Pool House In Northern Spain Is Inspired By Japanese Design Philosophy

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This stunning pool house designed by Spanish studio Baldó Arquitectura is called the Godai Pavilion, and it is characterized by a generous use of bamboo and an impressive overhanging roof. The pool house was created for a home located in rural Cantabria, in northern Spain. The structure is heavily inspired by Japanese design and features many of its unique details.

Designer: Baldó Arquitectura

The Godai Pavilion was designed in accordance with the local climate, and to boast the natural materials used to build it. The pool house is built to the south of the site, in turn building an enclosed courtyard garden with other pre-existing buildings on the site. “The pavilion [creates] a dialogue between different architectures, with the pool as a central element and a link between the existing home and the new pavilion,” the studio said.

The name and design of the pool house are inspired by the Japanese philosophy of godai, which is based on the five fundamental elements – fire, earth, water, wind, and space. You can see the concept in the structure’s large roof, and the sheer transparency of the facades, which showcase the surrounding landscape. You can see that the facades of the structure make a slow shift from solid to void, and are covered with bamboo slats. The slats follow the Fibonacci sequence and are designed to offer privacy to the building and control the natural lighting. The pavilion was constructed using bamboo, which brings to mind the image of Japanese-style tatami rooms. The ceilings are also inspired by the art of origami.

The interior of the pavilion is marked by a triple-aspect living space, which leads to a timber deck, where steps take you to the pool. Besides bamboo other materials were also integrated into the pavilion such as cork, local pine, mineral rock wool insulation, and recycled oriented strand board panels.

Various passive design systems for solar and rain protection were also integrated into the structure, for example, a large roof that offers plenty of shade and reduces solar gain. “The local climate takes on a fundamental value, where strong winds, rain, and summer sun become protagonists,” explained the studio.

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Floating Home In Ecuador Is Designed To Preserve The Community Of A Centuries-Old Floating Village

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Dubbed La Balsanera, this floating house is nestled along the Babahoyo River in Ecuador. Designed by architecture studio Natura Futura Arquitectura and architect Juan Carlos Bamba, this home is located inside a centuries-old floating village that suffers from the risk of disappearing for good! La Balsanera is an effort to preserve the community and to serve as a prime specimen of sustainable redevelopment.

Designer: Natura Futura Arquitectura and Juan Carlos Bamba

The river is closed presently as a commercial fluvial route, and hence the number of floating structures has gone down from two hundred to twenty-five. La Balsanera was designed in an effort to bring back “the tradition of living on the river” according to the architects. The home occupies 70 square meters and is built for a family of three. The family sells food to the community and repairs wooden boats, signifying the socio-economic utility of the river.

La Balsanera features a two-meter-wide extension to a platform that function as terraces for the family to utilize as “productive environments” – for example, a cafe seating area, anchor point, or tourist boat. “La Balsanera explores possible floating solutions that recover local artisan techniques while promoting the active and productive participation of the occupants in vulnerable communities,” said Bamba.

The floating home is constructed from wooden porticos that are built every two meters to build a gabled truss structure. This structure is topped by a corrugated roof that provides shelter to the outdoor terraces, as well as a colorful hammock. The home includes a central space that accommodates a shared living room, kitchen, and dining area, as well as two bedrooms. Two external strips at either end of the space provide a shower, toilet, laundry space, and boat workshop. The space is also equipped with “chazas” which are slatted openings that have been made from recycled wood. These “chazas” help ventilate the space and maintain a cool environment indoors. A bridge functions as an efficient walkway between the mainland and the floating home. It is made using bamboo and various planks of wood. Shutter doors have been incorporated throughout the space, connecting the living spaces to the terraces.

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Floating Bamboo House is designed to withstand rising sea levels in Vietnam

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Called the Floating Bamboo House, this architectural prototype by Vietnamese studio H&P Architects is exactly what it sounds like! The floating home is built from bamboo and is designed to withstand rising sea levels. It has been created with the intention to provide locals who are living in and around the Mekong Delta in Vietnam with a suitable model for climate-resilient housing.

Designer: H&P Architects

“Vietnam is one of the hardest-hit countries in the world by climate change,”  said H&P Architects founder Đoàn Thanh Hà. “Floating Bamboo House is believed to provide a useful alternative for millions of poor households to create a stable and safe accommodation themselves, and adapt to the worst scenario of responding to climate change,” he continued.  The Floating Bamboo House is designed to be a three-compartment home equipped with a square ground floor plan that occupies six by six meters. The home also has a first-floor story in its roof eaves.

The exterior of the Floating Bamboo House is inspired by the vernacular Rông House, which is a traditional and rural Vietnamese building typology amped with a tall and steep thatched roof. The house is built using locally sourced solid-cored bamboo pieces, which have a diameter of three to five centimeters and three or six meters long. The external facade is covered with lightweight bamboo screens, woven bamboo sheets, leaves, and corrugated iron. Plastic drums have been fixated to the underside of the house to allow it to float. A septic tank, water tank, and filter tank have also been attached here.

“Floating Bamboo Houses [could be] connected with each other by floating playing grounds, vegetable-growing rafts [and] fish-raising areas,” the studio said. The home was designed for adaptation. It features a door system that can be opened and closed, to offer shelter and protection from adverse and extreme weather situations. Also, the floor panels on the upper storey can be removed, allowing the structure to be used as a library, classroom, or communal meeting space. H&P Architects believe that in the future multiple floating homes can be built, and formed together to create floating villages.

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The Tapered House Is Elevated On Stilts To Adapt To Diverse Terrains & Landscapes

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Designed by Antony Gibbon, the Tapered House is an innovative and elaborate new addition to his Inhabit series. The home is another vivid creation by Gibbon, which follows his design philosophy that centers around pushing the boundaries of architecture and laying down a harmonious and serene connection with nature. The other homes in the series include the Repitilia House and Loch Eight, and the Tapered House continues the unique design language seen in the other structures.

Designer: Antony Gibbon

The Tapered House is settled along the shores of a lake and is surrounded by calming woods. The house is designed to be versatile and perfectly merges with its surrounding natural environment. Since it features raised stilts, you can place the house on the edge of a lake, river, pond, or any sloped terrain. This subtle elevation enables the Tapered House to effortlessly merge with the various contours and curves of the land while ensuring that is it well-settled on the ground. It is a prime specimen of form meets functionality.

The Tapered House is a spacious home while covering a footprint of 110 square meters. It includes two bedrooms. The ground floor of the house occupies eighty-one square meters, and it features a reception area, lounge, kitchen, one of the bedrooms, and a shower/washroom. The home also includes outdoor terraces that are located at the front and the rear of the property. The second floor, on the other hand, occupies twenty-nine square meters and holds a large double bedroom, office, and a built-in storage space.

The exterior of the home is clad in panels of various timber finishes. The timber finishes add a sense of warmth and zen to the structure while allowing the project to have an element of customization, which enables it to be adapted to different locations. All in all, the Tapered House is a modern and chic home amped with well-designed amenities, and customization options, allowing it to be adapted to the personal needs and requirements of various users.

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This Oiled Cedar-Clad Home In LA Perfectly Merges Scandinavian Modernism & Bohemian Experimentalism

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Dubbed the Grafton House, and located in LA’s Echo Park neighborhood, this wood-clad residence beautifully incorporates Scandinavian modernism and the bohemian experimentalism that is usually seen on the LA Eastside. The home was built by Sweden-born architect Fredrik Nilsson for his family. It is perched on a sloped site and equipped with views of the surrounding hills, and a stunning city skyline.

Designer: Fredrik Nilsson

The property was purchased by architect Fredrik Nilsson of the local firm Studio Nilsson and his wife a couple of years ago to create a space for a growing family. The property occupies 2400 square feet and was accompanied by an old 400 square feet cottage. Although the cottage is aging, and the property is quite humble, the couple decided to build a homely and warm sanctuary there. “The aim was to expand the feeling of space and tranquillity while remaining squarely in the middle of a noisy, walkable part of the city, where the buzz of police helicopters is not uncommon on a daily basis,” Nilsson said.

The home is inspired by Nilsson’s Swedish roots, as well as his wife’s Indian heritage. He said he wanted to build “a small-footprint, urban treehouse – one inspired by Scandinavian modernism and his Indian-American wife’s desire for warmth and color”. Currently, the old cottage is no more and instead is replaced by a two-story, 1850 square feet house. The facade of the home is clad in raw cedar, with windows and openings that allow daylight to stream into the home while also providing privacy. The upper floor subtly cantilevers over the ground floor, creating a shaded entryway. “Opening the entry gate, guests comment that they feel they have entered a fairyland sanctuary,” said Nilsson.

As you enter the home, you are welcomed by a reverse floor plan marked with private areas on the ground floor. The public spaces are housed on the upper storey. The upper floor also includes an office that can be used as a guest bedroom as well. The views surrounding the home are pretty serene as well, including distant vistas and glances of the nearby trees around the home.

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