“Cabin Porn: Inside” Is Here—and It’s a Treasure Trove of Outdoor Dreaminess
Set to launch on October 3, Cabin Porn: Inside delves deeper into the wild, revealing stunning interiors and exteriors nestled in jaw-dropping natural settings around the world. Below are just a few moments from the book that—you've been warned—will make you want to trade your day job for a life in the wild.
Viking Seaside Summer House by FREAKS Architecture
This refurbished concrete fishing shack on France’s Cotentin Peninsula was originally built in the 1950s on a rock facing the sea. Its dimensions match Henry David Thoreau’s log cabin in Walden—10 feet by 15 feet—and France’s strict coastal regulations meant its size and shape couldn’t change during restoration. So FREAKS, a Paris architecture firm, did what it could, adding champagne-colored galvanized metal cladding as insulation and two large sliding windows that open onto the horizon.
McGovern Residence by Sven Holt
Sven Holt and his partner have been restoring the home his grandparents built amidst the back-to-the-land movement n the 1970s. Enlisting family and friends for help, the McGoverns harvested logs from Umatilla National Forest and salvaged materials from construction jobs, demolition sites, and secondhand stores. In addition to the main cabin, Bill and Evelyn McGovern built a root cellar, a potting shed, a guest room, and a quonset hut.
Sky Den by Studio Hardie
Set in northeastern England, Sky Den was built in the Kielder Forest for the British television program "George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces." Its designers sought to "blend together the best of outdoors and indoors" with a versatile space that includes foldaway furniture, a wide balcony with impressive views of a fast moving river below, and a roof that opens entirely, revealing an unobstructed look at Northumberland’s amazingly dark skies.
Oz Farm in Point Arena, California
Located in a remote area of Northern California, this geodesic dome is built on an organic farm near the Pacific Ocean. It has a potbelly stove, two lofted bunks, a kitchen and dining area, and a bed beneath a dreamy geodesic window.
Fire Lookout by Kristie Mae Wolfe
By the time Kristie bought this fire lookout tower in 2017, it had been largely abandoned for years. She purchased the property in the fall, but it was snowed in before she could finish remodeling. In the spring, she and her mom redesigned and rebuilt the tower’s cab, as the cabin atop the frame is called. They built a large deck at the base and converted the existing shed into a European-style wood-fired sauna.
Brillhut by Brillhart Architecture
Melissa and Jake Brillhart built this 14’ × 22’ × 30’ hut in their backyard in Miami. They then dismantled it, flat-packed it in a 40-yard container, and shipped it to the Bahamas via cargo ship. In Eleuthera Island, the couple reassembled the cabin themselves on-site. They built everything from the foundation to the flaps, including the kitchen cabinets and furniture.
Cornish Cabin by Richard Stewart
The dramatic coastline of Cornwall’s Lizard peninsula, the southernmost place on the British mainland, features meadows and forests that extend right to the edge of the sea. For photographer Richard Stewart, it seemed like the ideal place to raise a family. The cabin was an intensely personal project. In the Swedish tradition, "you’re supposed to put little talismans or gifts to the tree spirits" in the notches, explains Richard. "All sorts of stuff went into the actual walls of the cabin to give it a good spiritual blessing." It’s like a "time machine," he says.
Thatch House by Brillhart Architecture
Measuring just 600 square feet, this tiny retreat in Eleuthera was designed for Kate and Mark Ingraham and their daughter. It’s inspired by Cape Cod’s experimental Hatch House and is constructed with western red cedar and thatch. It features outdoor decks that dissolve into the landscape, ocean views, and a long porch to enjoy the weather while remaining protected from the wind and spray blowing in off the ocean.
The Undercroft by Jasmine and Simon Dale
Undercroft is an earth-sheltered roundhouse set in an off-grid Welsh eco village. Built in 2009, it was inspired by earthship design principles, with a reclaimed glasshouse that provides insulation and a perfect spot to grow tomatoes, cucumbers, and other vegetables. The cabin’s location—a hillside—protects it from the wind while allowing in sunlight.
Casa Tiny by Aranza de Ariño
Casa Tiny was designed as a two-person escape. But instead of being an isolated retreat, it has become a gathering place: "a space for experience, rather than a space for things," says owner Claudio Sodi. "The idea behind the house is so powerful," says Sodi, that it "moves you to enjoy life and nature in a completely different way."
Beavers Lodge by Charlotte and Mike Beavers
Charlotte and Mike Beavers moved from San Francisco to the Santa Monica Mountains, where they spent two years deconstructing and rebuilding a tiny, dilapidated hut set amid California live oak, walnut, and chaparral. "It was in pretty rough shape when I arrived," Mike says. His vision for the building was simple: it would be a comfortable, habitable space created as affordably as possible.
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