Cabin Life: A Luxury, One-Bedroom Escape Nestled in Open Grasslands

Images by Dennis Radermacher
Answers by Barry Connor, architectural designer and principal at Barry Connor Design

Who lives here: Two people use this as a holiday home and rent it as a luxury escape
Location: Twizel, New Zealand
Size: Approximately 50 square metres
Number of bedrooms and bathrooms: One bedroom and one bathroom
Approximate budget: NZ$500,000
Architectural and interior design: Barry Connor at Barry Connor Design
Styling: In-House Style

Brief
The client wanted a simple retreat made with honest materials. They wanted to use the cabin for the following:

• To relax and retreat.
• To soak up the landscape and watch the sunlight and shadows dancing along the Ben Ohau Range.
• See the skylarks frolic, hover and dance over the tussocks.
• Watch the stars and night sky.
• They also wanted the cabin to have bespoke appeal so it could potentially be rented out as a luxury escape.

What was your thinking behind the layout?
The underlying form is of two offset open-plan spaces. One contains the bedroom and bathroom and is positioned to allow morning sun in both winter and summer to filter through. These spaces are orientated towards the Black Hills and Backbone Peak.

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The second space contains the kitchen, entry and living areas with closer views of the Ben Ohau Range.

The angle of the offset was derived from plotting specific views from certain activities; lying in bed, washing the dishes, having a shower, sitting and standing.

The folded roof form also nods to the distinctive aerial display of the local skylarks with their angular, precise and purposeful acrobatics.

How does the cabin sit within the landscape?
The cabin is situated in open grasslands.

We used stone boulders reclaimed from the site excavation to create a nested plinth on which the cabin perches. Permeated with native tussock grasses and refined planting, this allows the cabin to nestle gently in the land.

What was your budget?
Around NZ$500,000 (₹ 26,802,093).

Where did most of it go?
Everywhere really – this was a very bespoke build with lots of custom components. For example, we have secret gutters and downpipes built into the cavity of the wall under the rainscreen.

The project also took a lot longer to compete than expected due to various reasons.

What challenges did you have to work around?
The site, location and builders, plus working remotely in Twizel.

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Tell us about your choice of materials
The exterior is cloaked in a rough-sawn larch timber rainscreen. It represents the idea of a bird’s nest, which appeals to the natural aspect of the project.

As the cabin is located within a harsh and extreme alpine climate, the materiality needed to consider the radical temperature shifts throughout the year. This rainscreen cladding was chosen as it will weather beautifully over time and can be removed and replaced if necessary.

A contrasting light beech plywood interior reflects the warm cream tones of the exterior and blurs the threshold with the tussock grassland, which creates the feeling of being nestled within the landscape.

The black-edged ply rib detailing represents the ‘cradle’ of being inside, protected, safe and private.

A circular skylight over the bed provides for views of the prized and protected Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve, where light pollution is limited at night, and offers lazy views of the vast hazy skies during the day.

Simple track lighting was chosen to fit into the crisp, angled folds of the ceiling. It’s dimmable to ensure views of the night sky.

What do the burnt-orange window frames add to the aesthetic?
The seemingly random burnt-orange window frames punctuate the band-sawn larch shell. They’re poised to accommodate the purposeful framed views of the mountains throughout the day and the stars that provide interest, perspective and scale at night.