Modern seaside cabins go completely off the grid

Finland is the land of saunas. By some estimates, the small country has as many as 2.1 million saunas for a country of just 5 million people. But what are all those saunas for, besides breaking a healthy sweat? For a new house on the Finnish coast, the answer is an alternative source of energy.

Aleksi Hautamaki and Milla Selkimaki designed a sustainable summer cabin on a five-acre island they own near Archipelago National Park. Named Project Ö, the small compound features two main cabins, a workshop, and a sauna that all sit atop a wooden deck and look out over the sea.

Marc Goodwin

The cabins are long and narrow, with a timber exterior topped by a dark, gabled roof. Both buildings feature a covered outdoor space that separates the bedrooms from the main living areas.

The shape of the cabins “allows for large window surfaces with varying views, as well as possibilities for very different types of functions at the opposite ends of the building,” the designers told Dezeen.

The cabins run on a series of off-grid systems including rooftop solar panels, seawater recycling, and the sauna itself, whose stove heats running water and wooden floorboards across the residence.

Marc Goodwin

Marc Goodwin

Marc Goodwin