City Cabin featured in Dwell
Dwell magazine recently featured the City Cabin we built, designed by Olson Kundig. For the design, architect Jim Olson drew inspiration from his Cabin in Longbranch.
Photos: Aaron Leitz
The client, an avid environmentalist, requested that the 2,400-square foot residence aim for net-zero energy, but forego certification. She also requested that the home feel like a wild sanctuary within the city.
Reclaimed Douglas fir planks from a barn in Eastern Washington, clad the exterior. Dovetail’s metal shop fabricated the custom galvanized steel downspouts and canopies.
The interior walls are clad in A/C-grade plywood. The kitchen cabinets, built by Dovetail’s wood shop, are made of fir and galvanized steel and the counter top is cast-in-place concrete with an integral color. The island counter top is a slab of Douglas fir dredged from a slough in the Skagit Valley and carbon-dated to 2,700 years old.
The windows are triple-pane from Unilux in Germany. The reclaimed exterior cladding is used sparingly inside, as well. Additional environmental strategies include an 8.4-kW photovoltaic array, a green roof, an air-to-water heat pump, radiant heat, low-energy appliances, and low-flow plumbing fixtures. Passive solar strategies were also applied to optimize natural ventilation and light.