This Tiny Scottish Cottage Emphasizes Two Simple Materials

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Project Details:

Location: Plockton, Scotland

Architect: Baillie Baillie Architects / @bailliebaillie

Footprint: 409 square feet

Structural Engineer: Design Engineering Workshop

Cabinetry Installation: Chris Richards Carpentry

Photography: Marcus Quigley / @marcus.o.quigley

From the Architect: "Iorram is a contemporary take on a traditional cottage in the Scottish Highlands by Baillie Baillie Architects. Celebrating the use of local timber as well as local tradition, Colin and Megan Baillie designed and built the house for themselves, creating a compact holiday let that allows them to share the virtues of sustainable design and craftsmanship.

"The self-build project took a low-tech, natural materials approach, using monolithic clay block walls—a material which is simple to build with, durable, and completely plastic free. Scottish Douglas fir, sustainably felled and milled in the Highlands, was used for all timber structural elements, wall linings, and details. Baillie Baillie minimizes waste material by using timber offcuts as mortised doors and kitchen cabinets.

"Despite a compact internal area of 409 square feet, Colin and Megan wanted to show that they could create a feeling of generosity, which is achieved through varied qualities of light and volume, as well as the use of warm, tactile materials. Apertures are configured sparingly with a single large east-facing window angled to take in the landscape with long views across the bay and low-morning sun."