Kynttilä by Ortraum Architects is a wooden cabin set on Lake Saimaa in Finland, with a glazed, gabled end that has views of the water.
Helsinki-based Ortraum Architects built Kynttilä, which translates to "candle", close to the Russian border near Savonlinna.
The cabin is made of cross-laminated timber
Kynttilä is made of cross-laminated timber (CLT) and is clad with larch boards on the exterior.
The 15-square-metre cabin sits where the Nunnanniemi peninsula juts into the water, so to make the most of the lakeside views there is floor-to-ceiling glazing at one end.
Larch boards clad the exterior
The CLT is left exposed on the interior and also forms the built-in furniture, such as a bed, which sits at the one glazed end. A ladder leads up to a bunk bed above the door.
Both ends of the cabin have eaves that overhang to provide a sheltered, raised platform for sitting on or storing boots outside. This section also protects a woodpile kept beneath the cabin.
Eaves shelter a platform overlooking the lake
"The space is strongly linked to nature, as the large window creates direct and intimate contact and communication with the surroundings," said Ortraum Architects.
"In the night time, like a candle, Kynttilä shines as a warm light on the lakeshore."
A bed sits at the glazed end of the cabin
Kynttilä sits in an untouched forest, so the architects planned the construction process to be as low impact as possible.
The CLT parts were prefabricated...