Builder Matt and his cozy mountain cabin

Matt bought cheap land in the mountains and decided to build a mountain cabin to spend time in. He loves the natural scenery around the house. He modified the cabin plans he bought on the pinuphouses website a bit and started building a simple timber frame house.

His whole family and especially his friends helped him with the construction and helped him through the most challenging stages of the building process. He carefully documented the whole construction so that many beautiful construction details can be seen. This building is proof that action is more important than a million words.

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Ron's house in Alberta

Ron's story is an example of how fast construction can be when everything goes right. In a record time of 3 months, Ron and his family built the basic structure based on Wood cabin plans Helen from the Pin-Up Houses website. The cottage is distinctive with its articulated facade, main open living space over two floors and two cozy bedrooms on the second floor. Ron sent in lots of photos showing how the whole build went.

The building is on a solid steel foundation and OSB was used for the walls as an alternative to plywood. Sprayed thermal insulation is used in the walls, floor and roof. The DIY vibe can be felt from the photos, giving the interior a cosy and human dimension.

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We selected Pin-Up Houses while searching for small home plans because we knew exactly what we wanted, and Helen perfectly matched our vision for the property. I believe we found it through Google. 

Ron the Builder

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Leah's cabin and its construction in Hawaii

Shed Leah is a truly minimalist dwelling with all the trimmings. The DIY builder from Hawaii decided to leave the comforts of city life behind and settle permanently in the tropical forest. The plans for building Leah's cabin are tailored so that only one person can build the cabin. The builder bravely tackled the construction despite the many obstacles that made the process difficult. Working in inaccessible terrain and the abundance of termites that infest the building materials.

I’m collecting rainwater from Leah’s large roof into stock tanks for livestock. Rain barrels wouldn’t work because the fascia board is only 2.5 feet from the ground, and all rain barrels that short have very small capacities. Instead, I use stock tanks covered with mosquito nets, which works well for me. I don’t have any plumbing inside the shed. To charge my cell phone and tools, I use a small solar generator and a solar panel, which is sufficient for now. 

Leah's builder

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Double cabin in Texas

This project is specific because the plans for the construction of the Candy Cottage were used in a creative way. It is two Candy huts side by side, one of which is mirror reversed. This created two independent living units that are used to accommodate guests. The house is equipped with modern technology to provide superior comfort to its visitors. The interior is decorated in a clean style, the sleeping patio adds a playful and adventurous touch to the design.

I selected Pin-Up Houses because I was really impressed with the designs. I think I discovered you through a Google search for contemporary tiny houses.

Builder of the double Candy

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Ember and her Off-Grid Home

Ember the Builder is an example of how a determined woman can build an oasis of peace and tranquility in the middle of an inhospitable desert landscape. Using Elle's design from the small house plans category, Ember built a beautiful two-storey house.

She followed the step-by-step construction process shown in the plans and with great dedication and courage, this beautiful home came into being. It is interesting not only because of its design but mainly because of the unusual materials Ember used. Interesting is the exterior plaster on the mesh, or the foundation on the concrete foundations, over which the house seems to float ethereally.

...as I mentioned, it's incredibly exciting!! I am grateful for your designs and thrilled that I got to choose and build one (there were so many I liked). I practically built this entire house with just one helper. Being an artisan by trade, I'm skilled with my hands, but I never imagined I would complete such a project on my own (my loved ones are very proud of me). I took an online owner-builder class that helped me handle permits and subcontractors (plumbing, excavation, and electrical), but your detailed plans, supply lists, and book, along with a bit of trial and error, truly gave me the confidence to build my own house. 

Ember

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Ben’s Lakeside Retreat

The messages from Ben have been coming in for several years now and we always get some beautiful pictures of the construction of his lake cabin. The cabin is based on a steel foundation right in the lake bed. This is the Marlene cabin from our range. A simple timber frame building covered with a pitched roof. There is a sleeping floor in the attic and a living area with bathroom and kitchen on the ground floor. The outdoor terrace is decorated in red and provides a breathtaking view of the lake scenery.

My water cabin project progresses slowly due to my farm demanding most of my time, which is my livelihood. Despite its unfinished state, we can already use it. Next, we'll add battens cut and stained in a garage. The west-facing deck gets too hot from the sun's reflection on the water, so we plan to add a sloped roof later. The adjustable legs stabilized after a year of rapid sinking and two years of slow sinking, with adjustments taking just three hours. Interestingly, sunken metal legs conduct ground heat into the water, delaying freezing by a month, ensuring the thin ice layer under the cabin remains undamaging due to winter convection.

Ben the Builder

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Victoria Cabin as a guest house

Finally, we present to you the construction of the Victoria Cottage. This is a superbly executed professional job that needs no comment. The owner of the cottage uses this building as a guest house and is extremely happy with the design. The small cottage has everything you need, the bedrooms are situated in the loft where there is also a stunning outside terrace as you can see in the photos.

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Definitely get the plans! You'll be glad you did! 🙂 The house brings us so much happiness. We've received countless compliments from visitors and friends alike. Everyone is eager to see the interior and surprised by how spacious it feels despite its compact size of 12×16. The balcony offers stunning views and creates a perfect vacation home atmosphere. We absolutely adore it.

Builder of the Victoria Cabin