Magnolia Eco-Cabin: A Sustainable Micro-Cabin Designed by Architect Michael Quirk

Brief 

Discover the Magnolia Eco-Cabin, a carbon-negative, off-the-grid micro-cabin designed by architect Michael Quirk to showcase sustainable building practices. Made with locally sourced and recycled materials, this charmingly simple cabin in Nederland, Colorado is a perfect weekend getaway.

Insight

The Magnolia Eco-Cabin is a 120 square foot micro-cabin designed by architect Michael Quirk to showcase the benefits of sustainable building practices.

It is located in a forest in Nederland, Colorado and was built with locally sourced and recycled materials. The cabin is off-the-grid and powered by solar energy. Quirk used a mix of birch plywood, reused treated cedar shiplap siding, and pine wood siding that was charred using the Japanese Shou Sugi Ban method to finish the exterior.

The interior has two rooms spread over two floors and features a wood-burning stove for warmth, a dining/work table, and a double bed. The cabin lacks running water, a bathroom, or a kitchen, making it best suited as a weekend getaway. The roof-based solar panel array is hooked up to batteries to store energy when the sun is not shining.

The insulation is made of hemp wool and hempcrete, and the doors and windows are also reused. The Magnolia Eco-Cabin is carbon-negative, as the organic materials used to build it sequester carbon. Quirk’s design aims to highlight the benefits of building material suppliers who use carbon-negative and net-zero energy building techniques.

Highlight

1. The Magnolia Eco-Cabin is a micro-cabin designed by architect Michael Quirk to showcase sustainable building practices.
2. The cabin is located in a forest in Nederland, Colorado and is off-the-grid, powered by solar energy.
3. The Magnolia Eco-Cabin is carbon-negative, as the organic materials used to build it sequester carbon.