Author
Ellen Eberhardt
Photographer
Courtesy My Cabin
The idea of a life in a tiny home, remote cabin, or built-out Sprinter van is loaded with fantasy appeal (thanks, Instagram!), but if there's one (more) lesson the pandemic taught us, it's that downsizing isn't always all it's cracked up to be. It ain't always easy to stay focused on work when your bed is just five steps away, or the whole family is on top of one another. Sometimes, extra, separate space is needed to stay sane.
That's the basic concept behind designer Girts Draugs' My Cabin. Based in Latvia, launched in 2020, and with a recently opened production facility in Illinois, the start-up takes the common prefab cabin configuration and breaks it into three individual structures: a living cabin called My Milla, the My Kalmus accessory unit, and, (most importantly), the My Galia sauna cabin. The three cabins are available à la carte, or as the complete My Cabin set for your own mini-retreat.
From the outside the cabins are carbon copies of each other, save for their varying sizes. Installed as a set, they strike a modern, sleek picture and feature standing seam gabled roofs, floor-to-ceiling picture windows, and black spruce cladding.
At 456 square feet, the My Milla Long is the company's newest and largest offering. With a price tag of $140,000, My Milla Long is the "living cabin", and features a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and lofted storage area. For smaller plots of land, a studio version called My Milla comes in at 270 square feet and $94,000, with a modest loft and living area below.
While there is space for a desk set up in the My Milla line, the My Kalmus cabin is 185 square feet of open space and a blank canvas for an at-home office or extra guest room. Although the basic set-up starts at $59,000, a bathroom, cast-iron stove, electric heater, or deck can be added for an additional cost.
Lastly, at a humble 132 square feet with a cost of $37,500, the My Galia sauna is lined top to bottom with spruce finishes and powered by a Latvian-made sauna stove. Sleek strips of LED lights hidden by a large bench elevate the traditional sauna experience.
Together, the My Cabin set will cost you around $175,000 (delivery not included) and takes an estimated two months to build and deliver to a site, after required permitting is obtained through local municipalities. Customizations on exterior and interior finishes are available, and there's a choice between heated flooring, electric heaters, or a woodstove. All My Cabins are designed to be on-grid, although the company states other arrangements can be made (just inquire).
And while My Cabin has always shipped to the US, as of March 2023, the growing company announced the establishment of its first stateside production facility, located in Waukegan, Illinois. Now North American customers can get their cabins—and much-needed space—faster.
Published 05-03-2023
