Cottage in La Vera: Rustic Vacation Home Near Spanish Forests

Local studio Ábaton has converted a labour house into a contemporary cottage in a mountainous region that overlooks a nearby forest.

Surrounded by a hunting area lined with wildlife, Àbaton sought to establish a retreat that preserves the original materials and layout of the house, creating a “dialogue between architecture, interior design, and the natural surroundings”.

“Preserving traditional architecture and replicating the volume and materials, with a twist that allows one to experience the rusticity of the home with contemporary comforts,” said the studio.

Ábaton focused the cottage around the open-plan living and dining area, which sits between two bedrooms and bathrooms. The studio opened up the interior of the property by removing its windows, opting to instead cut rectangular openings from the floor to the ceiling.

Wooden shutters complete with slatted openings offer privacy and trim the sunlight that pours into the home. The shutters can be fastened fully closed for protection against the elements, opened 180 degrees to let air pass through the bedroom, or swung 270 degrees to encompass the edges of the cutouts.

The open-plan living room leads to the open patio with views of the forest. It was decorated with a mix of modern furniture and rustic elements, while the bedrooms were dressed with wooden storage compartments.

Ábaton rendered the home with contrasting white plaster and terracotta tiles to “fully open the facade to transform the cottage into a large porch overlooking the forest horizon”.

The renovation also included installing a kitchen with wooden overhead storage cabinets and white countertops.

“New elements, such as the chestnut wood shutters, will blend with the environment over time, acquiring a grayish patina,” said Àbaton.

While much of the design was consistent with the original, Ábaton added new materials that were balanced out with those already on the site. Old timber beams and stone tiles were recovered from existing land and surrounding structures and used in the interior of the cottage.

The renovation was designed with sustainability in mind, with the studio improving its energy efficiency. Ábaton installed thermal insulation and photovoltaic panels on the roof.

“This project, as a ‘non-intervention’ in the territory, used local materials and elements recovered from the land and surrounding old structures,” it said.

The Intervention aims to “preserve its original exterior from a contemporary approach, where respect for the existing structure and modern trends coexist,” according to the studio.

Ábaton Architects has worked extensively around Spain, usually in respect of the original structure of the homes.