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"Vacation homes have always been a rite of passage for novice architects\u2014a way for indulgent family members to give the kid a break until the big time beckons. Luckily, someone forgot to tell Tom Kundig. Despite a meteoric career that has earned him dozens of awards (including top honors from the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum and the American Academy of Arts and Letters), the Seattle architect can&amp;#039;t resist the siren call of the cabin. So when contractor Jim Dow asked Kundig to design a diminutive retreat in Skykomish, Washington, the architect accepted without hesitation.  &amp;quot;Smaller projects almost have more appeal for me, because they&amp;#039;re intimate to the client and intimate to the landscape,&amp;quot; says Kundig, a principal at Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects. &amp;quot;Jim&amp;#039;s desire to be in the forest\u2014to be protected, Zen-like, meditative\u2014 those are the kinds of projects you dream of doing.&amp;quot;   Modest in scale, though not in ambition, Dow&amp;#039;s 575-square-foot cabin eschews Big Architectural Statements for a disarming deference to the setting, a nine-acre parcel nestled in a river bend 75 miles northeast of Seattle. Raised atop a concrete base to maximize views, the steel-clad structure huddles under a broad-hipped roof crowned by a towering chimney. Glass doors fan out on three sides, including the corners, exposing the interior to the elements and the sounds of the river below.  A concrete fireplace anchors the center of the cabin, the hearth opening to a small sitting area on one side and a kitchen on the other. Dusky rafters trace the contours of the metal roof above, lulling Dow with the somnambulant drumbeat of rain. &amp;quot;This place is so therapeutic. There are times when I&amp;#039;m just staring at the fire and the next thing I know, it&amp;#039;s morning,&amp;quot; says Dow, the managing partner for builder Schuchart/Dow. &amp;quot;You can ski, walk or hike, but coming here is really about doing nothing.&amp;quot;  Underscoring that point is the absence of closets, because they might breed clutter\u2014or projects. Storage is relegated to drawers under the living room sectional and compartments at the head and foot of each bed. Clothing storage was limited to a pair of hooks in each bedroom. &amp;quot;I didn&amp;#039;t want to waste space for a closet,&amp;quot; laughs Dow, who brings along just what he needs for each trip.  Maryika Byskiniewicz, who designed the custom furniture, chose deep red fabrics\u2014like the Pierre Frey mohair on the banquette, in a color called Cardinal. The palette makes the greens of the Pacific Northwest forest seem more vivid by contrast.  Click here to see the gallery for &amp;quot;Eco-Minded Cabin.&amp;quot;   When it came time to plan the kitchen, the divorced father of two grown children (he also has a rascally malamute named Beau) was a little more generous with storage, although even here he restricted himself to an undercounter refrigerator and a diminutive 24-inch Viking range. An elevated counter and a bench overlook the expansive terrace and woods beyond, but they are portable enough to move outdoors if the occasion demands\u2014 although given that the kitchen&amp;#039;s corners fold out of the way, eating indoors isn&amp;#039;t much different from dining alfresco.  Kundig says clients often claim they want a small space, but Dow really meant it, never wavering for a second from the original 25-by-25-foot dimensions he envisioned. The architect was grateful for the limitation. &amp;quot;As soon as a building gets big, you get separated from the landscape,&amp;quot; he observes. To maximize interior space, Kundig relegated stairs to the exterior and fashioned sleeping quarters barely bigger than the beds occupying them. Mammoth windows at the foot of each bed swing open, so that when you&amp;#039;re lying down, the sights, sounds and smells of the forest envelop you. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s just like camping next to a river,&amp;quot; Kundig quips, &amp;quot;except for the comfortable bed and 400- thread-count sheets.&amp;quot; Adds Dow, &amp;quot;I leave the windows open all night. Bugs fly around and things crawl in, but Beau chases them out. He&amp;#039;s always tearing after something. Needless to say, you don&amp;#039;t ever sleep through the night.&amp;quot;  Dow made a sybaritic soaking tub the centerpiece of his Seattle residence (MH, May &amp;#039;08); here, a more compact model sidles up to a bathroom window overlooking the forest. The floor and walls are covered in black mosaic tile\u2014a color Kundig praises for its calming influence and the way it sets everything else in relief. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s like the bass line in music,&amp;quot; the architect says. &amp;quot;You don&amp;#039;t necessarily hear it, but it holds everything together.&amp;quot; Much like the cabin itself: inconspicuous, but inexorably linked to its surroundings.  Click here to see the gallery for &amp;quot;Eco-Minded Cabin.&amp;quot;  Click here to see the resources. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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