How to Make Your Home Feel Like a Cabin

These Off-the-Grid Scottish Tiny Vacation Homes Are a Wonderful Escape From City Life

Just outside the town of Oban, Scotland, Inverlonan is the ultimate escape from city life and technology. Their set of three tiny houses called bothies — a Scottish term for mountain huts —have no Wi-Fi, indoor plumbing or hot showers by design. And yet, it still feels like a luxurious experience. We asked founder Lupi Moll for the design secrets behind this dreamy escape.

Inverlonan's Country Landscape Is a Restful Escape From the City

Inverlonan's property is set in the rolling hills outside Oban in Scotland's West Highlands. The area is full of opportunities for hiking, kayaking and biking. There are no roads leading up to Inverlonan's bothies, or at least none that a passenger car could handle. Once you arrive, staff will meet you in an off-road vehicle to bring you through a pastoral landscape to your new weekend home. Or, if you're looking for a challenge, you can bring a bike on the train and ride here on your own two wheels. The Caledonian Sleeper Train runs between London and Scotland and allows passengers to bring bikes for free. The Sleeper's nearest stop to Inverlonan is Crianlarich, a scenic 37-mile cycle. If that's not your scene, the Oban train station has connections to major cities throughout the UK and is just a 10-minute cab ride from the property.

Founder Lupi Moll Used to Camp on Inverlonan's Land As a Scout

Inverlonan’s founder, Lupi, is a retired lawyer. As a kid, he spent quite a bit of time camping on this very land, which was in his family at the time. His family later sold it, and more recently, he bought it back. He wanted to create a similar — albeit more luxurious — experience for visitors to encourage people to live a bit more slowly and intentionally. Today, some guests have referred to this retreat as a much-needed slowdown or a “tonic for the city-weary,” as one summed up their experience in the bothy guestbook.

These Tiny Cabins Are All About the Outdoor Space

Each bothy is outfitted with a spacious deck with lakeside views and a cooler that keeps provisions fresh — you won't find a fridge or freezer indoors. Before arrival, Inverlonan's staff sends guests a seasonal menu from which they can order fresh ingredients and meal kits — like fresh pizza dough made on-site accompanied by local cheese and salami — to make the most of their outdoor kitchens.

Inverlonan Bothy on the Edge of Loch Nell

Aside from the included breakfast items, such as local eggs, butter and milk, fresh-baked bread from the property’s private chef, Darren Ross, and locally raised sausage, blood sausage and bacon, you’ll also find local cheese, honeycomb, artisan chocolate, pizza kits and more. You’ll keep your food chilled in a cooler just outside the front door, and you can cook on an outdoor pizza oven, grill, campfire or propane camp stove.

Artwork and Furniture From Local Makers and Talented Friends Gives Each Bothy a Special Touch

Inverlonan now has three bothies on its property, each one similar in size and style but unique nonetheless. Two of the structures were designed by the Bothy Stores, and one by Lupi himself. Nearly everything inside has a story, from the Moroccan pillows Lupi and his wife brought back from their honeymoon years ago, to the clay plaster sourced from southern England and applied by a local craftsman. Lupi stocked the cabins with furniture and decor from local makers and talented friends, and snacks and breakfast items from local producers. The marquetry artwork against the left wall here, for example, is from Woodpop, a Welsh studio founded by Emma Wood, an old friend of Lupi's. Marquetry is the craft of creating designs and patterns with individual pieces of wood. Woodpop also makes intricate surfboards and skateboards in this fashion, which are worth marveling at even if you've never tried the sports.

A Stowable Ladder Creates Easy Access to the Sleeping Loft by Night and Maximizes Floor Space by Day

Each Inverlonan bothy is equipped with plenty of ways to pass the time without the distractions of the internet, and they're set up with cozy, homey touches. Indoors, there are plenty of books to read and board games stashed in the custom storage bench made by Michael Acey Furniture. Michael Acey also designed the ladder, which stows away against the back wall of the bothy by day to create more floor space.

Low-Profile Futon Mattresses Maximize Headspace in the Sleeping Loft

Instead of traditional beds and mattresses, Lupi outfitted the bedroom areas with the most comfortable Japanese futon mattresses he could find. This way, they’re not too high off the floor, so there’s still plenty of headspace up in the loft. “We got the best futon mattress that we could find so that it could fit that space, so that the space did not feel so claustrophobic," he says. He sourced these from the Futon Company. Closer to home in the US, you can find a large selection from the Futon Shop.

Each Bothy Has a Cozy Interior and Private Outdoor Space

Each bothy has a tidy, neat interior, with a clever place for everything. These well-insulated cabins are heated by woodstoves with glass windows, which cast a warm glow at night and don't need to be so attentively managed as a fireplace. Though the cabins are small, there's plenty of space for a couple to find their own corners for reading or writing, and there's plenty to explore just out the front door. Each cabin has a deck for outdoor dining and a portable outdoor shower, which you can fill up with warm water or hang in the sun to heat up before you rinse off.

This Clever Kitchen Makes Do Without Running Water

There's no running water inside the bothies, so guests can take a step back in time and really think twice about their water usage. Luckily, it's not too far — cooking and dishwashing water is sourced from taps on the outside of the house. The sink drains outside. The bothies are equipped with solar panels to power lights and small electric kettles, but you won't find a capsule coffeemaker in here. Instead, Lupi went with Bialetti moka pots, which have changed little since they were invented in Italy in 1933, and require only a direct source of heat from a campfire or cookstove.

The Kitchen Is Equipped With English-Made Cast-Iron Pots and Pans

Guests at the bothies do all their own cooking unless they book a private dinner, so Lupi sourced heavy-duty pots and pans for outdoor cooking from Netherton Foundry in South Shropshire, England. “They need to be solid, and we season them every few weeks,” he says. “They are the best cast-iron pots that we could find, as locally as we could find.” Netherton Foundry makes its cookware mainly from locally sourced materials. Their pots and pans are available in the US through online retailers including Garrett Wade.

Inverlonan's Culinary Experiences Are Truly Local

Each bothy is fully equipped for cooking, and you can do a lot more without a full kitchen than you'd expect. Breakfast is included with each stay, and ingredients will be waiting in the outdoor cooler at your bothy before you arrive. Guests can treat themselves by ordering other provisions in advance, such as a s'mores kit featuring the Oban Chocolate Company, locally caught langoustines with garlic aioli, or a burger kit with Inverlonan beef patties and cheddar from the nearby Isle of Mull. Breakfast is a culinary trip in itself, and may include black pudding from Hamish on the Isle of Skye, coffee from Hinba roasted on the Isle of Seil, milk from the Wee Isle Dairy on Ginga, and muesli from Your Piece Baking Co. in the Kingdom of Fife.

For a Special Treat, Guests Can Book a Private Dinner With a Hyper-Local Tasting Menu

For a special treat, you can book a private, eight-course tasting menu with Inverlonan’s resident chef, Darren Ross. When the weather cooperates, you’ll dine privately in a surprise outdoor location, and when it doesn’t, you’ll get the ambiance of an old stone farm shed with plenty of tea lights to set the mood. Darren’s imaginative dishes are just about as local as it gets: fresh meat and seafood raised or caught nearby and vegetables straight out of Inverlonan’s own garden.

Private Outhouses With Composting Toilets Minimize Water Usage

Each bothy at Inverlonan has its own private outhouse with a composting toilet. And while, sure, nature may call in the middle of the night, it’s honestly a good excuse to stare at the stars in the unpolluted night sky. If you time your trip just right and get lucky with the weather, you might even spot some shooting stars. You can check the dates of upcoming meteor showers at the Royal Observatory.

Tending the Fire Is a Good Exercise in Intentional Living

If you've never tended a woodstove before, don't worry — Inverlonan's staff will show you how it's done when you check in. You'll have plenty of firestarters, kindling and logs to get the fire roaring. And then once you've got the hang of it, you can try your hand at splitting the wood yourself.

Between Dips in Loch Nell, Stay Warm by Booking the Private Sauna

Inverlonan has a sauna available for private booking along the shore of the loch. It’s an old horse trailer converted into a wood-fired sauna, and it’s perfectly positioned along the shore of the loch so you can alternate between a relaxing sweaty session and an exhilarating cold plunge.

Cohesive Decor Ties Together the Whole Property

Though each bothy is slightly different, goods and furniture from the same set of artisans create a cohesive storyline between each unit. The leather chair off to the left here and the sofa off to the right are both from Homer. “I wanted that design because it worked,” Lupi says. “It’s comfy — I like that low-slung design, where you fall back into it because it’s soft.”

The Bothies' Locally Made Sofas Are Upholstered With Upscale Scottish Tweed

Lupi sourced the sofas in the bothies from Homer, a furniture designer in Edinburgh. Homer’s furniture is upholstered with tweed woven locally from Scottish Cheviot wool (it's available by the meter, if you’ve got your own projects planned and have an upcoming trip to the UK).

An Artisan Minutes Away From Inverlonan Made the Cabins' Wooden Tables and Benches

The dining tables, kitchen workstation and bothy loft ladders were designed and made by Michael Acey Furniture, whose studio is just minutes away from Inverlonan. They were made with traditional methods using materials sourced from within a few miles of the bothies, Lupi says, and that was of the utmost importance. "I wanted local wood to be used by a local fabricator," he says.

Inverlonan Sourced Artisan Furniture From the Founder's Own Talented Friends

Furniture designer Henry Swanzy, an old friend of Lupi's, made these seats, called the Maisie Stool. It was designed in memory of a friend's daughter who died young, Lupi said, and named after her. While Henry's design studio isn't local to Inverlonan — it's based in Cornwall, in southwest England — Lupi sourced several pieces from his collection in part because his work is all handmade in a sustainable fashion. Henry founded Less is Better to make and sell minimalist furniture from materials certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

Honeycomb-Like Dipper Pendant Lights Cast a Cozy Glow

These Dipper pendant lights in the bothies were made from Scottish white oak and Scottish walnut, Lupi says. With warm lightbulbs, they cast a very soft glow about the bothies at night, almost mimicking the kind of calming light you'd get from a fireplace.

Floating Shelves Display a Selection Curated From the Founder's Own Book Collection

Lupi pulled most of the books in the bothies from his own family's collection, curating a selection that pairs well with relaxing in an off-grid cabin and thinking about the changes you may want to make in your own life when you head back toward civilization. "Some are about life philosophies that tie in with what we're trying to do," Lupi says — slowing down, mindfulness and reconnecting with nature.

Even the Clay Walls Have a Story at Inverlonan

Even the walls of the bothies have a relatively local story: They are covered in clay from Clayworks in Cornwall, applied by a local plasterer from Bute, Scotland. “We wanted to have a different, cool texture,” he says, rather than birch ply, which is more typical of similar tiny houses. “But we thought, no‚ that’s just dull. We want warmth, texture and something cool.”

Large Picture Windows Tell the Stories of the Elements While Guests Stay Cozy Inside

Regardless of the season, weather is ever-changing at Inverlonan, which can make it quite entertaining just to sit quietly by the window. In the span of a single afternoon in late winter, you might see rain, snow, hail and sun. Luckily, the bothy has large windows on all four sides. For trips to the outhouse at night, or to venture away from the cabin for night sky viewing, the bothies are equipped with Weltevree Guidelights, pictured here hanging by the window. These Dutch-designed lanterns have a spherical light that swivels out to be used like a bright flashlight, and swivels into a diffusing base to cast a softer, moodier glow.

The Bothy Stores Makes Cabin Kits With Minimal Environmental Impact

Two of the cabins at Inverlonan were designed by the Bothy Stores, a Scottish company that makes prefabricated and flat-pack DIY bothies with minimal impact on the landscapes where they're installed. Instead of using a traditional foundation, these bothies rest on ground screws, so they can be picked up and moved if needed. The company also runs the Bothy Project, which offers secluded, off-the-grid artist residencies at cabins nestled into the wilderness at Cairngorms National Park and on the Hebridian Isle of Eigg, 10 miles off the coast of Scotland.

Inverlonan's Bothies Are Tucked Into Nature to Give Guests Private Outdoor Space

Once you arrive at Inverlonan, the idea is to take it slow and enjoy your surroundings. There are walking trails leading right from each bothy's front door, and guests are able to swim or paddle in Loch Nell as they please. Each cabin has plenty of space so guests have privacy from one another even outdoors — especially key since you'll be washing up with an outdoor shower on days you don't want to swim.

Massive Windows and Good Insulation Make the Bothies Ideal for a Cozy Weekend In

The skies at Inverlonan are truly dark at night, making it possible to stargaze from inside the cabin on a clear evening. Floor-to-ceiling windows and a large skylight visible from the sleeping area help blur the line between inside and outside, so guests can experience the coziness of watching the sunrise, sunset and all the elements from within a toasty, well-insulated perch.

A Minimalist Cabin Design Makes for Ideal Off-Grid Living

Many of the guests who come to Inverlonan are city dwellers who want to experience what it's like to completely switch off in nature, Lupi says. Inverlonan isn't a five-star hotel experience, Lupi says, but it's about as luxe as you can get for a glamping-style vacation. "I'd say it's a five-star off-grid experience," he says. "Some guys come for a week just to literally switch off completely."

Curious? Try Out Off-Grid Life for Yourself

Inverlonan expertly pairs the rustic side of off-the-grid life with the cozy luxury of a well-equipped cabin. It’s dreamy, to say the least, to escape into a bothy shrouded in moss-covered trees and spend a long weekend being fully present with books, postcards, camp cooking and frigid dips in the loch (in between sessions in a wood-burning sauna, of course). It’s an ideal place for a digital detox, especially if going off the grid is new to you — unlike camping, you'll have quite a few creature comforts here, not to mention the bonus of having a private chef nearby.

Ideally, Guests Will Take a Piece of Slow Cabin Living Back Home to Their Own Lives

Everything at Inverlonan is designed to take more time, Lupi says. "You're in a luxury setting, but it's about disconnecting, reconnecting, living slow," Lupi says. "Everything takes bloody time. It takes time to get a fire to the right temperature. It takes time to boil some water. It takes time to cook your food." At the end of their stay, he hopes people leave feeling properly refreshed. "It is about living slowly, which, obviously, in this modern world, all of us don't really do."

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