if you're building a home in a beautiful
natural environment such as this forest
here in the Pacific Northwest it comes
with a degree of responsibility to
ensure that whatever you build actually
looks like it belongs in the place where
it is and this next cat we're about to
visit well it looks like it could have
been put there by magic
[Music]
hello Albin how are you pleasure to meet
you mate likewise this place here what
can I say it's absolutely stunning isn't
it we're in the Pacific Northwest in the
middle of this very very beautiful
forest and this style of this house it
looks like it grew out of the forest
doesn't it it's kind of yeah that's kind
of the idea I've always lived in an
environment that was totally surrounded
by nature I go out of my way to comma
flies anything that looks man-made as I
find it very aesthetic man-made stuff is
unaesthetic to me I could never find a
house in an environment that I was
pleased with so I bought this property
and built this place to move in here how
did you actually come to style this
house in this way well I didn't want a
square box to start with so the easiest
way to do that was actually just cut off
the corners and you get a hexagon mix
the interior and the exterior look you
know fix the box look away so that's how
it happened and all this wood came from
a mill it's a cedar mill I love all of
the really organic materials that have
gone into building this house the way
that you've left so much of the wood
natural and it really does help it to
marry to its environment
yeah I think so I make a point of trying
to hide them into lumber one of the
interesting things about your being here
is that you've actually built a larger
house on the property but you moved out
of that large house so that you could
live here and the smaller cabin
why did you decide to do that I was
thinking about resale believe it or not
when I first built that house so that's
I built it bigger than I would actually
I didn't get into the idea of smaller
until after I lived in that place and
realized that it's a bit of a monster I
completely understand well I really love
the style of the exterior of this house
and I can't wait to see if it's murdered
on the inside absolutely
oh wow this is like walking into
something out of a fairy tale yeah I've
heard that before actually I'm glad
people feel that way about it I do too
actually
how long have you actually lived here
now oh well my daughter is 15 now the
year after she was born
we moved in years I've been here 14
years what is it that you love most
about this space the naturalness of it
you know there's so much natural I love
this did you see this goes up here it
separates here once joins here separates
and joins there that's one of my
favorite pieces of wood I like this one
here the way it holds that beam and and
the railing up there is you the railing
is so beautiful how that's done I mean
that in itself is just a complete work
of art yeah I'm really I really please
do that to it can I go out there now
absolutely that's because of the baby
she was one year old she's crawling
around and we didn't want to confine her
in a little crib type space and this is
the door and then basically actually
that part was not planned before
originally the floor just went to here
so you actually extended this area over
here and you've turned that into your
bedroom now that's it gave us a lot more
space I can just imagine actually lying
in that bed and looking out that window
and you must get the most incredible
views here yeah yeah no it's really it's
super Pleasant no question about it
you've also got all of these musical
instruments up here yeah and you're a
musician aren't you that's it are you
could you tell me a little bit about
your musical history
I took violin lessons for two years I
took piano lessons for eight years
and at that time the Beatles were was
just coming out and I saw Ringo Starr
and his drumming another man that's
amazing so I got a drum set and he
immediately started playing rock and
roll and then I ended up getting
involved with these guys from from love
you were a drummer for this been love
them they were a big deal yeah yeah they
were a big deal what was that like
well I wasn't being good for me they
wanted another drummer was strung out on
crystal meth and so they would call me
every time the guy failed to be able to
make the gigs and eventually when it
came time to take pictures of the album
cover I was there and he wasn't and so
by that little thing I managed to get in
the group after this second hit seven
and seven is when it came to playing it
live I couldn't do it and that was it
one time in my life I played seven and
seven years which is people's became a
hit then when it came to play it live I
couldn't so they had to they had to get
another drummer because it was a hit you
have to play your hips you know in the
next when I finished my Rockstar
two-year period fame is a really
interesting thing and it's something
that in our society it's so it's so
wanted and so many people desire it what
was your experience with being famous
like Fame was like miss misappropriated
as far as I was concerned and never
meant anything to me
I mean I like the idea of everybody
knowing who it was and playing all over
the world that was my I like that idea
but I don't feel like I really got a
taste of fame the way you would think
that people get it should we have a look
at the rest of the house sure this
lounge area it just looks so comfortable
I love the way that everything is
actually kind of focused into the wood
stove exactly yeah it's an important
piece of furniture actually the winter I
guarantee you something else which is
really unusual is this bathroom space
it's so unusual the way that it opens up
to the rest of the house yes just so
long as you're here and it's used to you
and your girlfriend and what's the point
of having it closed off it just makes it
a whole place feel bigger you know I
like the I leaving those those spaces
open there you know I don't have a
toilet you see I also have a bath a
bathtub I go out in the woods and it's
so really nice to go outside and it's
such a beautiful forest you know and
contrary to what a lot of people think
if unless you've got a sickness there's
absolutely nothing wrong with that stuff
ending up on the land yeah in to the
contrary it nourishes the lat
nature designed perfect system yeah and
we love to pretend that we're not a part
of nature and you know we really still
not me yeah nature and the kitchen over
here this is again a really kind of
welcoming space yeah I feel I feel good
about my design my father was you know
really into functioning spaces in fact
that's one of the reasons became an
architect he spoke of it as a functional
sculpture so I have a sense of that this
is my refrigerator that's one of my one
of my favorite little features and then
the old sink you know I like these I
like old fixtures and there's so much
they're really practical you know so all
up what would you say this house
actually cost you to complete I I'd say
it cost about $30,000 with a labor to
frame it and recycled windows the floor
and the drywall the the roofing yeah
about 30 good I get to see a lot of
houses and to me it's still so rare to
walk into a space that's filled with
this much character I think when earlier
when I said that it was like walking
into a fairy tale after coming through
this house that's still exactly how I
feel there's something completely
surreal and yet at the same time
something so natural about the way that
this home has been built congratulations
on a great design well thank you I'm
visiting this home has been such an
experience for me I almost feel like I
should have been led here by a trail of
breadcrumbs but it does make perfect
sense I mean if you're going to build a
little cabin in such a beautiful natural
landscape as this you might as well
build something that actually looks like
it belongs there and to that end I think
that Albin has done a truly exceptional
job with his design
[Music]
you