Tiny House built for Star Gazing from bed is a Magical Place in the Desert

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Malek is the Designer of the Folly Cabin, which is located in the desert of California. Working for a boutique firm in LA on high-end residential projects in and around Hollywood, he found it difficult to step back each time one project was finished. Nevertheless, he saw these experiences as exploring his passion and getting closer to what he wanted to explore within architecture. Out of his own pocket, he decided to create the Folly Cabin in Joshua Tree.

Growing up in Jordan, he used to sleep and stargaze on his grandparent’s rooftop all the time – observing how the sky would change constantly. While they were building Folly, they camped outside and Malek wanted to respond to the environment by creating a sleeping space outside, taking him back to his childhood. One of the trickiest parts of the cabin was to work with the small amount of space he had set for himself due to his budget. He grafted the existing infrastructure of a homestead cabin that had been there since the 1950’s, keeping the history of the place there while driving the roof up and create more space vertically. In order to use less materials and have less clutter, he kept it a really simple form. The steel responds to the environment and Malek intentionally wanted it to rust over time through wind, water and the sun. On the rooftop are two skylights – north and south – to release hot air and vent the cabin out. The windows on the south oriented wall are intentionally smaller, to keep too much direct light out while still allowing a view relief from the steel.


The smaller cabin with the stargazing suite on top serves as a storage cabin and looks like the continuation of the bigger cabin, sliced in the middle. Just outside is a hammock- and hangout area and solar panels – apparent on purpose. While Malek knows that most people don’t like to see them, plucking them onto the roof, he wanted them to be visible in order to appreciate them even more. They are tilted at the proper solar orientation which keeps them as productive as possible. Furthermore, there is a space for firewood, a big propane tank, a backup generator and a bonfire pit made out of leftover steel, with simple but lovely tree stumps for seating.

The void between the two cabins is intended to provide a kind of relief: it brings the indoors out and vice versa. The deck has some cactus in the middle, fitting the environment, and an outdoor shower with a drainage right below. The ladder that goes up to the stargazing suite is made out of gas pipes, wrapped up to give it more cushion. A queen bed, side table, telescope and bioethanol fireplace create a magical place with view onto the desert, the mountains and the sky. The door is an extension of the side elevation of the wall in order to complete the form when it is closed. On the side, the three windows of the north oriented wall are considerably bigger than on the other side and the Hotspot Energy outside it heats and cools the space inside.


Going inside, the first room encompasses dining space, living room and kitchen. The open volume ceiling gives the space a larger feeling. The material on the wall is plywood, changing to plastered walls in the kitchen and the other rooms to mark the more utilitarian aspect of the cabin. Malek says that even if it is inexpensive materials, the objective was to keep it as neutral as possible in order to draw the eyes outside the windows – the view replacing any artwork.

The floor was original concrete slab from 1954 and all he did was seal it. Rust marks and different elements that happened over the past seventy years are still visible, giving it a nice touch. The table seats six, the sofa can turn into a big bed and has a lot of storage space. For the kitchen, Malek designed simple black fixtures with a propane gas top, fridge and storage.


Up the ladder is the loft, divided by four by eights which keeps the air circulation moving and the space brighter. There is a heated bed for colder nights, reading lights and the north oriented skylight. In the whole house, the lights and window shutters can be regulated via iPad and iPhone and a screen on the wall downstairs indicates humidity levels and temperature. The skylights open automatically to keep it fresh. 

The bathroom is split into a wet room and water closet so that they could be used simultaneously in case there are up to six people in the house. In order to keep the toilet paper down when dealing with septic grey and black water systems, the toilet has a modern bidet function. And last but not least: a beautiful and stylish wet room with a rain shower and a boulder that can serve as a bench when someone wants to sit around a little bit longer and enjoy the view outside the window.


Malek mentions that as humans, we often make things our own just because we can, wrecking our surroundings. He wanted to think different and not copy paste the green label sustainability. The main theme that kept coming up for him was the impact he would make. By understanding the context and the surrounding areas, he started to get inspired by the stories the place told, for example of the tribes that lived in that area hundreds of years ago, which eventually lead him to create a context adapted and passive design. Malek warmly incites everyone to complement that which is already offered by mother nature.