ZaraNova / Ready-to-build designs / Nordic Cabin 203

ZaraNova collection · MODEL 203 · COMING SOON

Nordic CabinModel 203 · A-frame cabin · coming soon

The A-frame, done in steel: 660 SF under one great roof, a glass gable from floor to peak, a spiral stair to the loft, a fireplace, and a terrace out front. Drawings complete; steel engineering in progress.

See the three options View blueprints

15'-8" × 32'-7"

Nordic Cabin 203: Design model: three-quarter view of the glass gable

660SF heated

660SF total

1Bedroom (loft)

1Baths

2Levels

In designStatus

Overview

Nordic Cabin 203 is the A-frame of the collection. The architectural set is complete: 492 SF on the ground floor and a 168 SF sleeping loft, inside a footprint just 15'-8" wide and 32'-7" deep, with a 93 SF terrace at the glass end. The engineered steel model is in progress, so pricing is still an estimate.

The ground floor is a 435 SF kitchen and living room running the length of the cabin, with a fireplace and TV wall. At the back are a full bath with shower, toilet, and vanity, and a utility room for the HVAC system, the water heater, and the washer and dryer. A spiral stair climbs to the 168 SF loft bedroom, which looks down into the living room, and a window high in the rear slope lights it. The entire front gable is glass, floor to peak. One bedroom, one bath.

Where a timber A-frame flexes, leaks at the ridge, and needs a new roof every two decades, this one is a cold-formed-steel frame under two insulated sandwich roof slopes that run from the ridge to the ground. There are no walls to build. That is the point. Ask us for early plans and we'll keep you posted as the steel set is finished.

Every dimension on this page comes from the home's digital twin, the complete 3D model from which the steel is manufactured. What you're reading is not a rendering of an idea. It's the description of a building being engineered.

Built to last for centuriesA steel frame and metal-skinned panels. Nothing organic to rot, warp, or feed termites. A structure that doesn't move, so it doesn't crack.
Non-combustible structureSteel frame, steel-skinned wall and roof panels. Insurers notice, and so does a family in a wildfire year.
Designed completely before it's builtA millimeter-accurate digital twin in which every window, duct, cabinet, and outlet is placed before anything is manufactured. The steel is cut from that twin.
Closed in within daysInsulated sandwich roof panels run from the ridge to the ground on the steel frame as finished components, so the cabin is weather-tight almost as soon as it is standing.

Graphite Standing-seamRoof, as drawn

CharcoalGable framing

ThermowoodGable reveal

Visualizations

Nordic Cabin 203: Design model: front elevation — Design model: front elevation

Nordic Cabin 203: Design model: rear, entry door, and loft window — Design model: rear, entry door, and loft window

Nordic Cabin 203: Design model: loft and spiral stair from above — Design model: loft and spiral stair from above

Nordic Cabin 203: Design model: ground floor plan view — Design model: ground floor plan view

Nordic Cabin 203: Design model: ground floor from above — Design model: ground floor from above

Blueprints

The architectural set is complete: floor plans, sections, and elevations. Click any sheet to view it full screen. The engineered steel model is in progress.

Nordic Cabin 203: Exploded floor diagram — Exploded floor diagram

Nordic Cabin 203: Floor plans, levels 1 and 2 — Floor plans, levels 1 and 2

Nordic Cabin 203: Sections 1-1 and 2-2 — Sections 1-1 and 2-2

Nordic Cabin 203: Elevations — Elevations

1 / 4Exploded floor diagramClick the sheet to view full screen

Rooms & areas

492 SFLevel 1, heated

168 SFLoft, heated

93 SFTerrace

435 SFKitchen + living

15'-8"Width

Level 1

kitchen + living room, bath, utility room

492 SF

Level 2 · Loft

bedroom

168 SF

Terrace

terrace

93 SF

Heated area 660 SF = 660 SF total, the basis for the three prices below. Heated area counts every room on every level: bathrooms, closets, utility rooms, and halls included. Terraces (93 SF) are not counted. Room-by-room areas are on the blueprints.

Dimensions

15'-8"Interior width

32'-7"Interior depth

21'-5"Living room length

435 SFKitchen + living

168 SFLoft bedroom

38 SFBath

93 SFTerrace

1Full bath

Lot requirement: the footprint is roughly 15'-8" × 32'-7". Allowing for typical setbacks, Nordic Cabin 203 fits on a lot that fits almost anywhere. We'll confirm fit against your specific lot and zoning during the consultation.

How it's built

An A-frame has no walls: the structure is a steel frame and two insulated roof slopes that run from the ridge to the ground, closed by glass gables. Here is each part, from the inside out.

Cold-formed steel A-frame

Light-gauge galvanized steel rafters, floor joists, and the loft frame, manufactured on CNC roll-forming equipment directly from the digital twin. Each piece is labeled and packed in assembly order. Steel doesn't shrink, swell, warp, or rot, so the frame stays true and the floors never squeak.

Manufacturing · SteelModu ↗

Insulated sandwich roof, ridge to ground

There are no walls. Two insulated sandwich roof slopes run from the ridge to the foundation: a rigid insulating core between two metal skins, finished with a standing-rib metal roof. One factory-made component is the structure's shell, insulation, air barrier, and exterior finish at once.

Detail · Spec sheet on request

Glass gables

The front gable is glass from floor to peak; the rear gable carries the entry door and the loft window, framed in thermowood. Both are thermal-break aluminum frames fitted to the steel frame.

Detail · Spec sheet on request

Three ways to buy

Nordic Cabin 203 is offered three ways, from the steel structure alone, shipped anywhere in the US or Canada, to a finished home built by us on your lot. Every option includes the complete blueprint set. Click an option to select it.

Nordic Cabin 203 is in design. Prices below are estimates from the drawn areas and will be confirmed when the engineered steel model is complete.

Estimate · in design Option 1 · Ships US & Canada

Skeleton kit

$30 / SFof total area · est. $19,800 for 660 SF

The complete steel structure of the home, manufactured, flat-packed as a kit, and ready to ship.

All steel parts, CNC-manufactured from the digital twin: profiles, tracks, joists, trusses
Every part marked and packed in assembly order
Flat-packed and strapped for freight
Detailed step-by-step assembly instructions
Complete blueprint set, ready for permitting
Delivery not included, quoted by destination
Assembly, foundation, envelope, and finishes not included

Optional: our engineer or project manager on site to lead the assembly.

Select Option 1

Estimate · in design Option 2 · Within 150 miles of Buffalo Grove, IL

Panelized & installed

$40 / SFof total area · est. $26,400 for 660 SF

The same steel, assembled into roof frames and the loft floor at our factory, delivered, and installed on your foundation by our crew.

Everything in Option 1
A-frame rafters and the loft floor assembled in our factory
Installed on your foundation by a ZaraNova crew, with crane and site supervision included
Structure plumbed, braced, and ready for sheathing
Delivery not included, quoted by distance
Foundation, envelope, and finishes not included

Available to project sites within 150 miles of our facility in Buffalo Grove, Illinois.

Select Option 2

Estimate · in design Option 3 · Our build region

Turnkey home

from $350 / SFof total area · est. $231,000 for 660 SF

Nordic Cabin 203 built start to finish by ZaraNova on your lot, 3 to 4 months from ground break to keys.

Architectural drawings, engineering, and permit handling
Foundation, steel frame, insulated roof panels, and glass gables
Windows, doors, mechanical, electrical, plumbing
Interior finishes: flooring, doors, kitchen, bathrooms, appliances
Land, site work, and utility connections, quoted per lot

Final price per square foot depends on the finish and appliance level you select. Available in Chicagoland, the North Shore, and southern Wisconsin.

Select Option 3

Blueprints with every optionA complete blueprint set, ready for permitting in Illinois. Building in another state? The same set goes to an architect licensed in your state for review and stamp. We supply everything they need.

Permit fees not includedMunicipal permit and review fees are paid directly to your jurisdiction under every option.

Delivery quoted separatelyFreight for Options 1 and 2 is quoted by destination and distance once we know where the home is going.

One digital twin, three optionsAll three start from the same engineered model, so moving from a kit to an installed structure, or to a turnkey home, is a change of scope, not a redesign.

Customization

Love the concept but need changes? That's normal. Nordic Cabin 203 is still being engineered, which makes it the easiest to shape: a wider plan, a second loft, a rear deck, or a cluster of A-frames for a resort. Tell us what you need and we'll fold it in before the steel set is finished.

Because the house lives as a digital twin, changes are made in the model first, and the steel is manufactured to the new version. Small modifications are quick. Larger ones are re-engineered and re-priced before anything is fabricated. Either way, you see the exact result before a single part is cut.

Panel color, interior door style, flooring, and bathroom fixtures are all selections you make with us. They don't change the structure or the price of the shell.

Graphite Standing-seamRoof, as drawn

CharcoalGable framing

ThermowoodGable reveal

Nordic Cabin 203