Written by Alissa Schulman | Photography by Nick Glimenakis
Wherever possible, Skrabak highlighted the views. "The outdoors are so magical," she says. In the loft, skylights opposite the bed offer valley views upon waking. Outside, deck seating invites a cozy evening by the Malm fireplace.
From her first visit to the property, Stefania Skrabak felt like she'd stepped into a fairy tale. "It was just so extraordinary because the pine trees were so big, and the way it was nestled on the brink of a valley, it was constantly surrounded by fog," she says. The A-frame cabin had been abandoned for years, the local wildlife its primary inhabitants, with woodpeckers drumming against branches and squirrels gathering acorns by stumps. "Deer would just sit there and watch you. They'd be like, 'This is ours. What are you doing here?'" says Skrabak, founder and creative director of Art Home Garden. Still, there was no denying the structural and design work required to make the space inhabitable and bring her bucolic dream to life.
Water streaming into the basement, a deck on the brink of falling, and decaying trees threatened the cabin's security, while dark, stained wood walls, cherry floors, a complete lack of insulation, and minimal natural light made the interior feel more like a dungeon than the charming cottage Skrabak envisioned—but she was determined to bring out its inner beauty.
Taking on the bulk of the labor herself along with some hired hands, Skrabak started with the foundational work, redirecting water away from the structure and adding insulation to turn the one-season space into a year-round home. Only then could she turn to the interior, where a fresh coat of white paint and new cabinetry alone couldn't solve the biggest challenge the architecture posed. "One of the hardest things when it comes to an A-frame is that it's a cave," says Skrabak.
With windows on only two sides and beams protruding into the limited floor space, traditional approaches to making a home feel cozy—hanging artwork, arranging furniture against walls—weren't options. Instead, Skrabak turned to texture and fabric. Brown, woven textiles underfoot create depth and warmth, while bouclé and white linens add density without consuming visual space. Acrylic furniture and mirrors make pieces appear to float, expanding the room's sense of scale. "Everything I used was trickery," she says. Even the skylights required creative thinking: positioned low on the roofline rather than at the peak, they function as windows, drawing light inside.
Despite the scale of her work, Skrabak was careful to honor the home's original character. Vintage German pottery—gritty, nubby pieces in orange and earth tones, "connecting to the nature outside, because nature's never perfect," says Skrabak—appears throughout, from candlesticks on the mantel to lamps in the bedroom. Outside, she painted the house black, softened with native foliage in shades of green and blue, planted potted geraniums for a nostalgic nod to 1950s alpine living, and dropped slabs of bluestone meant to mimic Hansel and Gretel's breadcrumbs. "I didn't want to lose the sense of its identity," she says. "I didn't try to make a cool house, a trendy house. I let it be what it was: an A-frame in the middle of the mountains."
In the end, Skrabak created a home that feels both timeless and alive, as enchanting in winter—when snow slides off the steep roof and nestles the cabin in white—as it is in the fog-drenched summers. "I treated the house as a story, like I could almost see it through my child's eyes," she says. "This house, in my mind, could develop legs, walk away on its own, and start its own life."
Skrabak used transparency, scale, and reflection to expand the small space. Acrylic chairs surround the petite thirty-six-inch dining table, and acrylic railings line the staircase—choices that let the eye travel uninterrupted. A large mirror amplifies the effect. "I was always going back to acrylic, glass, and mirrors," she says, "so items would float away to make it seem bigger."
Home by Design Magazine — Relax & Recharge 2026
