Is it just us, or does this newly built Waldhaus (weekend house) in the middle of the Brandenburg Forest in Leipzig remind you of a bespoke jacket—perfectly proportioned, exquisitely detailed, and thoughtfully executed?

With a limited palette of only three materials, German architecture firm Atelier St has created a weekend retreat that feels as timeless as it does modern. With its traditional flared pitched roof form and dark wood exterior, there is a sense that the house has been in the forest forever. A few extra-wide-set wall openings, however, reveal the modern sensibility of the architects, Silvia Schellenberg Thaut and Sebastian Thaut, both graduates of Zwickau WH. The way the piping of a jacket matches its lining; we are especially drawn to the way the white of the interior spills out to the exterior as the trim of the window openings.

Above: The treated pine cabinets of the kitchen units introduce the third color of the palette. The vintage black and white appear modern in this context.

Above: The treated pine from the kitchen becomes the frame of the interior opening.

Above: All the surfaces of the living area are painted white. A ladder reaches up to an open attic space that acts as a study.

Above: A wood-burning stove provides heat for the small cottage.

Above: Below the treated frame pine opening, a lower opening is lined with the treated pine and becomes a bookshelf.

Above: The treated pine becomes an accent in the bathroom.

Above: The architects continue to play with the lining of surfaces and edges as the shower tiles spill out to line the frame of the opening.

Above: The exterior of the Waldhaus reveals only two of the three colors used for this house; the dark wood clapboards and the painted white trim. The extra wide opening adds a modern touch to a traditional form.