IDIN Architects has completed an innovative residential project in Thailand that literally elevates family living to new heights while creating an unusual ground-level amenity: a covered garden and grazing area for the owners' two cows. W House II, located in Nakhon Ratchasima province, rises seven meters above the landscape in a region characterized by open fields and distant mountain ranges.
The elevated concrete residence serves as an evolution of the family's original home, known as W House I, which now functions as a guest retreat below the new main dwelling. The architectural firm designed the project to address the owners' specific desire for a single-story layout that would keep family members visually connected throughout the day while preserving the spectacular mountain views they once enjoyed from the rooftop of their first house.
IDIN Architects solved this challenge by lifting the entire new residence to the height of the original building's rooftop, creating what they describe as "an elevated plane that combines open sightlines with a sense of refuge." This raised configuration accomplishes multiple goals: it maintains the cherished mountain vistas, provides the desired single-level family living, and creates a unique covered outdoor space beneath the structure.
The ground level beneath W House II now serves as a protected garden and grazing area for the family's two cows, while the upper level houses all living quarters and includes a swimming pool. A continuous balcony wraps around the entire perimeter of the elevated home, offering panoramic views that shift subtly with changing light and time of day. The architects positioned the interior living spaces an additional 40 centimeters above the balcony level, allowing residents to sit at the edge with their feet suspended above the expansive view when glass doors slide open.
Structurally, the house is supported by two long concrete walls that anchor the building while eliminating the need for additional supports that might compromise the open floor plan. The floor plate features a waffle slab structure that spans the distance between the supporting walls while creating an attractive patterned relief on the underside of the house. This structural solution reflects IDIN Architects' philosophy of using structural clarity as an architectural language.
The building's facade employs a sophisticated double-skin system that balances openness with privacy. The inner layer consists of glass walls, while the outer layer features operable wooden screens that filter natural light and can be adjusted according to the family's privacy needs. When the screens are closed, the house presents itself as a muted composition of concrete and timber; when opened, it becomes permeable to the surrounding landscape.
Inside W House II, exposed concrete flows seamlessly from exterior to interior surfaces, creating visual unity throughout the volume. The material palette remains deliberately restrained, featuring wood, concrete, and stone, but their careful interplay creates a warm domestic atmosphere that feels both grounded and open to the outdoors. Maple wood introduces tactile warmth against the neutral concrete backdrop, while slabs of Green India stone in the kitchen add depth and color, their polished surfaces catching and reflecting daylight.
The interior color scheme draws inspiration from the surrounding terrain, incorporating subtle greens, earth tones, and the pale gray of distant mountains. At the heart of the home, a large modular sofa defines the living area as the primary gathering space for the family. This flexible seating arrangement can be reconfigured for various activities including reading, conversation, or rest, embodying the owners' vision for shared family space.
From this central vantage point, family members maintain visual connections across the open floor plan, with sightlines extending toward the swimming pool and the landscape beyond. The design successfully fulfills the original brief for togetherness while creating a unique living environment that hovers above both the landscape and the family's unconventional ground-level cow pasture.
