Waste Retreat

Wasted, need a Retreat?

What if you could build a luxury retreat with upcycled materials from a demolished hospital? What if materials were sustainable treated, burned, oiled, brushed and entered as fundamental valuable resources? What if waste became beautiful surfaces, tectonic quality, and fascinating architecture?

About

Just an hour drive from Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, you will find the answer. The result was a beautiful house discreetly hidden in nature between the trees in the hills above a pristine beach.

The five connected buildings with glass facades are built according to the circular principles and designed in respect of the pristine natural surroundings. Each building has uninterrupted sea view and direct access to the wooden terrace separating the house from the nearby wilderness. The structural frame and rafters are made from upcycled and fire treated wood. The beams lived their first life as structural part of a children’s hospital in Copenhagen. To respect the circular way and minimize waste leftovers offcuts from the upcycled beams are used to make floor panels. The floorboards are linen oil treated Douglas boards made from Dinesen offcuts. All bricks are harvested from local demolition sites and reused.

Using waste wood as facade material in the Nordic climate put the materials to the ultimate test. Aesthetics but also resilience to the elements are crucial qualities. The wooden boards are prepared for their new life using a 700 years old Japanese preservation technique where the surface of the wood is burned. The process reduces the risk of digestion and fungus attacks and visually the result is a unique look and feel since all wood burns differently. The technique is also used on selected walls inside the house – but here the surfaces have been brushed and treated with white pigmented ecological linseed oil to make the beautiful wooden veins stand out and to create a natural transition between the burned surfaces on the outside and the oiled wood on the inside.

The kitchen, UP by Lendager, is from the Copenhagen kitchen brand Reform. The brand uses handpicked designers for each collection, and the UP-Kitchen is designed by Lendager using the offcuts from Dinesen. The UP by Lendager kitchen design recently won the Design Awards in Denmark.

Sustainable Impact

CLIENT IMPACT

  • The client’s favourite place in the world!

RESOURCE IMPACT

  • Upcycled structural wood elements from the University Hospital in Copenhagen
  • Upcycled Kitchen, winner of Design Award 2020
  • Reused bricks

AWARD IMPACT

  • Winner of Design Award 2020

COMMUNICATION IMPACT

  • Covered internationally in ArchDaily, Dezeen, Politiken, Børsen and more
  • Estimated value €50,000

RESOURCE IMPACT

  • 100% upcycled facades, shou sugi burned
  • Upcycled structural wood beams, from Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen
  • Upcycle wood interior and exterior
  • Recycled brick flooring and chimney
  • Wood waste insulation
  • Upcycle Kitchen hack
  • Recycled furniture

INNOVATION IMPACT

  • Pioneering the use of wood beams repurposed as structural wood components with steel inserts
  • Upcycled wood cut offs from Dinesen
  • Upcycle wood for facades, walls and floors
  • Upcycled wood cut-offs from Dinesen
  • Setting up production for shou sugi and surface treatments

‘Upcycled structural wood from the University Hospital in Copenhagen.’

Sustainable Impact

Resource

‘Upcycled structural wood beams, from Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen.’

Sustainable Impact

Resource

‘Pioneering the use of wood beams repurposed as structural wood components with steel inserts.’

Sustainable Impact

Innovation

  • WasteRE-opstalt
  • WasteRE-Plan
  • WasteRE-siteplan
  • WasteRE-Plan2

Location

Odsherred, Denmark

Clients

Private

Partners

Lendager UP
Gamle Mursten
A:Gain

Year

2018