PROJECT DETAILS
Study: 2022
Construction: 2025
Store Area: 180,49 sq.m.
“100% Hotel Design Awards 2025: Top 3 in the ‘Design’ category
PUBLICATIONS
Archello, www.archello.com, 10/2025
Archilovers, www.archilovers.com, 10/ 2025
DOMES,JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2026,ISSUE 179
Architizer, www.architizer.com , 04/2026
PROJECT CREDITS
Design Lead: Paly Architects (Nikos Lykoudis – Ismini Papaspiliopoulou)
Design Team: Irene Tricha,Olga Koutroumanou,Ileana Toli, Filopoimin Lykoudis
Interior design: Paly architects,Grit Klabuhn,Michael Karsten Brieske
Lighting design: paly architects
Supervision: Filopimin Lykoudis, Nikos Lykoudis, Irene Tricha,
Photographer: George Anastasakis
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
VILLA OUSIA
PITSIDIA,CRETE
Three clear, distinct volumes, connected by transparent glass necks, form the residence.The central, tallest volume is made of stone, while the two adjacent, equally tall volumes are coated with an “earth”-colored plaster.The first volume contains a bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, an office, and a shared WC. The central volume includes the entrance and the shared living areas—kitchen, dining room, and living room—in a single open-plan space. The third volume houses the master bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, which opens onto a planted courtyard.Between the three volumes, and in front of the central one, a large pergola is constructed, extending to the swimming pool, effectively “expanding” the living space to the outdoors. Large sliding glass panels on the north and south sides of the central volume create a seamless transition from the natural hillside to the swimming pool, offering views of the settlement, the plain, and the sea, while enabling natural ventilation and cooling when opened.The entrance to the residence is located at the rear side of the volumes. Together with their offset positioning, it creates a wind-protected backyard. The design of the outdoor area is completed by an independent pergola at the pool area, a circular stone staircase leading to the outdoor shower, large freely placed stones marking the plot boundaries, landscaping, and a gravel-paved entrance and parking area.Natural materials from the region were used: local stone, rust-colored metals, chestnut wood, exterior plaster with straw in earth tones, beige-colored interiors, cotto tiles on the floors both indoors and outdoors, black aluminum window frames combined with iroko wood, and gravel in the entrance, parking areas, and rooftops.Embedded in the hillside and built with local materials, it enters into dialogue with the rugged landscape of Southern Crete.
The composition, minimal and geometric, stands in silent contrast to the neighboring sheepfold, while subtly relating to it through the honesty of its forms.
Sheltered by the hill, it opens toward views of the settlement, the sea, and the mountains.
An architecture that does not impose itself on the landscape—it integrates, breathes, and belongs.
Study: 2022
Construction: 2025
Store Area: 180,49 sq.m.
“100% Hotel Design Awards 2025: Top 3 in the ‘Design’ category
PUBLICATIONS
Archello, www.archello.com, 10/2025
Archilovers, www.archilovers.com, 10/ 2025
DOMES,JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2026,ISSUE 179
Architizer, www.architizer.com , 04/2026
PROJECT CREDITS
Design Lead: Paly Architects (Nikos Lykoudis – Ismini Papaspiliopoulou)
Design Team: Irene Tricha,Olga Koutroumanou,Ileana Toli, Filopoimin Lykoudis
Interior design: Paly architects,Grit Klabuhn,Michael Karsten Brieske
Lighting design: paly architects
Supervision: Filopimin Lykoudis, Nikos Lykoudis, Irene Tricha,
Photographer: George Anastasakis
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
VILLA OUSIA
PITSIDIA,CRETE
Three clear, distinct volumes, connected by transparent glass necks, form the residence.The central, tallest volume is made of stone, while the two adjacent, equally tall volumes are coated with an “earth”-colored plaster.The first volume contains a bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, an office, and a shared WC. The central volume includes the entrance and the shared living areas—kitchen, dining room, and living room—in a single open-plan space. The third volume houses the master bedroom with an en-suite bathroom, which opens onto a planted courtyard.Between the three volumes, and in front of the central one, a large pergola is constructed, extending to the swimming pool, effectively “expanding” the living space to the outdoors. Large sliding glass panels on the north and south sides of the central volume create a seamless transition from the natural hillside to the swimming pool, offering views of the settlement, the plain, and the sea, while enabling natural ventilation and cooling when opened.The entrance to the residence is located at the rear side of the volumes. Together with their offset positioning, it creates a wind-protected backyard. The design of the outdoor area is completed by an independent pergola at the pool area, a circular stone staircase leading to the outdoor shower, large freely placed stones marking the plot boundaries, landscaping, and a gravel-paved entrance and parking area.Natural materials from the region were used: local stone, rust-colored metals, chestnut wood, exterior plaster with straw in earth tones, beige-colored interiors, cotto tiles on the floors both indoors and outdoors, black aluminum window frames combined with iroko wood, and gravel in the entrance, parking areas, and rooftops.Embedded in the hillside and built with local materials, it enters into dialogue with the rugged landscape of Southern Crete.
The composition, minimal and geometric, stands in silent contrast to the neighboring sheepfold, while subtly relating to it through the honesty of its forms.
Sheltered by the hill, it opens toward views of the settlement, the sea, and the mountains.
An architecture that does not impose itself on the landscape—it integrates, breathes, and belongs.