For the rare home decor lover who's not taken with the whole "just got ransacked"-level of minimalism that's so hot right now, the allure of opting for the cozy comforts of a rustic-chic spread (think lots of rough-hewn furnishings and decorative plates on the walls) is hard to resist. But don't be fooled by all the countrified cuteness going on here; these are all, in fact, newly built homes—occasionally even in the middle of major urban centers—and not the folksy, crumbling cabins or barns they wish so desperately to be. The best of the best in great pretenders, below:
(↑) In the bathroom alone, photographer Carter Smith's NYC home—featured in a 2007 issues of Architectural Digest—offers antler art and a side table made out an old barrel.
(↑ and ↓) While the logs used to build Ralph Lauren's epic camp-style compound are indeed "centuries old," the Teluride, Colo., spread is highly customized and hardly "roughing it." Just take a look at those designer teepees.
(↑) Featured in House & Garden in 2006, this new Connecticut cabin clearly takes its stump art very seriously.
(↑) Posited as an "urban farmhouse" by the brokerbabble, this $450K listing in Seattle has been renovated within an inch of its life—there's a 5,000-bottle wine cellar and state-of-the-art new amenities—but still holds on for dear life to its homespun aesthetic. Note that rough-hewn dining room table next to the very fancy kitchen sink.
(↑ and ↓) What Curbed NY calls "the woodsiest loft in all of New York City" is currently on the market for $1.8M, replete with barn doors, old planks, bare branches, and other cabin-y accruements that are a long, long way from home.
(↑ and ↓) Listed for $2.25M this spring, this "funky NoCal rustic modern" beach house in Stinson Beach, Calif., has undeniably modern bones under all its antler and knotty pine trappings.
(↑ and ↓) Inspired by primitive farmhouses and Diane Keaton's rural Vermont home in the 1986 classic Baby Boom, a Chicago couple decked out their very urban apartment to reflect the perfect combination of what Apartment Therapy calls the "vibrancy of city life and the peacefulness of a rural retreat."
(↑) In this very pretty São Paulo apartment, a bunch of faux-cabin decor (yes that's a side table made out of a tree stump) sits very, very confused.
(↑ and ↓) Built by Dutch architect Kim Holst, this funky mash-up of pine paneling and modern, angular architecture overlooks the Haderslev Fjord in Denmark like a chic urbanite gussied up in L.L Bean gear.
(↑ and ↓) According to Dungan-Nequette Architects, this 3,000-acre working timber farm "began with an existing house of most humble beginnings." Though "the final product fully engulfed and eclipsed the original structure," the decor is faux-old time-y and enough to make up for the fact that it's a completely new house.
(↑) Officially the only home on the planet to ever pull off an indoor fashion teepee, this former warehouse family abode in Amsterdam is all about its (not at all real) native roots.
(↑ and ↓)This former garage space in Melbourne got a DIY re-do that mainly involved lots of untreated wood, cabin-style decor, and a smattering of fur throws.
(↑ and ↓) Tucked away on a slim bit of property in Oxford, England, this family home by Waind Gohil Architects uses rough-sawn oak siding and antique decor to mask its tender age.
(↑) "Earthy wood" characterizes this "rustic kitchen" in a São Paulo apartment.