While a house made from straw didn’t end well for one of the Three Little Pigs in the famous children's fable, in real life hay is a sustainable, eco-friendly and insulating material that's perfect for modern properties. Big bad wolves aside, it’ll take a lot more than a huff and puff to blow down these stunning straw bale-built houses.

Most people turn to straw bale construction because of its affordability, sustainability and ease of construction. This particular straw bale house in Colorado was designed to serve as a peaceful retreat for its occupants and guests, while causing minimum impact on its surrounding environment.

As with most straw bale houses, this one was built by compressing and binding large amounts of straw to create stackable blocks that form the property's walls. Straw was produced locally and solar panels were added during construction, resulting in a home that’s as energy efficient as it is sustainable.

Large surfaces of straw were purposefully chosen to reduce the amount of wood used for the property's frame. As straw is a non-toxic material that doesn't contain chemicals it also reduces indoor pollution, resulting in cleaner household air.

Straw bale houses are well insulated and have the ability to retain the heat during winter while remaining cool in the summer. This particular feature is especially important when building a house in a drastically changing climate like Colorado’s. Compact straw is as sturdy as concrete, wood or brick and has the ability to support large glass panelling.

It might look like a hobbit house from the Lord of the Rings, but this is one of the most sustainable homes in Scotland. Its owner, Steve James built the eco-cottage on a budget of $5,300 (£4k), proving that straw is as cost-effective as it is environmentally friendly.

Stone rubble and a planked grid were used to create the property’s two-foot foundations and flooring frame, while 200 compressed straw bales, which James purchased for $1.30 (£1) each, were placed side by side to form its exterior and interior walls. Door and window frames were fitted as its walls began to rise.

The property is furnished with sustainable materials James salvaged from nearby forests, parks and skips. While the main living/kitchen area is organised with an open-plan layout, a small loft creates a space-saving area for sleeping.

However, this two-bedroom minimalist property in the Scottish Highlands couldn't be more different in style to the previous house. It was designed to be as environmentally friendly as possible and the house exports five times more power than it uses. Electricity is produced using hydroelectric turbines and waste materials are collected ethically.

A total of 500 bales of straw were stacked up tightly to form its walls. Once erect, the walls were covered in lime, which allows moisture in, while keeping the elements out. Both materials are much cheaper and accessible than conventional brick, stone and plaster.

The interior has been furnished with a modern minimalist design scheme incorporating floor-to-ceiling-doors that make the most of the natural light. There is a balcony and deck with a hot tub to the front, where guests at the holiday rental can relax, dine and enjoy a glass of wine while admiring the surrounding mountain landscape.

This house in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was once was a single-storey stick frame structure, but the owners complained it racked up extortionate energy costs due to poor insulation and a lack of decent ventilation. Now, it's been converted into a two-storey sustainable home with the help of straw bale bricks and stucco.

In order to add a second storey, a concrete footing was poured around the original house, after which the additional storey was created using a posting and beam structure. New straw bale walls were then added, while allowing enough space for a spacious balcony and covered terrace.

Straw bale is extremely easy to shape which means the craftsmen were able to create smooth round corners. The style imitates the Adobe building tradition (Adobe means mud brick in Spanish) that's popular in the south-western states.

Once piled, the property's interior and exterior walls were covered in stucco. The house now has an earthy handmade feel and is more comfortably ventilated during summer, while retaining its heat during winter.

This environmentally friendly home was inspired by the old mining structures of Colorado’s gold country. Located on hilly terrain near a ski resort, the house features large windows and a spacious deck where occupants can enjoy scenic views of the snowy mountain peaks.

The owners of the house chose straw bale as the main building material due to its insulating capability, which is particularly beneficial when considering its potential as a rental property for the ski season. Two-storey gallery windows, pine-board-and-batten siding and a metal roof were selected for the facade to create a modern aesthetic.

The house can accommodate up to 10 guests and contains a number of modern features, including a stylish wood burning stove, smart home system and underfloor heating.

This house in Campo, California, produces more energy than it uses. The sustainable ranch style home was built using straw filled walls, which were then plastered with clay and framed with reclaimed wood trimmings.

Despite being near the Mexican border and experiencing sizzlingly hot summers Campo also sees occasional snow in winter. But even when the mercury plummets, the house remains at a constant temperature thanks to the heat-retaining walls. The home's carbon footprint was reduced even further by sourcing the straw for construction locally and the addition of solar panels. 

All wooden furnishings, including the property’s rustic kitchen countertops were made from reclaimed vintage oak. Other sustainable elements include a laundry system that uses water from clothes washes to irrigate the surrounding landscape.

This contemporary four-bedroom home on the outskirts of the city of Zoermeer in the western Netherlands is a cross between a traditional Dutch farmhouse and a contemporary design-led property. It features a straw outer shell that provides both thermal insulation and soundproofing.

Inside the layout is open-plan and finished with bespoke carpentry and artworks. As the windows extend into the roof, natural light enters from above in the upstairs rooms, while also affording occupants fine views of the surrounding fields.

The garden is accessed via transparent sliding doors that lead out to a covered patio. Above is the master suite, which has both a freestanding bath and ensuite shower room, where residents can continue taking in the views from the comfort of their bed.

Spread over 2,800 square feet, this four-bedroom, two-bathroom family home in San Diego, California proves that straw bale is an efficient and cost-effective material even for larger builds.

As with most straw houses, the property has a wooden frame that has been tightly packed with a straw bale infill. The interior partition walls were filled with a combination of straw and clay to insulate the home too.

A non-toxic clay was plastered onto the property's interior walls, creating a smooth stucco surface onto which paint was then easily rolled. Opting for a natural plastering process has led to a better quality of air circulation, especially during the summer.

Due to the flexible nature of straw as a building material, the owners of this property were able to include deep windows and natural-looking recesses that double up as built-in storage. The home also benefits from a rendered beehive-shaped fireplace for chillier days too. 

Now read: Our pick of amazing concrete homes from around the world