There are easy ways to build small, minimalistic homes purely for utility. Heck if you wanna go full oonga boonga you can once you get your first pickaxe and just dig into a big boulder structure and set up in there. As long as you have a roof, base structures out of the eyes of wandering AI and a place to store stuff its all you need. While you could theoretically always carry all the material for leveled up workstations, this implies dragging a cart everywhere which is a pain.

You could also re-purpose any structures you find. Setting up in a skeleton tower in the forest is a good option. Regardless, you will need to make a sort of base where you can smelt, cook, and craft consumables and items. With how workbenches work in this game they need to be upgraded with sub work stations near them.