The central staircase unites the three levels and is clad in plywood — uniting the interior with the exterior.
The XSmall House is one of four homes on two adjacent lots in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The owners and designers are Chaewon Kim and Beat Schenk of UNI — a multi-discipline design studio have seen their work in Dwell and featured on Apartment Therapy Boston | Modern Cambridge Cottage For Sale. ArchDaily shows us some specifics of the XSmall House.
Comprised of three rotated 16-by-22-foot boxes, the most fascinating aspect of this tiny house is the lack of many windows — natural light is delivered by corner skylights on each of the three boxes. This creates an abundance of light (and interesting lighting angles) but also retains maximum privacy for the inhabitants.
See more of this particular building from ArchDaily | XS House / UNI and Dwell | Four Houses and a Future.
(Images: UNI, Adam Friedberg)
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
This house... with it's lack of windows and general austerity... would lead me to have a nervous breakdown if I lived in it.
view solop's profile
Love the clean lines and kitchen!! Being vertically challenged, upper cabinets are pretty much useless for me. While I love my big windows, I like the idea of multiple sky lights too.
view williamsweyr's profile
The starkness of some of these rooms is unnerving to me, as is the general lack of window light and freshness. And I'd never want to have a solid plywood room. :) Yet there are some great ideas here. LOVE the slivers of light in the corners, and the way it looks on the outside. That staircase is also maaah-velous. :)
view nikki moore - photography and vintage treasures's profile
I hate that staircase, perhaps it looks better in person?
view leadingedge's profile
Simply horrendous.
view mirandabee's profile
No one lives in there, right? I want to see the bathroom and the bedroom(s). Very stark....and uncomfortable looking...
view bitdot's profile
What is up with that staircase? It looks unfinished and it's pretty ugly to boot, plus that plywood room looks more like someone's shed with a chair and table put into it.
view suzy8track's profile
What will the plywood on the exterior look like in a few years as the overlapping boxes begin streaking on one another.
I like the stair.
view SpencerHoward's profile
Is it bad that the first thing I saw was the ductless AC unit in the kithen? Definitely could not live here. Anyone know where in Cambridge it is?
view michpc's profile
It's way up in North Cambridge, and it's hidden behind another more traditional house.
I don't love the starkness of the interior and I really don't like the stair, but the outside still looks pretty fresh - and the house has been around for a few years already. There was a big spread when this first came out - the bathroom is clad in carrera marble and is actually pretty sweet.
My main issue with this is siting - it sits litterally 10 feet from the house in front of it and is surrounded by gravel. Blah.
view Modfan's profile