Architecture

We’ve found the perfect place to watch the Olympic swimming events. Here is an Australian home with a sunken living room that’s right at water level. The pool, designed by Melbourne company OFTB, further blurs the lines between indoor and outdoor living—like when being inside is just too far away from the water. An acrylic panel separates the pool from the sunken living room, and is giving us clear glass tub vibes.

Only two years have passed since the world’s first 3D printed apartment building was constructed in China, and since then, the sustainable architectural process has been refined to produce stellar results in time frames that are becoming increasingly faster. The most recent example is this tiny home that was 3D printed in just 24 hours.

It doesn’t take much to convince us to spend time in a sauna. Seriously, who needs an excuse to sit back, sweat it out and let the stress melt away? Well, we’ve found a sauna that’s golden, egg-shaped and sits in the middle of a Swedish city, offering even more alluring reasons to indulge in some heat-assisted restoration. Enter the SOLAR EGG, a dazzling art installation created by designers Bigert & Bergstrom.

Want to live like Frodo, minus the hairy feet? You can have your own home worthy of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit if you have some extra time on your hands. Experience with construction is probably a plus, but hobbits don’t really need that much to live a happy life! Are you looking to move somewhere with a lot less space and inspiration from Middle Earth? Green Magic Homes created 400-square foot, energy efficient, and eco-friendly hobbit homes.

For the design on this off-the-grid Midwest residence, Midland Architecture’s Greg Dutton opted to stay close to his familial roots. The 650-square-foot home known as The Hut sits in the Ohio Valley on the family’s property, which they’ve owned and worked for the last four decades. To bring the project to fruition, Dutton enlisted the help of his brother Chris, other relatives and a group of friends.

Now that you’ve had enough time to shop to your heart’s content at Amazon’s Frank Lloyd Wright home decor shop, you may still be in need of a few more tips to bring your interior. Here’s a pretty effective way to gain some serious design inspo: Take a tour through the recently renovated Robie House. Built in 1910 for Chicago motorcycle manufacturing exec Frederick C.

In a quiet East Austin neighborhood, newly-constructed homes sit side-by-side with the time-weathered structures in need of a fresh coat of paint, homes where overgrown grass reaches out to touch the cracked sidewalks. But, along with the apparent signs of gentrification, there is also something quite unexpected hiding behind a fenced-in backyard: the first permitted 3D-printed house in the world.

Thanks to the evolution of residential spaces, the term “house-hopping” has gained an alternate meaning. Case in point: Berlin startup Cabin Spacey’s prefab tiny houses. Singularly known as the Minimal House, the conservatively-sized structures are designed to accommodate so-called “urban nomads” who are in search of instant housing.

Once upon a time, hearing the word “cabin” instantly prompted images of a primitive dwelling that required its occupants to rough it in the absence of modern home staples including electricity, running water and decor. Thanks to the abundance of luxe glamping sites, that outdated notion has been turned completely on its head. The latest eye-catching small space to pop up on our radar is this tiny cabin in a Brazilian forest, which appears just as alluring as it sounds.

It's a smart house that encourages "right sized" living.

Upcycling combined with community revitalization results in a brilliant, purpose-filled space, just like this wonderful arts-themed recycled shipping container project in Venezuela. Spearheaded by architecture firm Pico Colectivo, the Cultural Production Zone consists of several stacked shipping containers adjoined to a pre-existing structure that suffered damage during previous protests in the area.

If you thought this cozy home might be taken from the pages of “Sleeping Beauty,” you aren’t too far off. Inspired by designs straight from fairy tales, “The Winckler” incorporates its natural surroundings through its shell made of locally sourced materials. The roof is made of split cedar shakes and the frame is constructed from timber, and inside is home to a stone fireplace that keeps the space warm in the wintertime.

When the typical city dweller yearns for a break from the traffic, crowds, noise, and light pollution, some of the most immediate forms of relief can come by hopping on a quick flight to a remote, quiet destination, or packing up the car for a weekend road trip. But when California couple Jeff Waldman and Molly Fiffer faced this familiar conundrum, they decided on a more permanent solution.

Of all the ways to become one with nature, a pretty straightforward path to convene with Mother Earth is by living in a forest. For some, it may sound like quite an outlandish proposal but this off-the-grid, open-air cabin in the mountains Panama makes the thought much more palatable. To bring the project known as Cabin 192 to fruition, architect Jose Isturaín of JIA enlisted the help of family members, friends, and area builders.

How do you make an home that measures just 484 square feet seem positively palatial? In the case of this Amsterdam apartment, the answer is: with really smart use of vertical space. Heren 5 architects, the designers behind this very modern pad, have managed to fit in a living room, dining room, kitchen, lofted bedroom, and even a walk-in closet and a hidden second bed.

If you’ve been clamoring to get your hands on some famous furniture, here’s a piece that belongs at the top of your most urgent shopping list: a chair Frank Lloyd Wright designed for himself is for sale. While Wright is frequently lauded for designing a slew of homes, hotels, offices, and other structures around the world, the famed American architect also designed more than 1,100 pieces of furniture throughout his illustrious career that remain in high demand.

Thanks to scores of innovative, forward-thinking designers, the process of building a home continues to evolve into one that prioritizes convenience, cost and the well-being of our ecosystem. Yves Béhar is one of the latest contributors to the accessory dwelling unit market with a line of prefab homes.

Going directly head to head with low-cost, eco-friendly temporary housing from the likes of IKEA, Italian production company WASP (World’s Advanced Saving Project) has just debuted a $1,000 3D printed tiny house—and it’s made of materials as old as civilization itself.

Backyard sheds are all the rage right now. They provide convenience for homeowners who have hobbies, but don’t have the square footage to bring their vision to life indoors. For avid readers, the image of a perfect home includes an elaborate library; fully stocked with first edition novels and a rolling ladder for easy access.

If dogs could talk, they might surprise us with their home improvement requests, like a space that reduces their carbon footprint and ultimately helps save the planet. Or…they might ask for more treats or a comfier bed. (That probably sounds more realistic, yes?) Either way, pet owners can now make a positive environmental impact while also making their dog comfortable and happy.

For a comprehensive reminder of just how wonderfully left field Snarkitecture has gone with its designs since its inception a decade ago, you’ll definitely want to check out the New York-based studio’s Fun House exhibit at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.

More and more, it’s becoming increasingly normal to hear stories of people learning to acclimate themselves to living in seriously small apartments. Cities are practically bursting at the seams so for many metropolitan dwellers, creatively maximizing a small living space has quickly become a modern-day survival tactic.

When the thought of a wooden retreat comes to mind, it immediately accompanies images of solitude and a discrete place that blends in with its surroundings. However, this modern tiny house in upstate New York meets at least half of those criteria due to its bold structure that allows it to stand out against a natural backdrop.

For every 3D-printed project that pops up, there appears to be endless groundbreaking feats that are infinitely more ambitious than the last. Case in point: Plans for the world’s first 3D-printed concrete housing project are officially underway in the Dutch city of Eindhoven.

The multifunctional built-ins are just the beginning.

The latest tiny dwelling from New Frontier Tiny Homes just might inspire you to downsize – and write a few best-selling books in the process. Named the Cornelia after internationally renowned children’s author Cornelia Funke, the tiny house serves a three-in-one purpose as a writing studio, guest house and library. In addition to being comfortable and cozy, the Cornelia also features luxe design elements and amenities, a staple of New Frontier’s tiny homes.

One of the world’s most famous houses – and arguably the world’s most famous modern home – has just gotten a major makeover. Los Angeles’ iconic Stahl House (also known as Case Study House No. 22) with its cantilevered structure, and its sweeping, unobstructed views of Los Angeles was an architectural and engineering feat when it was originally built in 1960 by architect Pierre Koenig.

As small space living gets more and more popular, the tiny houses and micro homes have become sleeker, smarter and well, taller. This skinny micro home was designed by Dutch firm Ana Rocha Architecture and was given the extra appropriate name, The Slim Fit. It looks sort of like a sexy Lincoln Log and offers 538 square feet of living space, spread out across three floors. The exterior is covered Ayous hardwood, which was laid out vertically emphasizing the length of the building.

Generally speaking, when building in a small space, something always has to give — and in an populated area, most often the “give” is in sacrificing outdoor spaces, especially gardens. But one Beijing- and Austria-based design duo has found a genius solution in the plans for this “Yin & Yang House” currently being built in central Germany.

Designers continue to push the creative parameters of tiny houses. The most recent examples of their ingenuity come courtesy of the winners of Ryterna Modul’s Architectural Challenge 2018. The competition invited the participants to create a tiny house no bigger than 269 square feet, complete with a kitchen, sleeping and living areas and a bathroom. The other rule is that designs must have zero impact on the environment.

Taking energy efficiency to the next level appears to be the goal of this “energy positive” hotel that’s set to be constructed within the Arctic Circle. Design firm Snøhetta teamed up with a few other Norwegian companies to create a vision for the hotel that’s energetic output will surpass the resources it consumes over the span of its 60-year lifetime.

Amsterdam has a distinctive architecture style, but we can guarantee that this giant crane-turned-residence sticks out among the city’s livable structures – in a good way. Typically, old construction equipment and luxury don’t go hand in hand, but that’s the best way to describe this unique spot.

In my dreams, I retreat to a cabin somewhere remote, perhaps the Welsh countryside. My cabin is austere yet beautiful, spare yet luxurious in its sparse beauty. In it, I think spare yet beautiful thoughts, and commit them to paper (always paper), like some modern-day Thoreau, but with more elevated taste. Slate-clad, my cabin stands out against the wilderness, like the simplicity of my new life against the chaos of the world. This is that cabin.

Thinking of a lame excuse for skipping out on church will soon become a little more challenging, at least for worshippers in London. When a floating church hits the city’s canals, there’ll be no reason to blame a traffic jam for a missed Sunday sermon because the structure will literally move about the water from location to location, making the services easily accessible to more citizens.

Here’s a real estate reprieve for homeowners who’ve been to hell and back with foundation problems: an unfolding modular house. Italian architect Renato Vidal partnered with Area Legno to manufacture “M.A.DI,” a tiny home that makes putting down your roots infinitely easier. For starters, the small, eco-friendly modular homes can be temporarily erected without a foundation, but a screw pile anchoring system can be utilized if needed.

As someone who used to work as an architect and now writes about small spaces, I love seeing how a clever design can completely transform a tiny space. At first glance, this little Italian apartment did not seem very promising. Its 317 square feet (29.5 square meters) were awkwardly chopped up into a tiny bedroom, barely large enough for a bed, an oddly placed bathroom, and a combination living room/dining room/kitchen that was strangely shaped and a bit cavernous.

Looking away from the eye-catching checkerboard exterior of the latest design from Vo Trong Nghia Architects is virtually impossible. The Vietnamese firm didn’t construct FPT University’s newest administrative building simply to mesmerize the viewer. In addition to commanding attention and admiration, the structure features artistic placement of greenery to play up its exterior and is also a certified passive design to contribute to the campus’s ongoing sustainability efforts.

Around this time of year, people are practically itching to hightail it out of town and hole up in a cozy holiday vacation rental, so it’s only natural that the serene sight of this tiny pine cone-shaped treehouse in the Italian Alps has us ready to say arrivederci to home and board a flight ASAP. Called “Pigna” (“pinecone” in Italian), the treehouse of our childhood dreams is a three-story structure suspended 30 feet above ground.

On a corner in Williamsburg, you’ll spot a unique house: A townhome built from the ground up using 21 shipping containers that were sliced to give the dwelling its unique shape. The project has been in the works for three years, but now we get our first look inside the quirky space. Dezeen shared images of the place last week and chatted with the design studio, LOT-EK, about the opportunities and challenges of the project.