The Mini-B
Seattle, WA – Joseph Giampietro Built area: 29 m2 (300 sq. ft.) Photography: Mini-B Passive House It may be small, but the Mini-B(ungalow) is a fully certified ‘passivhaus’. In common with all its brethren, it uses only around 10% of the energy of a comparatively sized, conventionally built home. The home was built to demonstrate […]
The Pit House
Okayama, Japan – UID Architects Photography by: Koji Fujii/Nacása & Partners Inc. Built: 2011 Site area: 95.41sqm Total floor area: 138.23sqm There can be no doubting that UID ignore just about every conventional constraint of residential design. This home is designed for a family of three and, as is common in Japanese culture most space is shared. […]
Bamboo Passive in France
Val d’Oise, France – Karawitz Architecture Built area: 177 m2 (1,905 sq. ft.) Year built: 2009 Heating needs: 11kWh/m²a Photography: Hervé Abbadie and Karawitz Orientation can make or break any home! In the southern hemisphere, sound design principles dictate that a home should open to the north and be protected from the south. In the […]
Palmwood House
London U.K. – Undercurrent Architects Area: Wandsworth Year Built: 2007 – 2008 Photography: David Butler Older cities are littered with remnant spaces, abandoned workshops and other derelict sites. These sites are often outside of current site regulations and development guidelines. They often become dumping grounds for rubbish and sometimes, the homeless. Undercurrent Architects has been […]
Outside In House – Japan
Yamanashi, Japan – Takeshi Hosaka Architects Photography: Koji Fujii Nacasa & Partners Inc Built: 2011 Area: 102m2 (1,100 sq. ft.) Maybe it’s bias and maybe it’s fact, but we consistently find amazing innovation in the work of Japanese architects. Is it a function of the small and often, irregularly shaped lots? Perhaps Japanese […]
Daylight House – looking to the sky
Yokohama Kanagawa JAPAN – Takeshi Hosaka Architects Year: 2012 Built area: 85 m2 (920 sq ft) We think this home is an elegant solution to a common problem in many crowded cities – a bad outlook… in fact, an outright ugly outlook! The lot is surrounded by high density housing so any conventional windows would […]
Amida House – Interesting on many levels
Gotenba, Shizuoka Japan – Kochi Architect’s Studio Built area: 115.5 m2 (1,247 sq. ft.) Year Built: 2011 Photography: Daici Ano This is one of the more ‘out there’ designs we have come across. There are nine distinct levels in this small home. While our initial reaction was muted, our enthusiasm grew as we read […]
A House Divided
Taipei, Taiwan – Ganna Studio The challenge… a small home owned by two designers both wanting to work from home! The need to be able to separate the working areas from the ‘home’ areas, while retaining a sense of space, was considered paramount. The architects achieved the separation by using a series of embossed, swiveling […]
A simple two container home
Shipping containers can offer very affordable accommodation and are great for remote locations. Even though they are technically a box, they can be converted in an infinite number of ways. The owner’s plan is to build a cabin or shelter made from shipping containers. One which they can use during the weekend, but that should […]
Casa Kike – 16,000 books and a grand piano
Beachfront Cahuita Costa Rica – Gianni Botsford Architects Year Built: 2007 Surely, one of the toughest gigs an architect must face would be designing a home for his father. But in this instance, Keith Botsford, a writer, gave free rein when he decided to retire from Boston, USA to Costa Rica. The over-riding requirement […]