THE MOST UNUSUAL HOMES IN THE WORLD

THE MOST UNUSUAL HOMES IN THE WORLD

TRANSPARENT HOUSE, JAPAN If you say you have nothing to hide, try spending a few nights in the see-through house located in Tokyo, Japan. Built by Sou Fujimoto Architects, this 914 square-foot transparent house was inspired by our ancient predecessors who inhabited trees. While so-called “House NA” offers plenty of daylight, expect no privacy here.

SKATEBOARD HOUSE, USA The ultimate dream for generations of skateboarders who wanted to bring their practice into their home has finally come true – the PAS house is the first house designed to be entirely used for skateboarding as well as being a traditional dwelling. The Skateboard House is the project of a private residence, to be built in Malibu, California. In this house you will be able to skate any areas and surfaces, Indoor and Outdoor. The client and visionary of the project is Pierre Andre Senizergues (PAS), a former World champion and Pro Skater and the founder of Etnies. The prototype of PAS House was recently presented at La Gaite Lyrique museum in Paris.

WORLD’S SLIMMEST HOUSE, POLAND The Keret House, inserted between two existing buildings, measures only from 92 to 152 centimeters in width!

OLD WATER TOWER TURNED INTO MODERN HOME, BELGIUM Picture yourself living in a house that was built nearly 100 years ago, and was once even used as a Nazi hide-out during the war. Now add to this the fact that the house is actually a 100 -feet high water tower that was in service till 1990, and you’ll get really close to grasping just how cool is. The Bham Design Studio started developing this tower renovation project in 2007, and eventually it ended up being a single family apartment, structured on five floors. The terrace on the top floor gives you a beautiful panorama, overlooking the Belgian village of Steenokkerzeel… and an outdoor shower! Admirably, most of the original concrete elements were preserved during the reconstruction, aiming to keep the strong character of the building. That even meant keeping the 250. 000 liters concrete water basin!

DICK CLARK’S FLINTSTONES INSPIRED HOME, USA The single-story structure with it’s rocky interior looks just like the home of Fred and Wilma from the classic 60′s cartoon. This real-world version of the Flintstones’ home has one bedroom and two bathrooms, a fireplace and several large glass windows offering views of city lights and sunsets as well as Serrano Valley, the Boney Mountains, the Channel Islands and the Pacific Ocean. Unfortunately, animal appliances are not included in the deal. The whole property sits on more than 22 acres and is waiting for a new owner.

WORLD’S SMALLEST HOUSE TAKES ONLY 1 SQUARE METER Berlin-based architecter Van Bo Le-Mentzel and founder of Hartz IV Möbel, has created “One-Sqm-House” – probably the smallest house in the world. It’s a DIY wooden structure, which uses only one square meter of space and can be used as a dwelling place, mobile kiosk or even an extra room inside your apartment. Because of the flipping mechanism, it can be used both vertically or horizontally. It consists of a wooden frame, slide window and a lockable door. The house weighs only 40 kilos and has wheels, so can be moved around easily. After spending much of his life as a refugee and having to live in social housing, Le-Mentzel decided to build a place only for himself: ”It’s the only square meter in the world where I can decide what direction the window looks in, what direction the door opens in, what neighbors I have, ” he said.

SLIDE HOUSE, JAPAN Japanese Studio LEVEL Architects has designed an unusual three-story family house quipped with a slide that connects all three floors. This fun house is wrapped with staircases and a corridor on one side, and the slide on the other side, which together form a circular route around the central area of the house. The 1, 762 square-foot Nakameguro home is located in Meguro-ku, one of the municipalities of Tokyo, Japan.

STONE HOUSE, PORTUGAL Although it looks like a massive rock, this house in Portugal actually has a door, a chimney and a window, and has become a huge tourist attraction.

NAUTILUS: GIANT SEASHELL HOUSE If you’ve ever wondered how it feels to be living in a shell, you should visit the Nautilus House in Mexico City. This amazing shell-shaped house was designed by architect Javier Senosiain of Arquitectura Organica and built in 2006. As strange as it looks, it’s a real house built for a young family with two children who were tired living in a conventional home and wanted to change to one integrated to nature. Inspired by the work of Gaudí and Frank Lloyd Wright, the house is dominated by smooth surfaces, spiral stairs and natural plantings that makes it feel like you’re living inside a snail.

BUBBLE HOUSE –TOURETTES-SUR- OUP, FRANCE L The ‘bubble house’ of Tourrettes-sur-Loup, France, is only 35 years old and has yet to be finished, but that hasn’t stopped the French ministry of culture from listing it as a historic monument. Designed in the 70 s by Hungarian architect Antti Lovag for fashion designer Pierre Cardin, the bubble house is futuristic yet organic, with lots of built-in furniture and oval, convex windows. The design is meant to take optimal advantage of the volcanic Côte d’Azur landscape, and its windows certainly provide a beautiful view of the Mediterranean.