All over the world, people are tired of living in cookie cutter homes that are identical to the next. Creativity seems to be thriving these days when it comes to home design. People are pushing the boundaries with unique aesthetics, getting the biggest deal for their buck, or rolling up their sleeves to build their own dream house. People are also seeking to be as eco-friendly and environmentally responsible as possible. Here is a collection of 25 of the most ambitious and inspiring architectural dwellings I’ve ever seen.
1. House Balancing On A Rock
This beautiful home has been sitting on a rock in Serbia for over 45 years. Although this house is only accessible by boat or swimming, it is the perfect place to rest comfortably. It is a one room cabin on the lake balancing perfectly for over 45 years now. How remarkable.
2. Hobbit House
Photographer Simon Dale spent about $5,200 to turn a plot of land in the woods into a magical place right out of the shire from Lord of the Rings for him and his family. With the help of his father-in-law, this eco-friendly home was constructed in just 4 months.
3. Dream Dome Home
Steve Areen had a budget of $9,000 and a time frame of 6 weeks to build his dream home. The basic structure of this awesome home took two-thirds of the total budget, while the remaining $3,000 was spent on furnishings, little details, and decorating. This beautiful abode boasts a lounge space, a hammock, a personal pond, and just about everything in this home is made from all-natural materials.
4. Floating House
This mobile home was designed by architect Dymitr Malxew and it was designed to float. This serene home is built on top of a buoyant platform that allows for a 360 degree view of the beautiful surroundings.
5. Tiny House
This 196 square foot home was built by architect Macy Miller. The compact residence took two years of hard work and ingenuity. This was a DIY project fueled by a hefty mortgage payment. Miller made sure to keep the budget as low as possible to make a point that you can have a beautiful home without a mortgage payment.
6. House Of Salvaged Windows
This eclectic home only cost about $500 to build. Photographer Nick Olson and designer Lilah Horwitz spent several months collecting and salvaging discarded windows and strategically placing them together to create an amazing view in a home away from home in West Virginia.
7. Shipping Container Home
The James & Mau Arquitectura design studio drew plans for this beautiful home from four 40-foot shipping containers. It was built in Ávilia, Spain by a company called Infiniski. It boasts 2,045 square feet and took about 6 months to build with a final cost of $192,682.
8. Boeing 727 House
This Boeing 727 was originally used to transport people from South Africa to Columbia. It was salvaged and repurposed into a 2-bedroom suite. The plane was salvaged and turned into a very unique home. The fuselage is a long hall like interior with the small windows still in place providing views to the ocean and beautiful gardens. The airplane was bought for $2,000 in San Jose, moved for $4,000, and completely renovated for $24,000.
9. School Bus Home
Hank Butitta was an architecture student who decided to use his skills on an old school bus he bought off of Craigslist. This turned out to be his final project for school and the materials he used were genius. He ended up using salvaged gym floors and stretched plywood to line the interior of the bus. This gives an organic feel to the whole vehicle which took 15 long weeks to build.
10. Water Tower Home
This amazing location was an old water tower in central London. Leigh Osborne and Graham Voce spent 8 months renovating the old water tower into a beautiful modern home. The old water tower was turned into a multi-level apartment including a giant water tank on top providing 360 degree views of the city.
11. Grain Silo Homes
Many people across the world, as well as in the U.S., are starting to convert empty silos into their homes. Though these typically house grains and feed, they also offer a desirable cost-effective housing solution. They provide an average of 1,500-2,000 square feet of living space. Don & Carolyn Riedlinger of Gilbert, Arizona have combined 3 silos to make up their own silo mansion.
12. Sustainable Micro Home
Micro homes are a new cost-effective alternative for those wanting an affordable home. This micro home was designed by Ian Lorne Kent and is said to cost only $30,000. The home is only 10′ by 10′ however, and boasts large windows giving the illusion of a lot of space. These can be built easily by one handyman and a helper in under a week.
13. Dumpster Home
Designer Gegory Kloehn turned an actual dumpster into his Brooklyn home. It resembles a studio apartment and includes everything he needs. There’s a kitchen in the corner with a microwave and a mini-stove. There’s a small sleeping area with some storage underneath. There is even a tiny toilet and an outdoor shower with water supplied from a 6 gallon rainwater tank on the roof. As Gregory says, “If you don’t like your neighbors, you can push it a block over.”
14. Train Caboose House
The Great Northern Railway X215’s caboose has been transformed into a quaint mountain home in Essex, Montana. The historic rail car was renovated into a home including everything from a kitchen and bathroom, a master bedroom and a gas fireplace to stay warm on the cold winter nights.
15. Mobile Log Cabin
Hans Liberg built himself a mobile “log cabin” in Hilversum, Netherlands. This awesome home is almost hidden amongst the trees when the windows are closed appearing to be a big pile of logs. When you walk inside though, you’ll see a minimalist design with all the amenities that are needed. It is 100% man-made and offers the rustic aesthetics of nature.
16. Residence In The Trees
Architect Keisuke Kawaguchi of K2 Design near Yonago City, Japan built this beautiful home intertwined with the trees of the forest. The property is known as the Residence in Daisen and is a multi-room home that is connected with short passages covered with windows to give a feeling of being emerged directly into the beauty of nature.
17. Japanese Forest House
Brian Schulz created his own oasis in the woods of Cape Falcon, Oregon. He has dubbed his home the “Japanese Forest House.” This home was built using locally sourced materials and took a year to construct. The home was a mere $11,000 bringing Japanese design to an American forest.
18. Modern Hobbit Hole House
Dutch Architects collaborated to build a home embedded into a hillside in Vals, Switzerland. The entire living space is technically underground, but this awesome home includes a full patio outside. The elliptical shape of the opening, in which the patio sits, exaggerates the views and frames the breathtaking mountainside.
19. Tiny House Project
Instead of going into debt and spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a house, web designer Alek Lisefski decided to build himself a modest home for a $30,000 budget. He wound up constructing an 8’x12′ mobile home for him, his girlfriend (Anjali), and their dog (Anya). It was built atop a trailer in Iowa and moved across the country, settling in California. The cozy space is ideal for Alek who says, “Inhabiting such a small space will force me to live in a simpler, more organized and efficient way.”
20. Solar-Powered Group Living
It’s only 645 square feet, but this house was constructed with renewable materials to make it more energy-efficient. The entire exterior is made of solar cells.
21. Waterfall House
This house was built by architect Frank Lloyd back in 1935. He designed this house to be over a waterfall located in Bear Run, Pennsylvania.
22. Gypsy Wagon
The entire home was created through recycled materials. At only 160 square feet, even the furniture is used from re-used objects.
23. House Built Into A Cave
This home in Missouri is literally built into a sandstone cave. The cave was purchased on eBay and was then transformed into a home. It did take over 4 years to build.
24. Underground Desert Home
This home is not only underground, but it was built to be camouflaged into its surroundings. Built in Greece, it was designed to capture the natural beauty of the existing landscape.
25. 96 Square Foot Home
This home is a two story house that is less than 96 square feet. The reason the designer built it so small was to avoid having to get building permits. The entire home was built in only two weeks.
After seeing these houses, I suddenly want to move. A lot of these homes boast the fact that they were belt for relatively cheap, especially when compared to some homes in the surrounding areas that could be upwards of $500,000, especially the homes that come with a lot of land as well.