Tuesday, 8 February 2011

Extreme Homes

Lately, while I've been in the messy and some-what chaotic process of converting my son's old room into a home office, my house has been feeling a bit out-of-sorts. My mind has been preoccupied with lots of decisions. Spinning around inside my brain are the pros/cons of paneled vs painted walls, decisions about rug choices, lighting choices and chair choices. So, while I take a deep breath and remind myself it doesn't all have to be done by tomorrow, I thought I'd share a few "interesting" homes that assure me my home isn't that topsy-turvy after all. Take for example... this house!

As hard as it is to believe, this home in Syzmbark, Poland, was actually built this way on purpose! A man by the name of Daniel Czapiewski, a Polish philanthropist and designer, built this "upside down house" as a social commentary on Poland’s former Communist era. If you're having one of those days when you aren't sure which way is up, don't look at this house....just know, you aren't alone!




As I'm mulling over the incomplete state of my home office, I am happy to report that my slow progress (or seemingly slow to me) is not due to a stint in jail like the owner of this home in Archangelsk, Russia, known as the "Gangster House." Apparently, Nikolai Sutyagin was building his dream home when he was hauled off to jail, so it remains unfinished. Even though it was never finished, at 13 stories tall, it is still thought to be the world's tallest wooden house.




While I continue pondering my decor options for a home office, I'm relieved my home isn't quite the "eyesore" this home appears to be. ;) This extreme home is actually a wooden sphere and you must access it by a spiral stairway or a suspension bridge because it is designed to hang from a tree! Doesn't it look like a giant eyeball?




While I sometimes feel like I'm just "hanging out there" as I continue deliberating all the choices for my home office, I am reminded by this home in the Ukraine, it could be a lot worse. Shockingly, this structure is completely supported by a single cantilever! It has been thought that it may have been an old bunker for the "overload of mineral fertilizers." I have no idea what that means, but you have to admit, it's pretty wild looking! Why or for what purpose do you think it was built?




The next time you begin to feel making decorating decisions is sort of like sorting out a Rubik's cube, just be glad you aren't living inside one. ;) This "Cube House" is located in Rotterdam, Netherlands and it's actually called a Kijk-Kubus home. Designed by, architect Piet Blom, these homes are constructed with three floors: a living room, kitchen, study and bathroom on the first floor, bedrooms on the second floor and an attic or viewing deck on the top.




If the stress of making all these decorating decisions gets the best of me, you'll find me here... living in a tree house in Irian Jana, Indonesia. These amazing homes, perched in the tops of trees, were built by the Korowai and Kombai clans. I guess they don't have a fear of heights, huh? Can you imagine being in one of these homes during a big storm? This certainly makes my decorating decisions look a lot less daunting! ;) Would you ever go up inside one of these? Not sure this girl would!


(All pictures in this post are from www.elledecor.com)

Click HERE to see an extreme home that's in a small town near my neck of the woods.

Have you ever toured the Winchester Mystery House?



When I was visiting a friend in California a few years back, I had a chance to tour this house and it was an amazing experience. You can read more about it in THIS post.

See you tomorrow evening for Tablescape Thursday!

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