A House Within A House: Houseception
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There’s strange architecture - and then there’s the stuff that leaves you wondering how it ever got past the drawing board! Surrealist architecture may be old hat but there’s still plenty to feast your eyes upon when it comes to strange and bizarre residential blocks. Sometimes one house just isn’t enough..
Welcome to the Inntel Hotel in Zaandam, the Netherlands
There’s so much going on with this building that it’s hard to know where to begin. The 12-storey hotel structure looks like it’s a random pile-up of dozens of traditional Dutch cottages and townhouses, all tumbled together in a splash of colour and a hint of higgeldly-piggeldy charm. Architecture firm WAM based the design on the concept that the hotel should be extraordinary whilst also conforming to the traditional Zaanstad styles of the cityscape. And it’s not just all a facade - the building’s interior core is constructed from concrete, with specific suites out of timber and clapboard, a division which insures that even on the inside, the guests feel like they are a separate house within the whole.
Then there’s the Cubic Houses
What is it about the Dutch and inventive architecture? Constructed by architect Piet Blom in the 1970s, this gorgeous and quirky complex arose out of the need to build houses atop a pedestrian bridge. It does reflect a very European attitude towards space - the philosophy behind it is that each house represents just one treetrunk in a forest and promotes a very high density living style, with ample ‘communal’ space outside. The houses have become such a source of local affection that some were even converted into a youth hostel in 2009. There are also some very cute ones in Helmond.
And have you heard about Lennar’s NextGen homes?
This LA-based company offers homes which accommodate multi-generational living styles. They feature special granny-flat-esque additional living areas and communal cooking and dining spaces - rather like a residential college in miniature. An important factor in their invention and immediate popularity was the way the economic recession caused widespread family disruption - you had students moving back in with their parents in adulthood, parents moving in with their grown-up children, and siblings and friends forced together into sharehouses and flats. Why shouldn’t communal living also be in style?
And yet, it’s not just for commercial properties or the ueber rich.
You’d be surprised at just how common it is for people to incorporate subset living spaces into their homes! Check out these amazing examples of residential homes-within-homes. From converted attic spaces and shipping containers to cubbyhouses and motif frames, here are some homes which somehow manage to manage simplicity and cuteness.
And for the less adventurous, then there’s always house-themed furniture!
Not ready for the extreme mind-fuzzle that is houseception? Don’t worry - Service Central has plenty of friendly tradespeople who are more than happy to handle something a little more tame, like restoring a withered fence or repairing a dodgy appliance. Just post your job to receive three free no-obligation quotes from qualified professionals in your area!
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