New Atlas

Tiny Houses Audio available

Koda tiny house sheds some weight and floats on water

Adam Williams March 15, 2019

Regular readers may remember the Koda, an attractive concrete tiny house that hit the market in 2017. Designer Kodasema recently followed it up with the Koda Light Float, a model with similar styling that's made from timber instead of concrete, and is installed on a pontoon.

The Koda Light Float is installed on a pontoon base made by Top Marine

Architecture

Kengo Kuma and Associates suspends timber-clad home above the Swiss snow

Bridget Borgobello March 13, 2019

The “Suspended Forest” cabin hangs from a large overhead concrete structure, allowing the dwelling to hover above the snow-covered landscape. The structure is part of the Jan Michalski Foundation, a center for literature and writing.

Architecture

Zurich apartment building offers affordable rent and a whole lot of concrete

Adam Williams March 12, 2019

Most of the concrete architecture projects we cover are luxury homes for the wealthy. Not the Affordable Housing Langgrütstrasse though, as this concrete apartment building offers some of the cheapest apartments to rent in Zurich, Switzerland, according to Gus Wüstemann Architects.

Affordable Housing Langgrütstrasse's interior is mostly made up of concrete

Tiny Houses Audio available

Tiny house slides roof open in summer and keeps toes toasty in winter

Adam Williams March 12, 2019

Optinid, the French firm behind those novel sliding roof tiny houses, recently completed another model in the same vein. Opening up to the elements when the weather's nice like previous examples, the Axelle also features underfloor heating to keep the interior comfortable in colder weather.

When the sun goes down and the overnight chill nips at occupants of the Axelle, underfloor ...

Tiny Houses Audio available

Family-friendly tiny house provides privacy and rustic charm

Adam Williams March 5, 2019

One of the drawbacks for families who downsize to a tiny house is the lack of privacy and it's not ideal for the kid's room and parents' bed to be in sight of each other. The Infinitely Stoked tiny house addresses this with an enclosed loft bedroom that's reached by retractable ladder.

The Infinitely Stoked is finished in stained cedar tongue and groove, with black metal accenting

Tiny Houses

Tiny house sleeps six and opens bedroom to the elements with sliding roof

Adam Williams March 4, 2019

France's Optinid offers something different with its line of tiny houses that open up the bedrooms with sliding roofs. The firm's Stéphanie model offers another take on its sliding roof design and increases the total sleeping capacity to six people.

The Stéphanie's standout feature is its sliding roof, which opens up the main bedroom to the ...

Tiny Houses Audio available

Ultra-simple tiny house built for under $1,500

Adam Williams February 28, 2019

Adventurer, environmental activist and "Dude Making a Difference" Rob Greenfield is also involved in the tiny house movement but feels that the rise in luxury models is missing the point. To prove that small living can be done on a modest budget, he recently built a tiny house for under US$1,500.

As you'd probably guess, the $1,500 cost doesn't include the purchase of any land and Greenfield ...

Marine Audio available

Arkup's incredible floating home is finally complete... and it'll cost you $5.5 million

Adam Williams February 27, 2019

Arkup's incredible concept for a floating house on stilts has been built and it's for sale for a cool US$5.5 million. Packing solar power, stabilizing hydraulic stilts, and its own engines, the first model was recently unveiled during the Miami Yacht Show.

The Arkup #1 is rated to withstand Hurricane winds of up to 155 mph (250 km/h)

Tiny Houses

Allswell Tiny Home bedroom opens up to the breeze

Adam Williams February 15, 2019

The Allswell Tiny Home was designed by Modern Tiny Living for Wallmart's Allswell mattress and bedding brand. It has a total floorspace of just 238 sq ft and boasts a relatively spacious and light-filled bedroom that opens up to the outside with garage-style lifting doors.

The Allswell Tiny Home's bedroom opens to the outside with a garage-style door and French doors

Architecture

Narrow inner-city house is draped in a veil of greenery

Adam Williams February 14, 2019

Vietnam's Vo Trong Nghia Architects' overriding goal is to add greenery to its homeland's cities and the firm highlights this again with its recently-completed Breathing House. The project involved covering a narrow home in an awkward crowded plot in Ho Chi Minh City with a "green veil" of plants.

The Breathing House has a rooftop terrace area that is covered in greenery