Providing a very compact living area of a mere 43 sq. m, and hence its name, the XXS House serves as a couple’s holiday home in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Designed by Dekleva Gregoric Arhitekti, this small urban retreat sits in a protected medieval historical village, featuring a predefined volume which cannot be changed. The primary challenge for the architects was how to integrate all residential functions into a XXS house. Continue reading →

Designer and artist Itamar Paloge carved his own home in to a mountain side in Jerusalem. His extensive studies and experience in a variety of creative endeavors, including jewelry, sculpture, and classical drawings are evident here. For it seems that only a skilled artist can happily live without unnecessary ornamentation. Here the lack of rigid geometry along with the texture and imperfections of nature and hand craftsmanship create unparalleled warmth. Continue reading →

This diminutive home of just under 80 sq.m. houses a multi-generational family in modern yet ages-old Japanese clarity. A small and simple rectangular box wrapped in charred wood, is deceptive in the feeling of spaciousness that is hidden within. The entrance facades angles slightly back, to avoid crowding the street. A singular opening nearly touches the corner. It’s a covered entrance pocket with storage as well. The white coating makes it pop against the ebony siding. Continue reading →

Making the most of a tiny, narrow building site in a densely populated city such as Tokyo is no easy feat. The flag pole house, a sculptural home, inside and out, is born from a spatially challenged site. Stretching out long and lean in both vertical and horizontal directions, the architects were able to maximize the compact interior space for complete and comfortable functionality. Continue reading →

Located about 25 km north of Central Tokyo, this compact house sits on a small L shaped lot in an area of typically dense housing. Faced with the common Japanese need to squeeze a comfortable home onto a tiny (108sqm) site, Naf architects came up with the simple, powerful idea of “snapping” a stereotypical gable roof box to correspond with the bend in the lot. It feels like a scaled down barn that has been surgically sliced with the finest Japanese steel and opened out to create two separate volumes. Continue reading →

This tiny lot in Toronto narrowly escaped becoming an alley way or a diminutive dark traditional infill home. Once again out of an extreme challenge rises a bright solution. In this case the Galley House, by Williamson Chong, at less than 12 feet wide is 62’ long and three levels of 2,400 sq.ft. With three bedrooms and double-height spaces, once inside the width becomes insignificant. Continue reading →

Cascading down a hillside in an olive grove in Sonoma, California, this 850 sq.ft. home is a study of volumes and the materials that form them. It was designed by Cooper Joseph Studio to be constructed and to reside in partnership with nature and the scientist owners’ agricultural projects which include olives and olive oil and bee keeping. Continue reading →

In Osaka, Japan, this family home for a couple and their two children rises to meet the lack of privacy and day light. The double height volume of the ground floor offers a typical arrangement of a shared kitchenette, dining, and enclosed storage. Though you may miss those when you enter the glass front door and are face to face with an igloo like structure! Or is it an olive green tent? Continue reading →

In any situation it is best to go with the flow or bend like a willow and not break like an oak. The design of this home bends and flows with its challenging sloping site. In fact it uses the site to create a dynamic modern house whose light filled spaces contradict its small size of 124 sq.m. Continue reading →

I’m a big fan of living lightly on our stunning planet and love my modern comforts as well. In Light House, by Camera Buildings, your home can be comfy in its tiny foot print. At an overall size of under 100 sq.ft., this small home is 8’-4” x 12’-0”. It’s built for you in a factory in British Columbia so on-site building headaches do not exist, except for the foundation that you’ll need. Continue reading →