Ten houses with gloriously impractical features
Featuring transparent walls, unorthodox plans and giant staircases, we've rounded up 10 houses that may be trickier to live in than they are to look at.
Sabater House, Spain, by Fran Silvestre Arquitecto
The vast Sabater House zigzags its way across a gently sloping site in Alicante. According to Fran Silvestre Arquitectos, the elongated plan references winding pathways in the local area.
However, this might not come as much comfort if you wanted to use the swimming pool at one end and realised that your bathing suit was still in the walk-in closet at the other.
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S House, Japan, by Yuusuke Karasawa
Most of us value privacy and walls in our homes, but not the client of the completely see-through S House in Japan, designed by Yuusuke Karasawa.
The transparent walls expose a highly unusual layout, with a labyrinth of wall-less rooms connected by more than a dozen different staircases.
Cooper House, UK, by S2B Studio
The husband-and-wife founders of London practice S2B Studio designed themselves a house with a wooden slatted floor in the upper-storey living room.
While aesthetically pleasing, Dezeen commenters foresaw small objects and dust falling onto the dining table below or the coffee table losing its footing between slats.
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Stairway House, Japan, by Nendo
A huge faux staircase is the centrepiece of this house in Tokyo designed by Nendo, running from the back garden through a glazed facade and sweeping steeply right up to the roof.
Three generations of the same family live in the home, which also features a master bedroom with a transparent internal wall.
"I hope the occupants are teetotalers," said a commenter. "I'd be lucky to survive one night in such a place."
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House in Pernek, Slovakia, by Ksa Studený
Architecture studio Ksa Studený designed this concrete and glass house as a trapezoid to frame views of a forest near the village of Pernek in Slovakia.
However, the angled walls do not provide a practical space for hanging artwork – take a look at the paintings shown in the picture above.
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Apartment A, Belgium, by Atelier Dialect
This ultra-luxe apartment in Antwerp, updated by Belgian interiors studio Atelier Dialect, is full of statement design choices.
Particularly eye-catching is the mirrored, freestanding bathtub in the middle of the bedroom, which happens to sit on a less-than-practical heavy grey carpet.
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Building Frame of the House, Japan, by IGArchitects
This Tokyo house was devised by IGArchitects as "one big room", with floors arranged as a series of mezzanines connected by staircases and a ladder.
Full-height sliding doors meet the street at the top level, which concerned our commenters.
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The Chodge, New Zealand, by DCA Architects of Transformation
Translucent corrugated polycarbonate envelops this holiday home overlooking New Zealand's Lake Whakamaru, designed by DCA Architects of Transformation for the studio's director and his family.
It was created as "an exploration of the interstitial space between inside and outside", but commenters were curious about the decision to block out views of the breathtaking surrounding landscape, as well as the acoustic impact of heavy rain hitting the roof.
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Spanish studio Takk sought to minimise spending on materials with its renovation of this small Barcelona apartment.
But with rooms inside other rooms, knee-height kitchen units, a bathtub set in medium-density fibreboard, a toilet facing an internal window and a complete lack of surface finishings it is hardly practical.
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The Greenary, Italy, by Carlo Ratti Associati and Italo Rota
A 10-metre-tall ficus tree grows through the middle of the open-plan living space in this residence, created by Carlo Ratti Associati and Italo Rota for the CEO of tomato company Mutti.
However, some commenters questioned the practicality of the tree choice: "We've tons of ficus down here in south Florida," they said. "Caused a whitefly invasion. Now some communities are banning ficus. If you're going to bring a tree inside, sleep outside!"
Find out more about The Greenary ›
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