Stalking shipping containers
Mon, 25 Nov 2013
I've been stalking houses in Sydney and Melbourne lately. Perhaps I've been a bit of a snob. I've ignored my own backyard here in Brisbane. So when I finally started stalking the local streets again on the weekend I found this amazing shipping container house in the riverside suburb of Graceville. We've featured shipping container conversions on Desire to Inspire before (like this guest house and a commercial space in Brazil) but this takes the use of containers to another level. Three levels in fact. Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, extensive open plan living area and a level of finish that belies the industrial origin of the building blocks. The link to the real estate listing is here and you'll find an interview with the builder/designer Todd Miller from Ziegler Build here.
Reader Comments (5)
Wow, what a stunning home. Love the graffiti and the hallway with the container doors. Just shows what a talented architect can achieve.
I have to admit, I'm conflicted. Yes, beautifully done, the eye for detail is stunning, it's just the right amount of opulence to polished bare bones. The layout is practical, quirky and human-friendly, the exterior charming in its impact. Plus chair porn, which, mmm! The amusement factor is strong all the way through, with industrial lighting showing up in the same vista as crystal chandeliers, pops of anarchic color mixing in with formal arrangements. Gotta take the rough with the smooth, and all that.
At the same time... I know what's on the horizon in Australia. So the well-off trying on indigent trousers sets off my social bell -- I hear a tiny after-ring of mockery. Showing us the best of what can be done with plebian materials is an excellent idea. Then again, it would be nice if those materials were available to plebes.
It was the shower tile that went a step too far down that grand staircase for me. It's always something, isn't it?
Oregonbird's comments are well taken, there is always the fear of the good intention being used as "in vogue" and not reaching those who need the housing the most. But these would make excellent single family and student housing. There were intentions in Trinidad and Tobago to do just that and there were some minor successes with the plan. It was done successfully in German universities and now here by the Air forces. I like the idea and would do it if I had the land and needed housing.
Coolest and most original house I've ever witnessed in queensland...this is my fantasy of what queensland should be like and reflects the quirky character that "old queenslanders" have yet all the new macmansions and housing estates have none of.
I kind of get you oregonbird but at the same time I don't think it's about budget building as it is about recycling and upcycling materials through innovative engineering and just good old personality stamping of the owners.
I can only really fault the hung mirrors and kitchen being a bit hohum and to me show the build was actually completed to some form of attainable budget, just seems like a missed opportunity to really match the rest of the houses finishes and details.
so cool! they're building a shipping container-inspired condo building near our house and i can't wait to see what it looks like when they're finished!