Spherical minimalist living
Minimalism has reached all-new heights with the Free Spirit Spheres. Instead of finding a small corner of the world to call your own, you can swing from the trees in a ball of wood.
A description of Eryn, one of two sphere options from Free Spirit Spheres:
Made of Sitka spruce, Eryn is 10 ½’ (3.2m) in diameter giving her 1.8 times the volume of Eve [the other sphere model]. A well-appointed interior with galley, table/sitting area, double bed and loft bed, Eryn can sleep three. The loft bed has a weight restriction of 165 pounds. The galley includes a sink, small refrigerator, microwave and dishes.
Eryn has five windows. Two large windows; one next to the bed, the other beside the table, and two small windows; one in the door and one over the galley counter. A large skylight facilitates communing with the forest canopy and the stars. Every window is dished to the same radius as the sphere shell.
Eryn is insulated, plumbed and wired for 20 amps, 120/240 volt AC. She is easily heated with a small electric heater.
A view of the “kitchen” in the Eryn sphere (people included for scale):
A view of the “living room” and front door in the Eryn sphere:
There don’t appear to be any laundry or bathroom facilities in the spheres, so you would need to find additional methods to tackle these vital tasks. Otherwise, I think they look pretty cool. I don’t think I could live in one full time, but they might be perfect for a vacation. What do you think? Could you take up residence in a minimalist sphere?
(Thanks to reader Jessica for bringing the MSN article to our attention.)
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Posted by Erin on Mar 9, 2009 |
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37 comments posted
Posted by Taryn - 03/09/2009
Wow- that sphere looks bigger inside than I imagined from the outside. I would have LOVED it as a kid. It might be a bit cramped for me these days though.
Posted by Jasi - 03/09/2009
I’m a “comfort” minimalist. I don’t need much, but I like modern amenities. While I’d LOVE to live here, I’d need a second sphere for bathroom/laundry/cleanup needs. I could certainly do a gravity shower, crank laundry bin and hand wash dishes. But it’d have to be nice. Yes.
Posted by PJ Doland - 03/09/2009
These look like something an Ewok would live inside of.
Posted by Sean - 03/09/2009
Amusing but pointless. A shining example of vainglorious design.
Posted by Jordan - 03/09/2009
“Amusing but pointless. A shining example of vainglorious design.”
yep; I appreciate minimalism because of its focus on necessity and simplicity; this is superfluous and complex and an utterly inefficient use of resources (except in rare cases I suppose)
Posted by girl from EU - 03/09/2009
OT
This made me smile and think of Unclutterer
http://failblog.org/2009/03/09.....vior-fail/
Posted by Ellis - 03/09/2009
@girl from EU that has had me giggling for a while… thankyou
Posted by Christian - 03/09/2009
Wouldn’t live there but it would be the perfect office.
Posted by Kalle - 03/09/2009
I’m not that into the interiors but the overall concept is pretty nifty. I could see spending a summer like that, living in the woods. That would be a nice retreat dwelling.
Posted by christa - 03/09/2009
reminds me of monolithic domes, except without the plumbing
http://www.monolithic.com/
Posted by dagmag - 03/09/2009
does it rock back and forth in wind storms? and if those cables fail do you go rolling down the hill at breakneck speed? yikes.
Posted by cdelphine - 03/09/2009
I don’t think of myself as being claustrophobic but that sphere would bring it out in me. I would rather just sleep in a tent or under the stars.
Posted by enigma - 03/09/2009
Am I the only one who read “people included for sale”?
Posted by Susan - 03/09/2009
My husband and I will have been married for 46 years next month and there is no way the two of us could tolerate living together in a space this small. Even if our arthritis would allow us to climb in and out of there. And if we had to climb up and down every time we needed to use the facilities – well, I don’t know if the sink would hold either one of us – so I guess we’d just have to moon everyone in the vicinity.
Posted by Frank - 03/09/2009
Perhaps not the appropriate place to comment but I would love a follow up on how the downsizing a house worked out in the a Year Ago on Unclutterer section
Posted by Jacki Hollywood Brown - 03/09/2009
I’m in with PJ on the Ewok thing.
Posted by Looby - 03/09/2009
@ Enigma- no.
Posted by Jacinta - 03/09/2009
We have a 30 yr old VW bus decked out for camping. This doesn’t look terribly different and at least ours can go interesting places to make a decent holiday of it.
Oh, and we do have a toilet in the car.
Posted by Coffee Nuht - 03/09/2009
Cinderella’s pumpkin had nothing on this!
Posted by Deoris - 03/09/2009
If you like the sphere, you might also enjoy “Tumbleweed Tiny Houses” http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com/houses.htm They’re so cute! 65 square feet and you just tow it behind your car.
Posted by K - 03/09/2009
Isn’t this what they call a tree house?
Posted by Another Deb - 03/09/2009
Paging Mister Frodo. Please call the Shire.
Posted by Shana - 03/09/2009
$150,000 treehouse.
Posted by Keter - 03/10/2009
I have a sailboat that sleeps four, has a table that seats four, a galley with running water, and a head. Don’t need this. But it’s really cool. They should cover it in solar cells…but then it would look like the Death Star. ;o)
Posted by Feng Shui Blog » Und wieder Holz » Von Hedwig Seipel - 03/10/2009
[...] Der Frühling steht eindeutig vor der Tür. Gestern Abend erreichte mich ein Gastautor-Beitrag wieder zum Thema Holz. Diesmal fragt sich Claudia, ob es hier wohl einen Holz-Metall-Konflikt gibt? Beurteilen Sie selbst: http://unclutterer.com/2009/03.....st-living/ [...]
Posted by anonymous - 03/10/2009
“There don’t appear to be any laundry or bathroom facilities in the spheres, so you would need to find additional methods to tackle these vital tasks.
Does a minimalist do laundry in the woods?
Posted by Peter (a different one) - 03/10/2009
It is an interesting concept, but not practical. For camping, I can live in a tent, but for living, sorry I need at the very least one full bathroom.
Posted by Suki - 03/10/2009
If this falls out of the tree, but there is no one there to hear, does it make a sound……………..?
Posted by Rebecca - 03/10/2009
Okay, that is one of the coolest things I have ever seen but there is no way I could ever live in one of those. I prefer my living quarters to be on the ground!
Posted by Sheryl - 03/10/2009
I’m with Another Deb…with all those round windows and the door, the first thing I thought of is,”It’s a hanging Hobbit house!”
Posted by Sheryl - 03/10/2009
Or a giant eyeball.
Posted by Loren - 03/11/2009
This would be fun for 5 minutes, then your neck would hurt.
Posted by Mario - 03/11/2009
Totally RIVEN-esque!
Posted by Michele - 03/12/2009
That almost gives me a panic attack just looking at it. Tossing junk is one thing, living in a hamster ball is another.
Posted by Cliff - 03/12/2009
I’d want to live there. I don’t necessarily need it to be spherical or to hang it in a tree, but that’s about exactly the type of home I want. (There’s not much clarity about where you hang your clothes, so I’m a little sketchy on the details.)
I essentially want to reduce to where I’m in a mobile van-camper type arrangement. Of course, I never really can BRING ABOUT this change, I just DREAM ABOUT it.
Posted by Karyn - 03/13/2009
Yes, it’s a Hobbit hole, post-Lothlorien.
I like the idea of a round home, but I think I’d rather try one of Buckminster Fuller’s Geodesic Domes, or something like that, firmly founded on solid Earth.
(I Googled “geodesic dome homes” and found this site: http://www.domehome.com/ which has a scrapbook of photos of said homes, if anyone’s curious.)
Posted by Featured Tiny Houses - Coming Unmoored | Coming Unmoored -- Life in a Tiny Floating Home - 03/13/2009
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