Origami Architecture – Home Design Ideas

Deciding to design your own home and build it from the ground up instead of buying a pre-made house comes with many benefits. From being able to create the layout and decide how many rooms and bathrooms you will have to all other sorts of amenities, it’s easy to see why people choose this approach. However, when designing a home, there are many aspects to take into consideration including the style of the exterior and interior.

One style that has been catching people’s eye more and more is definitely origami architecture. This unique style is inspired by the art of folding paper and as such, is characterized by odd angles and a specific layout. If you’re thinking about using origami-inspired design for your new home, read on to learn more about certain features of this style which can be seen everywhere from Japan to Australia and the UK.

Choose a captivating roof

A significant characteristic of origami-style buildings is that they usually have an eye-catching roof that always draws attention to itself. While they are not exactly residential property, buildings like the Festival Hall of the Tiroler Festspiele in Austria and the Karuizawa Museum Complex in Nagano, Japan really show you what can be done when you opt for the origami approach. However, that level of architecture is not something that everyone can afford and find a way to incorporate into their new home.

On the other hand, even though you might not be able to build something this grandiose, it can still serve as inspiration for your project. For example, you can talk to your architects and see to which degree something similar is possible. You can always have an oddly-shaped roof, it’s just important to find a way for the house’s structure to support it. It can completely touch the ground on one side if you’d like, as that is quite unique while it can also have several angular levels to resemble folded origami.

Decide on the look of the exterior

The exterior of buildings can be quite memorable when we opt for the origami style. Just like with the roof, you can look for some interesting edifices that will spark your creativity. For instance, Bilbao’s Health Department building is a great example. This spectacular glass exterior does not only boost the energy efficiency of the structure but it also reduces solar heat gain and noise from the outside thanks to its practical design. Something similar can be seen in Ningbo, China. The building for the Centre for Sustainable Energy Technologies was made to resemble a Chinese lantern and has many unique features that allow its façade to change during the day. Plus, it minimizes the environmental impact by generating its own energy and using rainwater and gray-water.

When it comes to designing your home, you should decide which features you would like to incorporate. For example, do you want a lot of windows that let in light? Do you want there to be several levels of height? Are some elements going to be protruding and serve as statement pieces? All of this should be discussed with the new home builders you hire so that you see what they can offer you. They will probably have some display homes to show so you can talk to them and come to an agreement about the features that will be personalized to fit your taste. Another thing you can do is choose the materials for the façade seeing as how you can combine stone with glass, metal or simply paint, which means that your choices really abound.

Plan out the layout

Finally, the last aspect you will need to properly think about and develop is the layout of your new home. Due to all sorts of angles in the roof and walls, it is easy to be stuck with various unusable corners so it is vital to properly plan which room will be where and what it will be used for. Seeing as how there will be plenty of folds and unique shapes, you need to ensure all parts of the home will be functional. With all these architectural features, it is recommended that the rest of the design is kept minimal in order to further highlight these elements.

Luckily, if you are not quite sure how to plan for this, there are also some residential properties online that you can look at for some inspiration. One of them is definitely the Origami House in East London which uses its location perfectly and makes the most of each fold and irregular angle. While doing your research, you will also realize how important lighting is and that you should carefully plan where the windows will be installed.

In addition to having your home structurally resemble an origami piece, you can also choose to get some origami-like furniture seeing as how there are so many different items you could find, from tables and chairs to chaise lounges and sofas. Therefore, if you really like this approach and found some inspiration in the works of art we mentioned earlier, there is nothing stopping you from designing the home of your dreams.