Yearning to lie low and go off the radar for a while? Well, these cleverly concealed homes are the ultimate secret escapes. Hiding in plain sight, these dazzling dwellings effortlessly blend in with their surroundings. From magical mirrored homes to subterranean retreats below the ground, click or scroll on to discover the coolest camouflaged cribs in North America. Blink and you might just miss them!
If you look closely, you might just spot a single-storey home hidden deep within the woodlands. Nestled on a picture-perfect plot overlooking Montana's Flathead Lake, Stone Creek Camp is a remote luxury retreat like no other. Carefully crafted to complement the environment it sits within, the property was constructed in 2007 and seamlessly blends into the trees.
The 17-acre estate is home to seven separate structures, totalling 15,000 square feet of interior space and each was designed by architect Arthur Andersson and designer Mimi London for a discerning client. Known as the Lake House, this gorgeous hidden home has to be the finest the compound has to offer. With its low-lying frame, green roof and rough stone exterior, it appears to be part of the landscape itself.
In 2017, Andersson spoke to Architectural Digest and confirmed that the inspiration for the property was taken from Mother Nature. Inside, Douglas fir cordwood covers the walls and Andersson described the building material as "environmental art”. Originally designed to be the owners’ private master bedroom retreat, the décor was inspired by the 1930s and what London called "Montana-ness". Everywhere you look you'll spot cosy furnishings, natural materials and glass windows that frame the view.
The other structures include the one-bedroom Master House, the three-bedroom Tree House, The Lodge, Kitchen House, Gate House and an old, original cabin that has been renovated. What's more, the camp boasts more than 700 feet of frontage on the east shore of Flathead Lake, making wild swimming, boat trips and waterside walks incredibly easy. For sale right now with Engel & Völkers for a cool $17.5 million (£14.8m), this majestic lakeside home is worth every single penny.
Perfectly integrated into its Rocky Mountains setting, this inspiring property buried in a niche in the ground is almost invisible to the naked eye. But despite its sunken position, this ultra-modern home is light-filled, spacious and undeniably inviting.
The contemporary underground home was designed by the architects at GLUCK+ and was completed in 2013. Spanning 2,850 square feet and flanked by mountain peaks, the house blends effortlessly into its woodland surroundings. Two intersecting bars bookend the property, forming a courtyard in the centre, while a roof meadow allows the house to melt into the hillside.
The house is also entirely eco-friendly: a metal-clad wall in the courtyard captures rays from the sun, while solar panels heat the house and its outdoor pool. The property also has an integrated building information system, which records the home’s energy performance. This real-time information enables the home to respond to its changing environment and reduces the home's reliance on fossil fuels by over 60%.
Of course, thanks to the residence's location and its extensive glass walls, every single room benefits from jaw-dropping views. Sleek and open-plan, each living space effortlessly flows into the next, while sliding doors provide a seamless connection to the garden and courtyard. In 2013, House in the Mountains won an AIA National Housing Award and was named 'House of the Month' by Architectural Record.
The architects at KieranTimberlake were tasked with designing a home on a rocky outcrop in New York State – one that would enhance the homeowners' connection to the natural world. Known as Pound Ridge House, the mirror-clad property effortlessly blends in with its location, reflecting the rural landscape that surrounds it.
The modern metal home was completed in 2014 and was constructed with hard-wearing zinc-coated copper, brushed and polished stainless steel, as well as sheets of glass that perfectly frame those woodland views. The polished steel is really the star of the show, mirroring the scenery and allowing the property to disappear among the rocks and trees in Pound Ridge, New York.
The home boasts a luxurious interior spread across two buildings. The first is a single-level structure with a living room, dining room, kitchen and bathroom, while the second is a two-storey retreat with an upper level that serves as the master bedroom. The two mirrored properties are linked together by a sleek glass bridge.
Inside, the 5,250-square-foot home is adorned with crisp white walls and subtle natural materials, allowing the scenery outside to take centre stage. Huge swathes of glass are interspersed with art, while timber ceilings and raw stone accents draw the warmth of the forest inside. Beautiful!
Camouflaged among the rocky terrain of Joshua Tree National Park in California, High Desert House is made up of a cluster of concrete slabs that were designed to cover the interior like the leaves of a tree. Likened to an alien spaceship or a giant armadillo, the property is quite unlike any you might have seen before...
The weird and wonderful dwelling was designed by San Diego-based architect Kendrick Bangs Kellogg and was completed in 1993. Kellogg designed the house back in 1988, but it took over a decade to finish. The ambitious feat of engineering required expert craftsmanship and is formed from 26 freestanding concrete columns. These pillars are embedded seven feet into the bedrock and resemble fish bones.
Inside, the house is just as unusual. There's a parasol installed in the centre of the dining room, which was made from 800 pieces of sandblasted glass. At one with nature, the home perfectly slots into its surroundings boulders. "The idea was that the house would be settled in the landscape," Kellogg said of the house. "Like it was crouching on the rocks, maybe like an animal asleep."
The home sits on 10 acres of land and light enters through narrow sandblasted glass panels that are slotted into the ceiling. These windows cleverly spread light throughout the interior during the day and frame the stars at night. The textures used in the design mimic the touch and feel of the desert, thanks to the carefully selected materials Kellogg used. Even now, the home remains one of the world's most incredible pieces of organic architecture.
Can you spot the house tucked away on a hillside in British Columbia? Neither could we at first, but there it is, a modern paradise engulfed by nature, almost completely concealed by the trees that surround it. Positioned 44 feet above the Pacific Ocean on the remote Quadra Island, Canada, Tula House is a luxurious remote retreat.
The beautiful lakeside property features a living green roof that further enhances the notion of seclusion from the outside world. From above, the mossy cover looks like a continuation of the earth's natural plane, camouflaging the house and fusing it with the rural landscape.
Though it appears private from the outside, the interior of Tula House is completely exposed, thanks to its dramatic floor-to-ceiling walls of glass that perfectly frame the view. Consequently, the living areas are spacious and airy, with vistas of the open waters, mountain ranges and forests taking centre stage.
In keeping with the residence's transparency and clean lines, the main lounge and kitchen are open-plan and free-flowing spaces. Above, a steel-framed roof dominates the property, while narrow skylights allow light to filter inside. Botanical touches like the green living walls further connect the interior to the natural landscape outside.
If you look closely enough, you may just be able to spot the Invisible House. Located in the heart of Joshua Tree National Park in California, USA, this mirrored property is quite unlike anything you might have seen before. Designed to resemble a New York skyscraper lying on its side, the unique reflective home magically dissolves into its desert setting.
The building was designed by architect Tomas Osinski and Hollywood producer Chris Hanley. It boasts a long and slender steel frame that's covered in mirror-like tempered glass. Known as 'Solarcool' glass, this special glass reduces the home’s carbon footprint to near zero, making it eco-friendly as well as beautiful. Elevated subtly off the ground using concrete stilts, the property appears to cantilever over the desert landscape on which it sits.
The building’s structural elements do all the talking inside, with concrete floors, an exposed metal ceiling and endless glass walls, which allow for unobstructed jaw-dropping views across the surrounding 90-acre estate. There are 5,500 square feet of inside space, formed from one continuous living room with a kitchen, lounge, dining area and a 100-foot-long swimming pool that further reflects the desert outside. With three bedrooms and four bathrooms, there’s more than enough space for eight people.
A solar hot water system heats the entire house, including the 47,000-gallon pool. Plus, from the comfort of the master bedroom, guests can enjoy mountain views and wildlife watching, including native lions, eagles and coyotes. The envy-inducing abode was once a luxurious holiday home and reportedly, Demi Lovato even vacationed there in June 2020. Today, it's for sale for a cool $18 million (£15.2m).
Upon first glance, this hilly patch of land appears rather uninteresting, but look closely and you might just be able to spot one of the world's most concealed homes. Built seven feet underground, Edgeland House was inspired by one of America’s oldest homebuilding traditions, the Native American Pit House. Though it’s not obvious from this angle, what lies beneath the dirt is far from what you might expect...
Designed by the architects at Bercy Chen Studio, the earth house was completed in 2012 and sits beneath the surface of the ground. The home's insulated roof and subterranean setting take advantage of the earth’s mass and use it to maintain a comfortable interior temperature throughout the year, which is particularly important in Austin, Texas, where summer temperatures can soar.
Angular and architecturally unique, the property sits inside a deep excavation on a redundant brownfield site. The purpose of the project was to heal the land after its industrial past. In its place sits a modern masterpiece with some seriously innovative design features, including a triangular pool and private terrace.
Though a large part of the property is concealed underground, its architects ensured that plenty of natural light can filter into its spacious interior. Angled to imitate the form of the hill, the floor-to-ceiling windows create a modern space while encouraging indoor-outdoor living to its fullest. The underground retreat features 1,400 square feet of living space with towering ceilings and an airy open-plan layout.
In a forest just outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota, you’ll find this glass and mirror woodland retreat by ALTUS Architecture + Design. The verdant surrounding scenery – woodlands, wetlands and a stunning lake – guided the design choices on this project to a stunning final effect.
The bunker-style property is made up of three connected wings and is fronted with an attractive courtyard, along with a storage shed clad with panels of polished and mirrored stainless steel. This mirrored shed was primarily built to reinforce the surrounding views and incorporate the natural landscape into the home's architecture.
The central area of the house offers a spacious open-plan living area, dining room and kitchen. Here the sleek, modern furnishings, pared-back décor and floor-to-ceiling windows allow the focus to remain on the outside landscape.
The fireplace was created out of bluestone and blackened steel, drawing on regional materials to add an element of cosiness to the minimalist lounge. Walnut finishes and wooden beams also reinforce the property’s connection to nature, as well as adding some textural interest.
Designed by Feldman Architecture, Mill Valley Cabins is one seriously eye-catching piece of real estate. The charming property was commissioned as a private retreat for its owners, who dreamt of owning a home that harmoniously blended into its landscape.
Located in the heart of a forest on the outskirts of San Francisco, California, the remote cabins sit on a steeply sloping site that offers breathtaking views of towering pines and redwoods. Formed from numerous structures that slot between the trees, the home's construction had a minimal impact on its surroundings, while still providing the homeowners with ample interior space.
The home's rooftop garden has been described by the architects as 'quilt-like', which perfectly sums it up! The yard provides space for growing flowers and plants, but also seamlessly blends in with the hillside.
Inside, the cabins are light-filled and spacious, with towering ceilings and simple whitewashed walls. Its minimalist interior boasts everything you could need for modern living, including a private artist's studio. Exceptionally large floor-to-ceiling windows allow residents to reflect on the beauty of nature while remaining warm and nestled inside.
One of New York’s oldest and most iconic cast-iron structures was recently renovated and transformed into a contemporary residential unit. However, it isn’t just a facelift that Obsidian House received, as its inhabitants were soon to discover, because the building was hiding its very own secret…
Tucked away out of sight is a series of ultra-modern rooftop apartments, known as The Stealth Building. The owners of the property were only given permission to construct these unbelievable penthouse properties if they were capable of keeping them completely invisible since Obsidian House is a historic listed building.
The team at WORKac took on the unique design project and created some seriously cool apartments, complete with compact kitchens and open-plan living areas. A small herb garden is located above each kitchen, allowing residents to experience a little bit of greenery from the comfort of their homes.
In addition, a roof terrace has been tucked away behind the historical building’s original pediment. The structure’s old elevator shaft has been transformed into a Jacuzzi and there's plenty of space for outdoor entertaining. Can you imagine kicking back and soaking up that spectacular view?
For this sleek structure, architect Tatiana Bilbao used mirrored glass, rammed earth and clay bricks to build a home that complements its natural surroundings in Monterrey, Mexico. Rather than forcing the landscape to accommodate the house, the property has been built around the rural terrain. For example, instead of removing wayward trees from the patio, tiling has been laid around their trunks.
Built as a holiday home, the concealed crib is set out over three buildings. The main structure is entirely covered with a mirror façade, housing a large open-plan living, dining and kitchen space. From the outside, the property appears to vanish into the surrounding forest.
The home's architectural interior pairs glass with tactile natural materials. One particularly interesting design choice in the open-plan living space is the floor-to-ceiling ceramic screen, featuring a chevron-style pattern that's repeated throughout the house. This unique space connects seamlessly to the terrace thanks to vast glass doors that swing open into the garden.
The bedroom unit was built from rammed earth and clay bricks laid in the build's signature chevron shape. A wow-factor sleeping space has been created from humble natural textures, including the shutters, which were crafted from simple plywood. Overall, the effect is snug and comforting, reflecting Tatiana’s belief that bedrooms should feel enclosed, not exposed.
One of the most secluded properties on our list, you'll need to be eagle-eyed to find this hidden luxury home. Close to the sandy beaches of Montauk, New York, but far away enough to experience complete seclusion, this camouflaged retreat is perfectly positioned for a quiet, technology-free escape.
Inside, the property channels laid-back beach home vibes thanks to its coastal-inspired open-plan living, kitchen and dining area, which opens out onto a small terrace with its own outdoor bar. Whitewashed walls are harmoniously paired with solid wood flooring and furnishings, while vaulted ceilings and ample windows make for a light and inviting interior.
Each of the property’s three bedrooms is decked out with chic, minimalist décor and quirky pieces like this statement mobile. The house channels 1960s vibes, which perfectly complements its California surf aesthetic.
Part rock, part home, The Pierre (which means stone in French) was purposefully designed to slot into the rocky landscape of the San Juan Islands in the American state of Washington. Incorporating stone, greenery and foliage into the design, the architects at Olson Kundig created a contemporary structure that effortlessly morphs into the landscape.
Formed from steel, concrete and drywall, the modern metal property was curated by Tom Kundig. The owner’s affection for a stone outcropping on her property inspired the unusual design of the house. In order to nestle the property into the rock, portions of the stone were excavated by machine and by hand.
Yet the excavated rock didn't go to waste. It was reused and crushed up to create the home's sleek concrete floors. Excavation marks were left exposed across the stonework too, offering a unique reminder of the building process. Inside, the site's natural rock has been incorporated into the interior design too – in fact, the home's fireplaces are all carved out of stone.
The home's organic palette of materials seamlessly blends together to create a harmonious backdrop for the property’s luxurious furnishings. A large pivoting steel and glass door allows access to a terrace just beyond the open-plan kitchen. This beautiful, brutalist home is the perfect showcase for the beauty of raw rock.
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