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shipping containers: the new design muse.

06 September 2012

i've always been fascinated by the container ships that slowly lumber in and out of the golden gate in the SF bay. ever curious about the contents tucked inside the colorful boxes (up close those boxes are huge!), i've enjoyed more than a few coffees watching them slowly roll past the horizon with their countless and mysterious treasures aboard. oh, if those containers could only speak! traveling around the world and back across rugged seas, mighty storms, wicked pirates, and worst- through customs!!

when i first began to notice them popping up in repurposed projects, our neighbor had just launched a business leasing them as temporary living spaces to the military and government. that was at least 10 years ago and not very glamorous at the time. but with the growing popularity of portable shelters as well as pre-fab's and pop-up's, recycled shipping containers have also begun to take on a whole new life as...design muse.

here are a few shipping container inspirations, both literal and "imagined" -

 

 

 

furniture made from shipping containers

 

john whitmarsh shipping container tiles for clé

 

shipping container guest house

 

color book by tauba auerbach on designboom

 

mini shipping container home

 

illy cafe push button house

PLUS!

ILLY CAFE'S PUSH BUTTON HOUSE