Newlyweds Christoph Kaiser and Shauna Thibault live in a 366 square feet grain silo, but the newlyweds aren’t fazed.
Kaiser and Thibault wanted to find a logical space to transform into a comfortable home and decided on the silo. They explain:
“There’s something about living in a small space that simplifies life. It quiets the mind, in a way.”
“I think there was a healthy level of skepticism from our friends and family when they found out we were going to attempt to live in a grain silo. But we love it. … It’s not just an experiment.”1
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Thibault is a stylist and boutique owner and is drawn to minimalist living. Kaiser, her husband, is an architect. He said that unique dwellings are the ultimate design challenge. Kaiser added:
“What can you live in and still have a sense of home. It’s easy to cram all the parts that you need to live in something. It’s easy to build it, even — relatively speaking. … The real challenge is to end up with a piece of architecture that actually feeds your soul, as opposed to draining it.”1
Kaiser originally purchased the rusted silo on Craigslist as a place to store his garden tools. With his wedding date fast on the horizon, he began drawing up plans with his architecture and design firm. Kaiser elaborated:
“Once we started, it was about an 18-month process with a few breaks in between where I would run out of money and have to make money, so I could invest some more. At a certain point, we were just like, ‘Oh my goodness, we’ve been anticipating living in this project for such a long time.’”1
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The silo is a unique project and has its fair share of challenges. Most furniture and appliances are designed on a 90-degree angle, so Kaiser had to find a way to fashion and furnish a home in a curved space. He decided to build everything himself – from the kitchen cabinets and shelves to the doors.
The space is opened up by a huge glass door on wheels. This also serves as an entry point into the backyard. Kaiser and Thibault added:
“To have the benefit of outdoor space, which is an extension of the living space, is huge. Whether you’re sitting inside and have this 10-foot-rolling door open and you just have a view you can experience … or you’re outside enjoying it directly, I think it was definitely something we considered as part of the floor plan.”
“You can sit and read and, ‘Oh, let’s pick a few weeds,’ and then bring some produce inside. Everything is very fluid.”1
During the first storm, while living in the house, indoor-outdoor living became a little too real. Kaiser recalls:
“We had water coming in through the front door, water coming in through the radius door. That was not a fun night for me, because it’s kind of my responsibility to make sure this thing actually works, and all of a sudden these things were failing.”1
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The couple also had to figure out how to make a functional open space for two with basically no rooms, besides a tiny bathroom. They decided to create a separate sleeping loft, where Thibault loves to get in bed and watch movies. She said:
“You feel like you’re at the IMAX. You can lie in bed, and it projects arced on the wall. Subwoofers are hidden underneath the bed, so everything kind of shakes. You can watch ‘Jaws’ in full format. It’s pretty great.”1
They both say the space has brought the newlyweds closer. Kaiser and Thibault added:
“I think there’s an intimacy that’s imposed on people when they’re in one space. You can’t find that separation. “… It makes you confront issues more, and it really brings you together.”
“I think we’ve learned a lot about our dynamics, and the way that we work and accomplish things. “[It’s] very coupling.”1
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Besides living in a small space, they have also had to adapt to living with less stuff. They had to get rid of many material possessions to move into their home, and they continue to purge. Kaiser joked that his wife definitely has more shoes. The couple says they wouldn’t trade their out-of-the-box living experience for anything in the world. Kaiser added:
“Home can be so many things… The ability for people to fashion that to their own liking is a beautiful freedom that we have.”1
I think this is a fantastic home and I would enjoy living here. What are your thoughts?
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