HGTV Design Star – Container Homes

Recently HGTV’s show Design Star had their designers take on decorating container homes.  The three contestants had their own container home that was a different color, but otherwise identical.  While they don’t have bathrooms or a kitchen (they were only 20 foot containers), it was interesting to see what you could do with the space.

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes 1

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (6)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (7)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (8)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (3)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (2)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (4)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (5)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (11)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (10)

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes

All Stars - HGTV show - Design Shipping Container Homes (9)

16 Comments
  1. They look awesome!!. so much style in such a small space.But…. wheres the bathroom and Kitchen.. guess you need another container for those.

  2. Beautiful! The tangerine one is all kinds of inspiring!

  3. Yes, very pretty. And all three very unrealistic, in my view. They seem to be designed without the requirement to be “livable”? There is no storage for clothes etc, and only one of them even has a bed included. Not to mention the lack of kitchen and bathroom. And they are overflowing with decoration items I never would have bothered to drag into my tiny house… Not that I’m extremely minimalistic and don’t have any pretty belongings, but when the space is limited I prioritize things with both function and aesthetics. This has only the latter… (and a little too much, in my view).
    Sorry for being so grumpy, the mission was obviously to make something pretty out of the given space. Not something functional.

    • I agree, this is nothing more than a regular decorated room. It has nothing to do with actual decorating and living in tiny homes. It was just a waste of time.

    • Agree — there wasn’t much consideration of functionality. Truly good design is a seamless integration of style and functionality.

      • Funny you say that when it functioned as homes for thousands of soldiers in Iraq for over 10 years!

    • I lived in a contaner just like this (not as nicely decorated) for a year while I was in Iraq! The bathrooms were outside. It is amazing how you can adjust to such a small space…I had two wood double sized wall lockers that I stored my clothes in. They were narrow and it worked out fine. I really had to think about everything I brought in to my space and I quickly realized that I had everything I needed. I also had a small refridgerater and microwave.
      There were many shops there where I bought exotic Turkish pillow covers and cloth. I made my space very cozy….and had posters of Van Gogh and Matisse on the walls.
      I learned so much about simplicity during this time. I continue to downsize and get rid of all the extra “stuff” I have that i don’t need. Simplicity and beauty are my new motto. It has to be functional and beautiful if I bring it into my home!

  4. My idea has always been to buy 4 of them. Butt them up to each other & cut doors for access to each. One would be the Living room, one the Kitchen/Dining, one would be Bedroom, & one would be Bath/Laundry/Mudroom. I would definetly want 40′ ones. The coolest part though would be the wonderful Private, Courtyard/Sunroom/Garden in the center! As you could afford to, you could add another off one corner as a shop/office; another as a Garage or playroom, added bedrooms, baths, etc, etc.
    And you can stack them too! Limitless! 😉

    • thats my plan just concerned about cost for plumbing and wiring and cutting for doors,windows you can get a 40 ft or more here in ga for $3250 the smaller ones $2150 20 or 30 ft and keeping cool in hot ga summers.

  5. I didn’t know decorating meant cram as much pretty stuff into a small space as possible. It goes against the premise of living in a small house, don’t you think? Their designers are obvious have a narrow repertoire. This is a perfect challenge to do something different. Here they have done what you would expect in any apartment.

  6. Wow. So negative. I would love one as a “Zen” den in my yard. Just a place to go to meditate. I certainly could manage to walk the 100 ft to my house to use the loo. I’ll take mine in tangerine please. 😉

  7. Actually, I like several of the ideas. I like the idea of painting a wall with blackboard paint or dry erase paint. Or with cork. So that’s an idea I would take away from these. I also like having the furniture be slightly lower than normal furniture as it gives the illusion of higher ceilings, therefore making the space seem larger. And I like the divider.

    So, while they’re obviously not worrying too much about storage or practicality (it is a design competition after all, which is about making space pretty)there are things I might apply if & when I get my tiny house.

  8. I think it would be really cool to stack containers in a sort of cantilevered way. that’s how I see my container house. at least HGTV did something other than the granite/stainless steel house for once.

  9. I like that, ultimate designer challenge! It requires lot of imagination to create a comfortable and stylish living conditions in such a restricted space. I love the nautical solution and also the colorful funky one, but the third container just doesn´t suit me..This sort of posh look does not go well with tiny container living in my opinion.

  10. I Like them. It’s cheap, efficient, and you’re using a recycled item. The only thing is I think I would place the couch facing lengthwise at the end of the short wall, instead of facing the long wall with very little room as shown in the second picture.

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