We’ve seen shipping containers transformed into guesthouses, garden sheds, even pools—but, until now, we’ve never seen one reimagined as a barn. How did designer Maryline Damour dream up this project, which currently rests on her property in the Hudson Valley?
“The idea originated because I was interested in buying a container; filling it with building materials; sending it to Haiti (where lots of rebuilding is happening due to earthquakes, and materials are expensive there); and using the container as the house structure.” says Maryline, who hails from the Caribbean country. “I thought it was a good way to build homes in Haiti faster and cheaper (less framing, no foundation); with little waste; and for seismic impact [due to less weight].”
“I mentioned it to my partner, Fred, and one day, he came home and said he found a company nearby that sold used shipping containers,” she continues. They decided to do a test-run at their home so that they could better understand the process of turning a cargo container into a building.
Before she knew it, she was signing for the largest delivery she’s every received in her life: a 40-foot-long, 9-foot-high used shipping container, delivered on a flatbed truck.
Here’s how they turned it into a barn.
Photography by Maryline Damour, courtesy of Damour Drake.
Check out Maryline’s remarkable front door makeover in Before & After: A Shabby House Transformed, Thanks to Paint and a DIY Victorian Door
See also:
- Shipping Containers: 10 Recycled and Repurposed Houses
- Shipping Container Chic: Recycled Swimming Pools by Modpools
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