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Project posted by Cubist Engineering
Editor’s Pick

The Sturgis

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Location
Greenwich, New York
Year
2017
Behind a half-inch of sliding frosted glass sits The Sturgis's spa-like bathroom, with a Kohler toilet, Blendart ceramic tile and an indoor/outdoor rainshower.
Behind a half-inch of sliding frosted glass sits The Sturgis's spa-like bathroom, with a Kohler toilet, Blendart ceramic tile and an indoor/outdoor rainshower.
The queen-size bed nests in the ceiling, dropped at night with a switch in the kitchen, till it sits just above the West Elm sofa and modular walnut coffee tables.
The queen-size bed nests in the ceiling, dropped at night with a switch in the kitchen, till it sits just above the West Elm sofa and modular walnut coffee tables.
The Sturgis sits on a custom galvanized steel foundation with removable wheels and hitch, so it can be easily transported to site and then dropped directly on the ground, removing the need for a crane or big crew. The modular aluminum and garapa deck can be expanded or reconfigured with just two people.
The Sturgis sits on a custom galvanized steel foundation with removable wheels and hitch, so it can be easily transported to site and then dropped directly on the ground, removing the need for a crane or big crew. The modular aluminum and garapa deck can be expanded or reconfigured with just two people.
The Sturgis's walls, floor and ceiling are all cross-laminated timber panels—3.25-inch thick sheets of douglas fir, manufactured in Montana and assembled at the Cubist Engineering shop. The box's air-tight construction and passive solar gain through the large windows means most climates need no additional insulation.
The Sturgis's walls, floor and ceiling are all cross-laminated timber panels—3.25-inch thick sheets of douglas fir, manufactured in Montana and assembled at the Cubist Engineering shop. The box's air-tight construction and passive solar gain through the large windows means most climates need no additional insulation.
Among the configurations available for the "obsession space" in The Sturgis is a motorcycle garage with a gallery window wall into the space. LED uplights treat the bike as a museum piece.
Among the configurations available for the "obsession space" in The Sturgis is a motorcycle garage with a gallery window wall into the space. LED uplights treat the bike as a museum piece.
The exterior of The Sturgis's cross-laminated-timber panel walls sports a rain screen and shou sugi ban cypress siding. The flat roof is engineered to a 150lb/sq ft live load and is covered in multiple layers of fiberglass for the ultimate weather protection.
The exterior of The Sturgis's cross-laminated-timber panel walls sports a rain screen and shou sugi ban cypress siding. The flat roof is engineered to a 150lb/sq ft live load and is covered in multiple layers of fiberglass for the ultimate weather protection.

Credits

Posted by
Architect
Interior Design
Builder
Photographer
John B. Carnett

From Cubist Engineering

How do you make a 160-square-foot retreat feel like a splurge rather than a sacrifice? Don't skimp on the comforts. In Cubist Engineering's The Sturgis, a pre-fab guest suite built entirely out of 3-inch thick cross-laminated-timber panels, that means none of the typical "tiny space" corner cutting.

The sofa, which faces the 8-foot square picture window, is a two-piece modular Retro Tillary from West Elm. The queen-size bed with a Tuft & Needle mattress nestles against the ceiling during the day—freeing up valuable floor and wall space—and glides down gently with a push of a button at night. Behind a half-inch thick frosted glass wall is the spa bath, with a dual-flush Kohler toilet, Sant'Agostino Blendart ceramic tiles, and a shower that converts from indoor to outdoor by swinging open a garapa door onto an outer deck. The Fisher-Paykel induction cooktop, Summit under-counter refrigerator and extra deep Kraus sink fill out the kitchen.

"So many small spaces feel cramped and stiff," says Cubist co-founder Mike Haney. "We just insisted that no matter where you stand or sit in The Sturgis, it felt warm and inviting—like a place you didn't want to leave."

The namesake comes from the building's "obsession space:" four feet at one end designed to house whatever its owner absolutely must have for the ideal weekend away. The room could be a wine cellar, a bike room or a motorcycle garage with its own remote-control gullwing door and reinforced steel floor with hidden in-floor storage.

"Even the nicest room could be anybody's room," Haney says. "But a room where I get to sit on my couch and stare at my LED-uplit 1969 Moto Guzzi through a gallery window—that's MY room."

Like all Cubist Engineering small spaces, The Sturgis sits on a custom engineered hot-dipped galvanized steel sub-frame that serves as both its own trailer for easy movement, or with its removable axles and tongue taken off, a permanent foundation that requires no additional site prep. This means The Sturgis can be installed without a crane or big crew, and can then blend seamlessly into its surroundings.