Some architecture is meant to dazzle with its imposing nature, yet the new trend is to blend in with the natural surroundings as much as possible. Designers of the following 18 structures have taken that idea to the extreme. Some of these places you would practically have to trip over to find!
Cave Palace Ranch, Utah
A natural red rock cave has been turned into a spectacular home in Utah.
The Pierre, San Juan Islands, Washington
You may not even see this house if you approach it from behind. The rock pokes into the house in places, further disguising it.
Camouflage House 3, Japan
This cleverly disguised home proves that glass houses are not just for plants.
a
The Dune House, Florida
You wouldn't know it from the outside, but there's a whole house spread out beneath these dunes.
Lookout, Scotland
Looking like a mirrored mirage, this lookout in Trossachs National Park, Scotland has room for three people to sit.
Glass Farm – Netherlands
The Glass Farm is a shop and office complex disguised as an old farmhouse. Its walls and roof are made of glass.
The Desert House, California
This Joshua Tree estate looks like an armadillo from above. It features a layered roofing structure that protects it from the desert elements. And disguises it pretty well!
Aloni House, Greece
This villa remains completely hidden unless you know where to look.
Lucid Stead, Joshua Tree National Park
This unique building is designed to look like a mirage, or hallucination.
Green Box, Italy
Designers of this garage conversion let nature take hold when it came to decorating the exterior.
Rachel Raymond House, Massachusetts
Eleanor Raymond, a pioneering architect, built this house for her sister in 1931. It was destroyed in 2006 but not forgotten. Pedro Joel Costa, a Portuguese architect, built these magnificent glass paneled masterpiece in its place.
Utility Substation, Netherlands
Utility rooms are often ugly. Roeland Otten, a designer in Rotterdam, came up with this unique way of beautifying and disguising electricity substations and air monitoring control hubs.
The Pinnacle, Nashville
The Pinnacle in Nashville is a 29 story office and retail complex that blends in with the clouds.
Mirrorcube, Sweden
This Treehouse Hotel, in the middle of an untouched forest, is accessible only by a 12 meter long bridge.
Cadyville Sauna, Upstate New York
This sauna was built by architect Dan Hisel. It's built against a cliff, which serves as one of the interior walls. It's also covered in mirrors.
Juniper House, Sweden
This building doesn't depend on mirrors to disguise it. Instead the designers used a photograph of juniper trees that surround the house for its exterior.
Invisible Barn, NYC
Blink, and you'll miss it, because this wooden structure is completely wrapped in reflective film mirroring the nearby trees.
Woodpile Studio, Netherlands
This studio is cleverly designed to blend in with its surrounds, yet open the windows and the recording studio is flooded with natural light.