When you hear the word “yurt,” you think of conical dwellings with a tent-like roof and latticework around the perimeter. An ordinary interior design usually comes with it.
However, Zach Both and Nicole Lopez’s yurt outside of downtown Portland is a different story. While the structure looks similar to traditional yurts, the inside is not what you’d expect because it’s completely modernized.
With the help of friends and family, the couple was able to build a modern yurt from scratch in a year, and it boasts a nicer interior than most homes you’ll see!
Zach is a filmmaker who worked in the past as a designer and art director. He lived in a van that doubled as his mobile production company with Nicole for a few years before they moved into their 730 square-foot yurt.
Zach and Nicole knew they weren’t meant to live in a traditional home, so they explored other living alternatives. They felt inspired to build their yurt after looking through different tiny house options.
Some of the ideas they came across included converting an old chicken coop and remodeling an old submarine they saw on Craigslist. Ultimately, they decided to move forward with their yurt idea, which turned out to be the best decision ever.
They also wanted to downsize and be challenged with designing and building their next home, so a DIY yurt was perfect for them.
Once you enter the yurt, you will be greeted with a light-filled and open floor plan. The yurt is round, and there is a boxed-off section at the center, making it look like the structure is divided into quadrants.
The largest part of the yurt is the living area, which features a white wall as a backdrop, a comfortable-looking couch, and a round coffee table. A skylight above allows light to shine down on the living room and its surrounding areas.
Their kitchen has a decent-sized island for preparing food, a stainless steel sink, a full-sized refrigerator, and a wooden dining table.
The black matte design and the wood go together perfectly. It’s minimal yet functional, which is exactly what the couple wanted.
Across the kitchen is Zach’s cute home office. He usually works from home, so it was very important for him to have a dedicated area where he could concentrate.
He used shelving to separate his work area from the rest of the house, and he installed a bookshelf and a whiteboard where he could conceptualize ideas.
Inside the central cube of the home is the luxurious bathroom decked out with modern touches such as a pocket door and motion lights.
Next is the best part of the house: the bedroom. It’s is situated on a 200 square-foot loft on top of the cube which can be accessed via a black ladder. Their bed is circled by real greenery like pothos, philodendrons, prayer plants, and a few curly figs.
Light pours out from the massive skylight above, spotlighting the bed and its surroundings. It’s the most secluded spot in the yurt.
I’m sure you’re wondering about the budget for this home. Luckily, the couple was gracious enough to discuss it in an interview with Bored Panda. Zach said constructing the yurt cost them roughly $65,000.
“The yurt structure came in at $31k [and] the platform base cost $10k,” they said.
The rest of the expenses went to building supplies, furniture, and appliances. However, Zach stressed that it’s possible to go for cheaper options. It just so happened that they opted to build a modern yurt, so it also came with higher costs.
Take a tour of Zach and Nicole’s little modern oasis in the video below.
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