No two houses are exactly alike in Ann Arbor, and this little cottage is definitely one of a kind.
Excerpt:
Tim and Cyndy Vachon took a 500-square-foot, single-story, cinder block house, added creative touches that come from being artists and eco-friendly touches that come from being green to create what they call the "Curious House."
This whimsical, eclectic and - yes - curious house is hidden behind a stand of trees on South Maple Road near Pauline Road in Ann Arbor. It is a showcase for stone and tile, with leanings toward Arts and Crafts style and a cottage look.
But it is also a repository for discarded material that could have ended up in the landfill: A sturdy glass light shade that turned on its head and is used as a bathroom sink, the soapstone kitchen countertops with a rich patina that once served as the tabletops in a chemistry lab of a old Detroit high school and the walnut and oak discarded by relatives used for trim and to make the stairway that leads to the second floor.
While the Vachons had the artistic and architectural skills to create the Curious House, they also had the building skills to turn the vision into a house. Except for part of the framing, the drywall and the roof, the couple built Curious House themselves, adding another 1,200 or so square feet to the original structure.
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