Architectural Concrete Ski House | House in Warren

Minutes from Sugarbush, Architect Dave Sellers’s “Archie Bunker” is a high-concept concrete manse filled with vintage artifacts. Winner of 2010 American Institute of Architects Award.
Includes private spring-fed swimming pool and golf green with chipping range. And in the summer, the entire living room slides open so you can step directly into the swimming pool. For a video tour, search "Archie Bunker Offbeat Spaces".
The space
Originating from a 10-day design class called the "Joy of Concrete", the Archie Bunker began as a playful experiment pushing the norms of concrete. What started as a pavilion with arched ceilings turned into a two year project.
Sellers built the house with students at Yestermorrow, a design/build school in Warren. (Sellers has taught at Yestermorrow, Yale, MIT and Goddard, where he founded the design/build program.)
Sellers and his students nailed together arched plywood forms from his design of the Pitcher Inn in Warren, pieces set to be thrown out, and poured concrete on them. "We made a piece of spatial sculpture, and then we figured out where we wanted to put functional things," Sellers said.
The 1,100-square foot home, with a spring-fed swimming pool on its south side, exhibits various uses, forms and textures of concrete: rounded (and rough-edged) ceilings; cantilevered balconies; a deep bathtub with a view, and a pre-cast sink.
In the summer, the south wall of the house rolls away, and you can jump right into the pool. In the winter, when the snow reaches an exterior band of mirrors, the concrete house appears to float.
The house was honored in 2010 by the American Institute of Architects. It was built Prickly Mountain-style: with no client and no formal design. This kind of freedom in architecture is what Sellers prefers, and what interests him.
The house features the following:
Two bedrooms and two bathrooms:
-- Master bedroom with queen size bed, private balcony and attached bathroom.
-- Second bedroom with queen size bed, that overlooks living room.
-- Second bathroom with large sculpted concrete soaking tub
-- Large living room with two seating areas, dining table, chess table and plus unique pull-out trundle bed (queen size), and wood-burning fireplace. WE DO NOT PERMIT GUESTS TO USE THE FIREPLACE FOR SAFETY REASONS.
-- Kitchen including gas range with oven, Dishwasher, Microwave and coffee maker
--Washer/Dryer
--Wireless Internet
--Private Swimming Pool (summer only--open June 1 though Sept 15)
--Radiant heated floors
Guest access
Guests will have access to the following:
Summertime: private swimming pool
A 3 tier semi-private golf green with 3 tee boxes
Wintertime: huge yard for sledding and other winter fun
Assorted board games
Assorted books from the library
Other things to note
Some things to note: PLEASE READ. THIS IS A QUIRKY HOUSE SO WE WANT YOU TO BE FAMILIAR WITH WHAT TO EXPECT PRIOR TO BOOKING.
There are many interesting views and windows throughout the house including into the bathrooms, so if privacy from other houseguests is a top concern, please take this into consideration.
This is a country location, so you may encounter critters in the house including country mice, chipmunks, spiders, ants during your stay. Please let us know right away if you do encounter any mice so we can take appropriate action. It is best to avoid leaving food out in the open.
In the winter, especially during periods of heavy snow, it may not be possible for the driveway or walkway to be plowed promptly as the local plow companies all get overwhelmed. There are snow shovels available for your use. Of course, we will do our best to get the plow service out there as soon as possible.
The house has a radiant heat system. During periods of extreme cold (below 0 temperatures) the house temperature may be cold (can go as low as 50s indoors) so please be prepared to wear warm clothes inside. There are some space heaters in the home as well. There is no air-conditioning. It is rarely needed in Vermont but if this is a must-have for you please book something different.
If you are looking for a house full of creative energy and quirks this house is for you. If you are looking for a hotel experience where everything is sanitized, dust-free and perfect, this house is not for you.
THERE IS NO TV.
Also while we do have a coffee maker and a hair dryer in the home, because these items have disappeared in the past we do not list them as included amenities.
Here are some past customer reviews for the property: (note Dave Sellers is my father and the architect and owner of the house)
Thanks for the memorable and happy days surrounded by ingenuity, curiosity, and playful nods to history that this house embodies. This is an inspired dance of mass and motion, past and future, cave and forest, energy and equilibrium, surprises abound. This was the perfect house to shelter us through Sunday night's thunderstorms. Welcoming the sunshine of following days, we enjoyed watching the light explore and reveal new details. Thanks for these uplifting, thought provoking days!
-Steve & Susan
Venice, CA
Dave,
Your whimsy has inspired me. This house is not only impeccably detailed but also communicates a larger idea and philosophy of how life could and should be: Playful, open, bright, nuanced and with integrity.
-Matt Wolpe
Yestermorrow Intern
Dave,
There is no better way to understand the power of "leaving the square open" than exploring the bunker, imagining the process of design and construction. Thank you for introducing this concept to me and thank you for giving me the opportunity to put my hands and work into this project, no matter how small a way. To the guests of the house: Doesn't the slate around the pool look gorgeous?!
-Tim Wheelock
Atlanta, Georgia
Dear David,
At first the lights perplexed me but when I changed my mindset and imagined I was exploring a coral reef for the first time, then every mystery turned into an adventure of illumination and enlightenment. As with any sophisticated and complex system, with time I saw the wisdom in what had been either bizarre irrelevance or random eccentricity!
To me concrete has been dead and inert. Here it is alive!
Stomping grapes, sipping wine, inhaling the fall colors and digesting your many stories have been enriching and inspirational. I look forward to shadow-boxing on the fringes of reality with you again.
Thanks for your hospitality.
Murph
(Leaf peepers Forever)
Dave,
This is by far the most amazing place I've ever stayed in. I love the fantastical attention to detail- a work of art just as much as a rad place to stay. Thanks
-Brendan
Best place in the USA. Love the heated floors.
-J. Holden
Australia
Dave,
Wow, I can't tell you how amazing our night was here. The bath tub upstairs watching the storm roll in will be a night not soon forgotten. You are creating something truly magical here, and with every polished concrete bath tub, or split wooden table, or molded cement column, you bring into existence a true sense of form ad function unwrapped in an air of whimsy and class. Thank you for creating what other people only dream of experiencing, and then giving people like us the chance too. Muchas Gracias,
-Lucy & Fred
Dave,
The opportunity to stay here among the textures and materials, chairs and tables - each wondrous - was the opportunity to reconsider the entire built environment and our relationship to natural systems. I feel recharged and hopeful. Thanks for making this happen and for making it available.
Many, many thanks
-Natlie & Jeremy

Architectural Concrete Ski House is located in Mad River Valley. Architectural Concrete Ski House provides accommodation, featuring Pet Friendly, Bedding/Linens, Kitchen, among other amenities. This House features Pet Friendly, Bedding/Linens, Kitchen, to make your stay a comfortable one.

Architectural Concrete Ski House has 1 Bedroom , 1 Bathroom, and max occupancy of 2 persons. The minimum rental for this property is 1 nights, but this can change depending on the season you plan on staying. Previous guests have given good rated it, and VRBO labeled it a top-rated House because of the excellent services rendered by the owner or manager of this House, and has consistently provided great experiences for their guests. Most families or guests that use it recommend it to their friends and some of them are repeat guests. House has a friendly neighborhood, and the Mad River Valley has interesting places to visit. If you want to learn more about the House in Mad River Valley, such as places to visit and things to do nearby, you can check below to learn more.