If you like 90-degree angles, this house is not for you.
There are very few right corners in this unique mansion on the shores of the Credit River in Mississauga, near Toronto. Built in the mid-70s, the house is designed around octagonal shapes -- an octagonal living room, an octagonal master bedroom, even a near-octagonal indoor pool room.
But even more noticeable is the home's unusual exterior, which appears to both blend into the scenery, and stand out from with its with bizarre, protruding shapes. It's as if relentless modernism collided with a hobbit hole.
Fans of design will recognize the influence of legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and maybe Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi as well. Architect Fred Roman, of Toronto's Predrag K. Roman Architects, says it took him 20 months to come up with the concept. Construction was only slightly faster, with the house taking a year to build (two months alone for the master bedroom).
Though the house may not appear large, everything in it comes in large quantities: Five bedrooms, five baths, nine access points to the outdoors, six fireplaces, and no fewer than 12 parking places. Not to mention a wine cellar and an indoor pool. In all, some 10,000 square feet of living space on 2.3 acres of land.
Over the years the property has gained the attention of some prominent people, most noticeably Keith Richards of Rolling Stones fame, who, according to realtor Sam McDadi, has rented the property on several occasions (probably while the Stones were practicing for a world tour).
According to Good Life Mississauga, the British rocker shelled out $40,000 a week for the house. But it can be yours, permanently, for $6.8 million.
