The single-bedroom structure you can assemble anywhere in two days

Have you ever travelled to a gorgeous natural wonder and wished there was a cosy little room nearby for you to snuggle up and enjoy the view? Well, French company Lumicene might have the solution.

It’s called the Lumipod, and it’s a small, single-bedroom, prefabricated dwelling that you can plonk basically anywhere in the world and have fully set up in just two days.

There’s roughly 17 square metres of floor space in this striking structure, which includes a bed, bathroom, and wardrobe. Two modules come together on top of four screw piles in a process aimed at minimising the damage done to the natural environment.

The whole thing is wrapped in a burned wood exterior in the shou-sugi-ban Japanese tradition, but you can also choose whatever covering fits the landscape you’re surrounded by.

The obvious centrepiece of the Lumipod, however, is the five-metre-diameter Lumicene window. Basically, it’s a big curved piece of movable glass separated into four chunks by an aluminium frame.

Each of the chunks moves separately along rails, meaning the space can be rearranged however you want. You can have all four pieces at the front to make a fully enclosed space, or you can tuck them away to make a fully outdoor space.

Because the glass sections move individually, you can even position a few panels on one side to block incoming wind while the non-windy side remains open. If you imagine a big, curved, multi-panel sliding door you’ve pretty much got the idea.

“We wanted to think [about] the relationship between indoor and outdoor in a different way,” a spokesperson from Lumicene said. “That’s how it started.

“How can we design a space that would be inside by default, and could be transformed into outside whenever we want? We ended up with this circular and reversible window concept.

“We think LumiPod will be used by individuals as well as hotels having a piece of land with an incredible view. It can be a great place to rest, enjoy the view, and switch off all connections from our intense urban life.”

The Lumipod isn’t the only application for the Lumicene window, though. In fact, the firm has deployed the concept in two other designs.

The first is a larger residence known as the Lumishell, which features two of the curved windows at opposing ends of a jelly bean shaped structure. One window houses a living room and the other houses the bedroom, with a bathroom separating the two spaces.

Lumicene’s other concept is known as the Lumibar, and as the name suggests it’s a glass-enclosed space designed for patrons to spend a night imbibing. The Lumibar comes in a small, circular 47-square-metre version, as well as a larger 180-square-metre version that features two of the curved windows.