‘Part Willy Wonka, part Big Lebowski’: Inside the ‘giant conch unicorn’ Airbnb in Texas that was created by hippies and ‘unlike anywhere else’

“This magical work of art is part Willy Wonka, part Big Lebowski, and completely unlike anywhere else.”

So says the Airbnb listing for The Bloomhouse, a “fairytale escape” located in the woods of West Lake Hills in Austin, Texas.

The house was created in the 1970s by, as the ad says, “a few hippies and a dream.” Dalton Bloom, the original owner and namesake, commissioned his friend and architectural student Charles Harker as the designer. Together they spent 11 years in the hills of Austin completing the whimsical structure.

The result is difficult to describe. Even Charles has never admitted what the 102-square-metre space was inspired by, although the Airbnb listing likens it to a “giant conch unicorn.”

The listing describes it as a ‘magical work of art’ and ‘totally different from anywhere else in the world’

According to her, it represents the ‘symbiotic interaction between humans and nature’ website. “The organic form, rising from the earth, mimics the flow of the air, the curve of the wind and the gentle rise and fall of nature’s melody,” he adds.

The methods and materials used to build The Bloomhouse were as unique as the concept.

Charles started making basic shapes from steel bars. He covered it with layers of polyurethane foam and used a portable pruning saw to shape the curves. He then completed the construction with layers of concrete stucco on the inside and outside.

The design is intended to reflect the ‘interaction of people and nature’

The architect has never admitted what inspired the shape. But the Airbnb listing describes it as a “giant conch unicorn.” The image above shows the entrance to the building

The Bloomhouse interior is just as striking as the exterior.

It was covered by the local Austin magazine Tribeza as ‘like falling down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland – enchanting and psychedelic’.

It features cherry wood accents, shelving and cabinetry carefully carved into the natural forms of the home.

There is not a single straight line or angle in the property. Each room connects seamlessly to the next. The bathroom door is the only separation.

Although the structure gained recognition upon its initial construction, it fell into disrepair in the 1980s. That was until 2017, when David and Susan Claunch bought the property and saved it from abandonment.

The interior of The Bloomhouse is described as ‘like falling down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland’

The furniture has been carefully carved into the natural shapes of the building. The bathroom door is the only barrier in the entire house

There is not a single straight line or angle in the property. Each room connects seamlessly to the next

The couple spent 18 months renovating the property and put it online for rental in 2019. It sleeps four guests and features a private patio, balcony, and views of downtown Austin.

The space is now available for long- and short-term rentals through Austin company Lodgewell and is often fully booked for weeks at a time. The Airbnb listing states: “When you stay at The Bloomhouse, you enter a place where magic can and does happen.

‘At The Bloomhouse you leave the boundaries of modernity and the rules of logic behind, to live alone in idiosyncrasy. We live in a fairy tale of our own making. Let the story begin.’

But experiencing the magic isn’t cheap. A night at The Bloomhouse starts at $400 (£315).

Visit to book a stay www.airbnb.co.uk or www.booklodgewell.co/The-Bloomhouse/.