Chris Whited's 'Hobbit House' on Bainbridge Island, Washington, Is Fit for Middle Earth

Washington state's sleepy Bainbridge Island probably isn't what J.R.R. Tolkien had in mind when he dreamed up the Hobbit territory of Middle Earth. But it seems to suit resident Chris Whited just fine, since that's where he's building a man-size "Hobbit house" (pictured above).

White has built a chicken coop and a playhouse on his property, inspired by an old shed with an oddly shaped roof that he spotted in Oregon. Now, to take his creativity even further, he's constructing a house from the same concept.

"A lot of it was learn-as-you-go," Whited told the Kitsap Sun. "I didn't know how some of the corners would come together. I thought, 'We'll worry about that when we get there.' "

While neighbors and friends call it a "Hobbit house" because of its rambling roof, sloping walls and rounded doorways, the home is actually about 1,200 square feet -- suitable for a full-size human. The home features a small garage, a living area, one bathroom, one bedroom and a covered porch in the backyard.

Whited, a 59-year-old contractor, started on his outsize Hobbit project a little more than a year ago, when he laid the foundation, and he has continued working on it in his spare time since. His most recent addition was a handmade waterwheel (pictured at left). Though his wife reportedly thinks he's crazy, Whited said that he has a soft spot for water wheels.

"I think it adds a little magic or charm to the place," he said. He plans to install a pond at its base. "I'll get around to the water eventually," Whited wrote on Facebook.

Click through the below gallery to see the progress that Whited has made on the home.

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Whited struggled to sell his chicken coop and playhouse because of the steep price tag he put on it, but he plans to offer the house as a vacation rental. He kept his construction costs down by finding some of the building materials on Craigslist. According to the Kitsap Sun, many of the shingles are left over from another project.

We previously wrote about another "Hobbit house" in Atlantic Beach, Fla., and other shockingly odd homes, which you can see in the gallery below.

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See also:
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