The whale's house is a fascinating and cozy home extravaganza (22 photos + 1 video)
This stunning sea creature-shaped home blends seamlessly into the landscape. 
What is that big, grey, shiny thing? That's the Whale House in Mission Canyon. Nestled in the woods outside of Santa Barbara and just steps from the Botanical Garden, this stunning home seems like it could have been dreamed up in a very rich fantasy. 
The name of the house is entirely in keeping with the idea. Its whale-shaped exterior is made up of wavy rows of gray cedar shingles. The unusual dwelling was designed by architect Michael Carmichael and completed in 1978 in three years with the help of 20 craftsmen. 
The site on which the "House of the Whale" stands is so magical that it inspired Carmichael to experiment with eco-design. In the tradition of Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí, whose nature-based designs became the model for Catalan modernism in Barcelona, Carmichael sought to design a house that would not distract from the surrounding nature, but, on the contrary, would exalt it. 
There are no flat walls and almost no straight lines in the Whale House. Three bedrooms (which can accommodate nine people) and three bathrooms allow people to live comfortably in the belly of a sea creature. 
It features a spiral staircase leading to the street, a stone-clad elevator shaft, stained-glass windows offering stunning panoramic views, wavy walls covered in Venetian plaster, and solid wooden columns and beams. The belly of the whale is a courtyard with an outdoor shower and a lounge area. 
A 23-meter pool leads to the tail of the animal (a separate guest house). Playing on the name of the house, Carmichael filled the entrance with stones to imitate a toothy mouth and used a high-mounted stained glass window as the aquatic mammal's eye. 
