We really wanted to build something unique and creative but more importantly, we wanted to build a space that was designed to host gatherings as community and connection with friends and family is very important to us - Regan and Libby Foster, owners and general contractors.
Construction Process
Location and Contact Info
About BlueSky Studio
| Project | Foster Residence |
| Architecture | Joe Simmons, BlueSky Studio |
| Owners and general contractors | Regan and Libby Foster |
| Bedrooms | 5 |
| Bathrooms | 3.5 |
| Area | 3000 sq ft |
| Containers | 9 |
| Project Cost | $500,000 |
| Price | $1,100,000 (2025) |
| Location | Denver, Colorado |
| Year | 2015 |
Making a house out of shipping containers sounds easy enough: Just snap up a few neglected boxes from a local junk dealer, rack ’em and stack ’em, and create a bit of old-school prefab magic.
But recycling the detritus of global shipping has its complications. Like how to turn corrugated steel boxes that measure an awkward eight feet wide and 40 feet long into something cozy enough to call home. Or how to keep their metal floors from vibrating when you walk on them, or prevent the chemicals they are treated with from being released into the air. Or, perhaps most important, how to assemble it all so it doesn’t look like you live in the storage yard of the local port authority.
Luckily, Regan Foster likes a challenge. He’s an extreme DIYer and, until recently, a firefighter, the kind of guy who is used to working 24-hour shifts and given to starting his day with a plunge into an outdoor ice bath. The house he designed and built with his wife, Libby, located just outside the Denver city line in Adams County, harnesses nine shipping containers into a 3,000-square-foot structure that’s meant to be shared with friends and neighbors. "We believe community and family are a strong part of living a life well-spent," Regan says.
In all, the house has five bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms, and an in-law suite with a separate entrance where Libby’s mother lives. Four of the containers are placed on the ground—side-by-side in pairs set 24 feet apart—to form the first floor. Another four are stacked above them, some shifted forward, to create a cantilevered second story. The ninth container sits perpendicular at the back of the second level to form a U-shape. The house is enclosed in front with a conventionally framed wall and on top with a flat roof supported by exposed joists.
