A mastermind of architectural salvage, Matt White offers a vast inventory of reclaimed housing elements and construction materials through his store Recycling the Past in Barnegat, New Jersey. His latest project is a unique vacation housing solution in the isolated but tourist-friendly town of Round Top, Texas.
The Flophouze Hotel begins with six reconditioned and refined shipping containers with exteriors that do not attempt to hide their original purpose. In contrast with their rugged exteriors, the inside of each Flophouze unit is amazingly cozy and comfortable, outfitted with sustainably-harvested wood from the Recycling the Past farm in upstate New York as well as recovered lumber from a distiller of spirits in Kentucky. In fact, almost everything within these funky, free-standing structures is recycled and/or reclaimed, including kitchen cabinet bases from a Brooklyn laboratory and countertops from several Texas bowling alley floors. A truly unique experience, the Flophouze Hotel is finished with vintage art, housewares, and fixtures from around the world.