I’ll admit it. When I first started watching Justin Flom’s viral TikTok of his wife giving a home tour, I was ready to roll my eyes. Another influencer showing off their perfectly curated space? No thanks. But as the video continued, my skepticism melted away, replaced by a feeling I wasn’t expecting: pure, unadulterated house envy.
Not your average morning routine
In the TikTok, which now has 18.5 million views. Flom’s wife gives a casual tour of their decidedly not casual home, starting with a foam pit in their master bedroom (“because of a project my husband’s working on”). But that’s just the beginning. Instead of taking the stairs down like a regular person, she uses an auto belay system that gently lowers her to the first floor.
Childhood dreams come true
I might be dating myself, but for my entire 80s childhood I coveted the secret passage that Webster’s family hid behind the grandfather clock, and practically every detail in Pee Wee’s house. (Hello Rube Goldberg pancake making station!) Watching this TikTok felt like seeing someone build the blueprint I sketched in elementary school. And honestly? I’m a little jealous.
The “trap-door-house” details
According to Flom’s website, the aptly-named “Trap-Door-House” has become a recurring character in his videos, “full of secret passageways, cartoon paintings, and pranks around every corner.” Every room has “a dozen tricks up its sleeve,” including a tunnel of doors leading to a secret Nerf Gun and Super Soaker Room, and a special setup that allows him to leap from the second-story balcony and float to the ground.
But watch out for the trap door that drops you into a hidden foam pit (which can also be accessed through a miniature Alice in Wonderland door). As Flom himself explains, “I’m just a kid magician with grown up money.”
Who is this magical house creator?
Flom, a YouTuber, social media personality, and illusionist who gained recognition through his YouTube series and television show Wizard Wars, has created what can only be described as a real-life playhouse that would make both Walt Disney and James Bond’s Q branch jealous.
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Need breakfast? Head to the pantry—which is hidden behind a secret moving bookshelf, naturally. Laundry time? Forget boring laundry chutes—the Floms upgraded to a fireman’s pole. There’s a toilet paper wall (yes, you read that correctly), a loft above the stairs for the kids, and a mirror that conceals a “Dr. Pepper passageway” leading to a hidden door in the wallpaper that opens to their movie room.
And if you thought streaming was the way to go, think again. The Floms converted a leftover closet into an actual Blockbuster video rental. Netflix who?
The internet has thoughts
Of course, the internet had some thoughts about this magical house. TikTok user Lucila 🦋 commented, “imagine being angry and having to go downstairs in the gently auto belay,” which honestly might be the world’s most effective anger management technique.
User ~julia pointed out that ““Finally I clean the mirror behind the dr.pepper passageway is truly a sentence I never thought I would hear,” which… same.
Not everyone was convinced of the practicality, though. User chiedza.chiedza2 wrote, “On a bad day I’d be so mad,” and I can’t say I disagree. Sometimes you just want to stomp down the stairs, not float gracefully to the first floor.
My personal favorite comment came from wonderlanddreams91, who wrote, “Can you imagine someone trying to rob this house and just getting lost and not understanding how to get into different rooms in the house lol.” Home security via confusion? Genius.
User cartofiverzi brought up the truly horrifying scenario of “just imagining being sick and having to do all that,” while Nikki raised a valid concern: “I would forget about the ‘no stairs’ part in the middle of the night and would just drop into the abyss on my way to the toilet 😂😂😂”
The ultimate play date house
Can you imagine having guests over? Good luck ever NOT being the play date house. I can already picture the frantic texts from other parents: “Madison hasn’t stopped talking about the foam pit and secret passages since her last visit. She’s refusing to have her birthday party anywhere else. Any chance you’re free next Saturday? We’ll bring cake AND our sanity waiver forms.”
So what do you think? Would you want to live in a home where getting from point A to point B involves secret passages, fireman poles, and auto belays? Or do you prefer your homes with a little less whimsy and a lot more predictability? Personally, I’m ready to trade in my boring old stairs for an auto belay system, but I might skip the trap doors until my coordination improves.
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