A Scrapbook of Me: Tiny Houses

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Tiny Houses

When we built our first house we had very little money. So I designed a house that was small (900 sq ft) but very utilitarian. It was a saltbox with a loft bedroom and bath. The first floor was 24' x 24' with a stairway to the loft in one corner, the kitchen in the other corner and the other half divided between living and dining area. My Dad, Husband and Brother-in-laws built the house I designed. It took about 3 years from start to finish because we worked jobs and could only do things after hours and we paid for it as we went. I might add, we lived in it during the entire 3 years so I know what it's like to live rough and sacrifice for a goal. We were young and my Dad had the skills and he taught the boys. We built 4 houses in our family that way on the family farm. But living in small spaces is not what I prefer and we eventually more than doubled the size of the house making it 2500 sq ft. For most of the 19 years that we lived in that first house, we had projects and construction going on. Now, in my middle age, I don't want to live in small spaces, live during big construction phases, etc. I hope we're done with doing that kind of stuff (at least in our living spaces). My husband still gets a wild hair and every year he starts another project like a screened in gazebo, buying and restoring our big 5th wheel camper (we bought it "salvage"), adding a porch to the camper, adding the Great Room in our house, etc. I'm just very blessed and thankful to have men who know what they are doing and are hard workers in our family.

But, back to the small houses. I got to thinking about how small can a home be and still be a functioning living unit. I'm nearly 6' tall myself and not a will-of-a-wisp girl any more so being too small is out. I have a dear friend who is short and petite and she could probably do just fine in some of these little places. And it seems that there is a pretty decent demand for "tiny houses". I did a Google search on "tiny houses", "tiny homes", "smallest house", "smallest home" and found some interesting websites and examples of tiny homes. More than likely they are usually used for a vacation spot, a 2nd home if you will. People can't always afford a large 2nd home at the beach, the mountains, the lake, etc. Campers can be quite expensive today too (unless you buy it salvage like we did and know how to fix it and remodel it). And, let's face it, they probably don't last all that long compared to the price you pay for them. Is there a simple, affordable, low maintenance but functional way to plop a vacation home down in your favorite spot? You've probably already spent a lot on purchasing the land to put it on so how do you now afford the "house"? Think of a "tiny home".

I don't mean a shed, a gazebo, a cabana...I mean a full living unit with a bathroom, a place to cook a simple meal, a closet, sit down and sleeping areas. With those requirements, how small can you get? It was fun to see all that was out there. I encourage you to do a Google search and try the websites I've listed at the bottom of this post.

This one looks so hip and modern but it reminds me of my Great Grandmother. She said her father built their log house and made 2 rooms with a porch between them. I remember her saying, "I don't know why he made it like that. You couldn't go to the kitchen without walking through the cold."