Posts Tagged small space

The Golden Elephant


Golden Elephant

What inspired you to build a tiny house?


What freedoms do you hope to attain living the tiny life?


Why is it called The Golden Elephant?


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How has community impacted your build?


What are your methods for getting rid of stuff?


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How Tiny Is Too Tiny?

P1000589When it comes to tiny houses when is small too small? 50 square feet? 100 square feet? 200 square feet? A lot of it has to do with individual circumstances, needs and number of people living in the space. After over a year in La Casita Cedric and I have come to the conclusion that as cozy as our home is, 98 square feet for two people and a stocky corgi is pushing some limits. We need more room in order to work on hobbies, store our bulk items and fulfill our need for independence. In the South it seemed a lot easier to fulfill these needs. We didn’t worry about freezing hoses, there was no need to store bulky winter clothes or gear and going outside was bliss in the winter months. Now that we live somewhere with a serious winter, we have more gear, more clothes and less and less space to put it in and as a tiny house fills, the more claustrophobic it feels. So how do you figure out how small is too small before you’re already living the tiny life? Here are few suggestion from our experience.

First, carefully consider needs. For example, we did not thoroughly considerstorage ideas the impact a tiny house would have on our social lives. We would host 30+ people a year in our apartment and threw lots of social events and fundraisers for different project we were a part of. While I’ve found lots of solutions to the issue of hosting events and entertaining, it’s difficult not having a place for family and friends to stay if they want to visit us up North. This has been one of the hardest parts for me and it wasn’t even something I considered as seriously as I should have. Also, my crafting time has diminished due to lack of space for supplies and the room to actually do projects. My advice is make a list of what is most important to your happiness in your space. Is it being able to cook delicious meals, soak in a tub, host potlucks or a space to do hobbies and crafts in? Number your list with 5 being most important and 1 being least. Make compromises from this list, tweak it as you build and use it throughout construction to remind yourself of your needs and how you plan to meet them.

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Chair Art

One thing that many enjoy about having a home is sharing it with others at dinner parties, visiting guest, having friends over for a party and other events.  But the trouble with a very small space is that you don’t have space to have a lot of extra furniture, just the space for the basics.  Here is an interesting alternative to spare seating. These are chairs that flatten out so you can paint them as wall art when not in use.


Backyard Aquaponics

Recently I have been looking into aquaponics to start growing talapia in the planning phase of a larger urban agriculture project I am working on.  I found this great video tour of an automated system that is setup in a tiny greenhouse.  I found it interesting and thought I’d share.