TINY HOUSE

magazine
Issue 10

Diana’s Innermost House

Micro-Homesteading in
Washington with a $10K MicroHome
www.tinyhousemagazine.co © Tiny House Magazine 2013
 TINY HOUSE
magazine

12
5
28
20
e

CONTENTS
DEPARTMENTS FEATURES
Editor’s Note 3 Micro Homesteading 4
Reader’s Corner 21 Dreaming the Dramatic 5
Monthly Reviews 28 Bob and Lynn's Midget Trailer 7
For Sale 40 Diana’s Innermost House 12
Marketplace 41 Living Your Best Life Possible 26
Tiny House DIY Ethos 33
 Letter From the Editor TINY HOUSE
magazine
Issue 10

Publisher and Founder

Tiny Is As Tiny Does Editor-In-Chief

Kent Griswold

W
Designers
elcome to the tenth issue of the Tiny House Kent Griswold
Magazine. In this issue we check take a tour of Andrew Odom
D e e W i l l i a m ’s m i c r o -
homestead located in her Photography
friend’s yard through one of
Logan Smith
Kirsten Dirksen’s videos.
Colin Carpenter
Logan Smith shows how the
John Goff
DIY attitude of many tiny Christina Nellemann
house owners shines through
when he repairs his broken Marketing Editor
iPhone. Kent Griswold

John Goff gives us a tour of Contributing Writers

Abel Zimmerman’s creation Logan Smith
the “Fortune Cookie,” a Andrew Odom
unique Vardo. Kirsten Dirksen
Christina Nellemann gives us a tour of a midget trailer, John Goff
handbuilt by its owner. Christina Nellemann
Joshua Becker
Diana Lorence shares with us the “Innermost House” and
her perspective of life in it. Billing
Kent Griswold
A new feature is added to this issue called the Reader’s
Corner where you can share your tiny home with the Tiny Contact Us
House Magazine subscribers.
tinyhouseblog@gmail.com
Thank you for reading the Tiny House Magazine. I would
like to encourage you to subscribe to our magazine so you
Tiny House Magazine
don’t miss a single issue. is published
by Kent Griswold
Kent Griswold and
TinyHouseBlog.com

Cover Photo
Kent Griswold
 Micro-Homesteading in Washington with a $10K MicroHome

Click to watch on Youtube

Dee Williams used to live in a 2,000-square-foot, 3-bedroom home. Then she traveled to Guatelama (to help
build a schoolhouse) and when she came home her house felt too big so built herself a home that fit. That
turned out to be a 84-square-foot foot home on wheels that cost her $10,000: $5000 for the materials (mostly
salvaged) and the other half for the solar panels and low-E (low thermals emissivity) windows.

She spent 3 months building her new home in Portland, Oregon and then hitched it to her truck and parked it in
the backyard of her good friends Hugh and Annie in Olympia, Washington. For the first 7 years she moved in
and out (removing the back fence), but for the past two years her wheels haven’t moved.

Annie describes their setup, half-jokingly as a “compound”, which also includes a sauna (built by Dee) and
until a few months ago, included Hugh’s Aunt Rita who lived in “the big house” and Dee helped care for
(incidentally, Dee’s home is permitted as a caregiver’s cottage, though Aunt Rita died this spring so now she’s
only allowed to “recreate” in her tiny house).

When she moved into her 7x12 foot home back in 2004, Dee got rid of not just a $1,000/month mortgage, but
most of her stuff. She admits it’s not easy to keep things to a minimum- “creep happens”-, but it’s a constant
process. “ was engaged to be married and kept the wedding announcement for decades. Finally, I was like, I
know that happened. I think I get let it go in writing.” After awhile it’s okay to let some of that stuff go and to
trust that there are things that you hold inside you that are actually a lot more ...meaningful than the photo or
piece of paper.”

Today, Dee helps design and build tiny homes for her company PAD (Portland Alternative Dwellings) where
they “encourage people to design things that fit their bodies” instead of obsessing over square footage (their
designs run from 70 to 136 square feet). “All of a sudden you can let your body be the tape measure”.

Kirsten Dirksen is co-founder of faircompanies.com and a Huffington Post blogger. She has worked for
MTV, Oxygen, The Travel Channel, and Sundance Channel.
 Dreaming the Dramatic:
The Tiny Houses of Able Abel

By John Goff
“Fortune Cookie” measuring 8 by 18 feet in plan, was one wonderful tiny house designed
and crafted by Abel Zyl Zimmerman in Washington State in 2011.
(photos courtesy Scott Haydon).
Recently, I saw a picture of “Fortune Cookie,” a Zimmerman: I often do little simplified
mini-mansion crafted by Abel Zyl Zimmerman sketches of house shapes. It is fun to play around
of Olympia, Washington. I had signed up for a with lines. The Fortune Cookie was one of
regular emailing of “Tiny House Listings” these… about two inches high on a random page
showing what was available for tiny houses in my notebook.
across the United States. Scott Haydon’s photo
of the fairy tale-ish “Fortune Cookie” was Kera [the client] had contacted me about
delivered with an article titled “Why Do People building her a tiny house, and at our first
Fall In Love With Tiny Houses?” meeting I showed her the sketch in passing. She
said, “That is charming.” I said, “I think I would
Because Salem has a number of delightful tiny love to build something like this.” And she
houses and previously we have written about replied, “I would live in something like that.” So,
Salem as a birthplace of the Tiny House I did it on a tight budget, and for the sake of
Movement, I thought it would be useful to shine interest of taking life away from the square and
new light on Zimmerman and his tiny houses. vertical. Along the way, I realized just how
Below we reprint questions directed to the strong this structure is. It really could exist in a
designer and fabricator of “Fortune Cookie.” very extreme environment, and get along just
fine with wind, snow, heat whatever. It turned
Goff: Fortune Cookie is such an enchanting into a really compelling blend of form and
house design. It could be seen perhaps as an A- function.
frame house of sorts, or a beached boat, or a
pointed arched Neo-Gothic structure. Can you Goff: Were you trained initially in yacht design
tell us what inspired you to design the structure, or boatbuilding before you took up tiny house
with its curved walls, as you did? design? What factors in your life led you to love
tiny houses and then to design them?
Zimmerman: I had been doing carpentry,
building, and similar work before I returned to
college and got immersed in boatbuilding ideas.
My love for Tiny Houses has roots in sailboat
design to be sure.
Goff: In addition to Fortune Cookie, you
designed and built a smaller gypsy wagon (a
vardo) for your own use, a kind of swooping
micro-saltbox house for a client named Laurel,
and you’ve started crafting jewel-like
“teardrops”—tiny towable two-wheeled
bedrooms inspired by classic mini-campers.
Have you designed and built any other types of
tiny houses?
Zimmerman: I have build myriad structures like
playhouses, kitchen remodels, mother-in-law
houses…
Goff: Somewhere you described yourself as a
builder. Yet I see comfort with designing subtle
curves and concern for Vitruvius’s ‘Commodity,
Firmness and Delight.’ Have you formally
studied architecture as well?
Zimmerman: No… informally, yes… but really
I just study humans. They are not square.
Goff: “What compels you to be a tiny house
advocate, and what kind of a future do you see
for tiny houses?”
Zimmerman: That is two separate questions: 1)
Pure enjoyment. 2) The future we make for
them. Tiny houses have always existed, of
course. This ‘movement’ is just a moment of
rediscovery. Of course now, we have to refit
them into our system of building ‘rules.’
Goff: One thing that fascinates me about tiny
houses is how easy it seems to be to develop new
communities or villages, when people live ultra-
simply, and work together outdoors. Would you
agree that conventional architecture and city
planning often forces us to live and work in
isolation?
Zimmerman: Absolutely. It is less structure than
attitude (and complacency.) People can form
communities wherever they live, but many have
just forgotten to do so. We still need micro-
communities almost as much as having food on
the table and air to breathe. Humans are not
solitary creatures.
Goff: What books or resources would you
recommend to the person who may wish to learn
more about your work and tiny houses?
Zimmerman: Lloyd Khan’s Tiny Homes… heck,
any of his books.
Goff: Do you consider Fortune Cookie to be one
of your most successful houses? Does the owner
love it? Have other people also written you
asking for similar tiny houses?
Zimmerman: Yes. I am building another
Fortune Cookie shaped house as we speak. I will
probably build more in the future.
Bob and Lynn's Midget Trailer
By Christina Nellemann

Looking like a hybrid between a teardrop trailer and an Easter egg, Bob and Lynn Klope's
Midget trailer is not a new fiberglass design, but a homebuilt trailer based on Popular
Mechanics plans from 1940. The couple wanted a travel trailer they could keep in their
garage and didn't want to purchase anything new. A 4x8 teardrop trailer was considered,
but they decided it would be too small for their needs.

"I searched the Internet and found the plans for the Midget trailer from the February and
March 1940 issues of Popular Mechanics," Bob said. "This was more in line with the size
we were looking for. The plans had been scanned and posted on the Internet for free. We
have since picked up the two magazines from Ebay and have them in our collection."

The trailer was completed in 2004 and is 9 feet long by 6 feet wide and tall enough to
stand up in. The inside has a sleeping area for two adults, some storage space and the
teardrop style galley holds the kitchen. The build process took about 9 months, but the
materials only came to $3,200. The same trailer in 1940 would have cost $125 to build.
"The best part of the construction process was when the body went 3D," Bob added. "We
had built the walls and when they were finally connected, it started to look like
something. The worst part was the amount of time spent thinking about how to do it. I
didn't want to have to tear out what was already built in order to take the next step."

When the Midget was complete, the couple's first camping trip was sans galley. They first
wanted to see what they needed and where everything would eventually go. Over the
years they've added a shelf inside for glasses and books, a tongue box for the battery, a
flat screen TV and DVD player and a small generator that they use for dry camping. Bob
and Lynn like to go camping in the mountains and head out to the Kings Canyon and
Sequoia National Park area of California whenever they get a chance.

"We also like to attend car racing events at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in the southern
central valley. We have friends who race vintage cars and SCCA racing," Bob said. "For
$20 we can dry camp right on the fence and watch them race."

Their hybrid trailer also fits in nicely with other tiny trailers and attracts its own attention.
"We are always giving tours of the trailer whether we are on the road or in a camping
spot," Bob said. "You don't see many people giving tours of their big white boxes. The
only downside to teardrop camping is…well it's not the thumbs-up you get on the
highway, or the gas mileage you save, or not having to sleep on the ground, or being able
to fit in a small national park campsite…it's that you have to go outside to the galley in
the back to make your coffee in the morning."
Watch the video of the Midget at:

http://youtu.be/kuLWniOw4L0

Download the Popular Mechanics plans and the 3d model of the plans:

http://td.roughwheelers.com/articles_and_plans/Pop_Mech_1940/index.html

http://www.angib.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/teardrop/tear37.htm

Photos by Bob and Lynn Klope and Christina Nellemann

 Diana’s Innermost House

By Diana Lorence
This is Innermost House, my home in the coastal mountains of Northern California. It is the latest
of many very small houses my husband and I have occupied over twenty-five years, all for the
same reason – to make possible a simple life of reflection and conversation. I am delighted now to
be a part of Kent’s public conversation with others who share my love of tiny houses, and I’m
grateful to Michael Janzen of Tiny House Design for introducing us.

Innermost House is about twelve-feet square. It faces directly south beneath an open porch that
shelters our front door. A hill rises to the north behind us and the forest lies all around. The house
encloses five distinct rooms: to the east is a living room eleven feet deep by seven feet wide by
twelve feet high; to the west the house is divided into kitchen, study, and bathroom, each
approximately five feet wide by three feet deep, with a sleeping loft above the three of them,
accessible by a wooden ladder we store against the wall.

The living room is the heart of the house. It is where my husband and I spend most of our time, and
where we receive our guests. On the east wall of the room is a small fireplace set a foot above the
floor, with a hearth extension of bricks projecting a foot and a half into the room. On the west side
is a wall of books four feet wide and seven feet tall. Between these walls of hearth and books, our
two low chairs sit facing each other a couple of feet apart. Everything about the space is conceived
to make a harmony of conversation possible.

I know that sounds strange in a world where conversation seems to go on all the time every day.
But pause for a moment and try to remember the single most moving and meaningful conversation
you ever had. Perhaps it was with your mother or father in days long past, or with your husband or
wife when you were first in love. Perhaps it was when you said goodbye to someone for the very
last time.
Now, how would you design, build and furnish a place so that those conversations
could happen every day? That is the question we asked of every detail of Innermost
House, and we are still asking it.
The fireplace is where our conversation begins, just as it began a million years ago when
human language and domesticated fire were born together. The fireplace is the original tiny
house. After all, what is a cave or a tipi or a wigwam but a big, enclosing fireplace? The fire
is our link with the wild. Gazing into the fire seems to release our dream life into words.

The books complete the circle of conversation on the other side. They are our link with the
world. All of our books have been carefully chosen over the years as contributing something
essential to the Innermost Life. It is strange that it was not until I saw them all together,
illuminated by the fire at Innermost House, that I realized nearly every one was first written
by firelight. In some way they represent the last light cast from that first fire at the mouth of
a cave.
We do not have electricity or power of other kind, so we warm the cabin and cook our
food and heat our water for bathing all over the fire. Our firewood comes from local
orchard prunings that would otherwise be burned as waste in the field. In the summer we
cook over coals and wash with cold water. We light our home with beeswax candles. After
examining all the options, we installed a conventional septic system, though we use very
little water.
The house is of mixed post and beam and stick construction. Our floor is of yellow pine tongue and
grove planks, our ceiling of fir planks and rafters and beams. Our interior walls are of plain white
lime plaster applied by hand over blueboard. The exterior walls are clad in rough-sawn redwood
board and batten. The roof is of cedar shakes. Both the redwood and the cedar are naturally resistant
to rot, fire, and insects – all important considerations in the woods. The house is constructed of
natural, simple materials, with a lot of care taken to render them neat and plain.
Real wood, real plaster. The real things really do make a difference, at whatever sacrifice they must
be had. It’s worth waiting and saving for if you can.

The building project required the better part of a year for two men working part time. A good deal of
that time was spent in familiarizing ourselves with the traditional building language of the region. We
would have built a rather different house in New Mexico or Massachusetts or Virginia. My husband
always limits himself to the vernacular of a region so that, as he says, nature can have a hand in the
building.
This kind of life has been made possible
for us by living in partnerships of one
kind or another over the years, often in
guest houses. We have moved many
times, and have never owned a home. My
husband is a private confidant and friend
to people in public positions. Men come
to him for the special kind of conversation
he makes possible. Innermost House was
built for us on the land of such a partner
and friend. Many local building
ordinances allow for small guesthouses.

I have loved our small houses, and I love

Innermost House most of all. There are
many reasons for wanting to live in a tiny
house. A simple life of high conversation
is my reason. I could not live any other
way. Visit another post by Diana here.

Diana Lorence is an inspirational speaker

on the pleasures of the Simple Life.
Innermost House was designed by
Diana’s husband, Michael Anthony
Lorence. More photographs of Innermost
House and stories of Diana’s life in the
woods may be seen by visiting her website
www.wordsfromthewoods.com.
 Monthly Reviews from your Tiny House Neighbor
GoalZero Solar
Solar power has been an interest
of mine now for some time. I am
currently working out of a small
home office that relies completely
on solar power. It goes without
saying then that having a unit as
reliable and as sleek as a
GoalZero is essential. In fact, I
have owned a GoalZero battery
pack and panels for the better part
of 2013 now and I have to say
that I love it.
For most folks, the thought of
designing, wiring, crimping,
figuring out, and dealing with a
solar power setup is a daunting
task. Even if you browse through
the zillions of "How To" YouTube
videos out there that literally walk
a viewer step-by-step through
solar setup and how to generate
some juice from the sun, when
you get right down to it,
collecting solar energy can be a
bit dodgy.
by Steven Harrell
The 350 is a complete unit
though. The inverter is even
attached. You simply plug the
solar panels in and start collecting
rays. I have spoken with a number
of people in the past who have
built or plan to build their tiny
homes and do not like the thought
of full blown electrical wiring and
would prefer to skip that step of
their build entirely. I maintain that
a goal zero setup (or several of
them) could quite easily assist in
handling any and all electrical
needs of a tiny house.
In my aforementioned, off-grid
office (where I run
tinyhouselistings.com from), my
GoalZero setup powers my
computer and lighting pretty
much all day. The Boulder 30
(GoalZero's 30 watt panels) are
mono-crystalline so they will
collect sunlight even on overcast
days.
My Escape 350 pack will handle
jobs up to 350 watts in size. And
what's great is that the packs are
scalable. You could run four of
these packs together in parallel
for a total of 1,500 watts. You can
also tack on additional solar
panels to help top off the batteries
quicker.
I always tell people that GoalZero
is the Apple of the solar industry.
Clean design. Easy to operate.
Reliable.
 Monthly Reviews from your Tiny House Neighbor
Little Cod from Navigator Stove Works
Looking into off-grid options for
heating my tiny house I decided
early on that I wanted a wood
stove. The challenge was to find a
stove that would fit the scale of
my house and not overheat it. An
Internet search led me to a small
independently owned marine
stove foundry, Navigator Stove
Works, located in Washington
State. Their stoves are based on a
few early 20th century castings
with EPA certification, cast iron
construction in plain or enameled
iron, and with the option of a
glass panel in the front. The two
most popular models are the Little
Cod which is 74% efficient and
the Sardine which is about 2/3 the
size and 86% efficient.
I initially was going to buy the
Sardine, but instead decided on
the Little Cod (LC) on the advice
of Andrew Moore, the proprietor
of Navigator since the larger
firebox on the LC is easier to
manage. I ordered the stove with
a projected wait time of about a
year after which my green
enameled stove arrived in the
mail. I was able to get it installed
ironically just in time for summer.
This fall though I finally had a
chance to break in the stove. On
first inspection it is even more
by Jenn Kliese
handsome and well built than the
pictures on their website show.
Starting the fire was a snap
using free scrap lumber cut into
12” sticks. (I could easily find
all the fuel for my stove for free
by following behind a house
builder or arborist.) The air
intake adjuster is simple to use
and extremely responsive in
controlling the heat output of the
small firebox. Once a coal bed is
built up though, the operator
must be very attentive at adding
more wood at the correct time.
Since it is small it’s easy to let
the fire go out. I’m also an
inexperienced woodstove
operator so I imagine this will
get easier with practice. The fire
burned very clean, no visible
smoke coming from the
chimney. The stovetop is big
enough to accept a teakettle or
small frying pan though if I plan
to cook with my LC I will
probably take off the removable
stainless steel sea rail. For added
flexibility, Navigator also offers
a neat little bronze cast drop-in
alcohol burner that allows you to
cook on the stovetop in the
warmer months with denatured
alcohol.
In closing I absolutely love this
stove. The style, scale, and
quality make it worth the price
tag by providing myself and
future generations with a
reliable, clean, cozy, and
renewable warmth. Thanks
Navigator!
Working indoors for most of the project
the house began to take real shape with
the addition of windows, metal roofing,
and wall panels.
The author
(left), his
beloved
Anya, and his
house with
full cedar
clapboard
siding (right).
After a period of renting in and enjoying the
beautiful states of California and Colorado, I had
essentially thrown away about $80,000 in 8 years!
With that money I could be well on my way to
owning a home by now, but I couldn’t decide
where I wanted to live and didn’t want to commit
to such a large purchase (and the debt).
In addition, I haven't been convinced that the
typical large home or purchasing concept was for
me.
Modern human habitation in this country is built
on a scale that is many times larger (in both
physical size and resource usage) than the human
scale. Houses are built more to store our stuff than
house our people.
In the past several years I have been increasingly
interested in many areas of sustainable living,
such as permaculture, alternative energy, earth-
based building techniques, minimalism,
community living, etc. These fields make clear the
need for housing that is human-sized, with
reasonable costs and minimal use of resources and
environmental impact.
All these factors came into focus one day when I
came upon an image of a tiny house on wheels
(Protohaus was my first love). It was something I
could potentially build for a few years’ rent
money, at a truly human scale; mobile so I could
choose where I wanted to live; and by nature of
it’s size, it was incredibly simple and energy
efficient. With so little indoor space, living in a
tiny house would force me to get outside more, to
be in nature and participate in community, thus
making me a more active and engaged person. My
life would be free from excess stuff, thus allowing
more room for both inner self-development, and
outer travel and exploration. I adopted a new
purpose and motto: “Less house. More life.”
I began to plan for my own tiny house, but I just
couldn’t find a model from any tiny house
company that had everything I wanted. Why was
everyone designing homes with a normal gabled
roof and pine car siding interiors? Where were the
“cool” looking designs for modern house lovers?

Installing the closed cell spray foam insulation.
I set out to design my own
tiny house, featuring more
windows for ample light and
solar heating, a low-slope
boxy shape with a modern
feel and converging roof
lines, a cantilevered loft,
interior work space (as a web
designer, I work from home),
and all the appliances and
amenities I need that would
be found in a much larger
home.
I sketched many different
floor plan configurations, and
I used Sketchup to model the
house in 3D. I consulted with
electricians and plumbers to
plan my utility systems. I did
countless hours of research to
see what others had done,
and to determine what I
wanted to do differently.
I had to answer questions
such as: What floor plan will
best match my space needs
(living with a partner and pet,
no less)? How much do I
want to spend on windows,
siding, insulations,
appliances, etc., and how
important is energy
efficiency to me? How do I
balance beauty, cost, ease of
installation, and availability
of materials? Not to mention,
what materials and
construction techniques will
hold tight during the speed
and bumpiness of highway
travel? What are my water,
cooking, heating, and
electrical needs and how do I
design systems to meet these
needs safely and effectively?
The answer to one question
often changed or provided a
partial answer to the next. It
was (and still is) a fun and
challenging puzzle to work
through.
It has taken a ton of research,
patience and tiring work to
complete each detail of my
house, but I would certainly
do it all again if I was
starting over today.
Understanding how each part
is built and how each system
functions, is an invaluable
experience in an increasingly
unstable world. unstable
world.
WELCOME TO THE
READER’S CORNER
Tiny House Magazine is the number one
tiny house publication on the market. Each
month its pages bring to life the vibrant,
exciting, diverse tiny house community.
And now you can be a part of it!
Do you have a story about your tiny house
that you would like to share? If so, we’d
love to read it. If chosen it will also be
published in the new Reader’s Corner
pages of a THM issue.
A typical Reader’s Corner story is a first-
person narrative written in simple,
dramatic, anecdotal style. The story may
be the writer’s own or written in the first
person for someone else (with their
permission).
Submit your story to kentgriswold(at)
gmail(dot)com
Here are some important
tips when writing a story:
■ Don’t try to tell an entire life story.
Focus on your life leading up to
your build, during your build, and
where you are now. The emphasis
should be on your personal
experience.
■ Don’t leave unanswered questions.
Give enough facts so that the reader
will know what happened and what
is currently happening. Use
description and dialogue to let the
reader feel as if he were there,
seeing the characters, hearing them
talk.
■ Please keep the word count under
1,000 words.

My personal experience shows [I believe] that
anyone can design their own home, source
materials, manage contractors or do most all the
construction, if they choose. There is incredible
interest and support for tiny houses and the
people building them. I’ve had experts and
community members offer me free consulting
and labor, discounts on materials, an indoor
space to build, lots of free advice, borrowing of
tools, and other support.
Currently my house is nearing completion. The
exterior is done and progress is being made to
finish the interior. Most of what is left is to build
the shower and bathroom features, the kitchen
cabinets and counters, to install appliances,
flooring, and all of the additional shelves and
storage solutions throughout.
I hope to have the house finished by late
November. My next big challenge is finding a
place to park and live. This is where I could use
your help.
This space open for
whatever, Kent.
I’ll be living in the house with my partner, Anjali,
and my little Shiba Inu, Anya. Anjali is going to
grad school in Petaluma, CA, so we are looking
for someone to host us (and our house, of course)
somewhere in Marin county – or a bit farther
North in the Sebastopol or Santa Rosa area.
Another option for us would be a bit farther
South into the Bay Area, preferably in Berkeley.
We have rent money and/or work-trade to offer
our future gracious host, and only a few simple
needs.
Please see http://tiny-project.com/parking-needed
for all the details. Much more info, including
photo documentation of the entire construction
process, can be found at http://tiny-project.com
or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/
TheTinyProject.
I hope you enjoy reading about my tiny house
project and in the spirit of community support
collaboration, I’m happy to answer questions or
discuss any part of the process with those
following a similar path.
 Owning Less, Intentionality, and Living
Your Best Life Possible by Joshua Becker

“Something deep in the human heart breaks at the thought of a life of mediocrity.” — C.S. Lewis

At the time, I was just looking for a little relief. I was weary of living paycheck-to-paycheck. I was weary
of spending so much money on myself knowing there were others that needed it more. And I was weary
of the time and energy being wasted on cleaning, organizing, repairing, and maintaining our home.

Our decision to intentionally live with fewer possessions was motivated by discontent. But regardless of
our motivation, shortly after the decision was made, we found countless life benefits: freedom,
productivity, rest, and a whole bunch more.

Though not expected, we also discovered intentionality in some very valuable places.

We found intentionality in our values and passions. Minimalism is the intentional promotion of
the things we most value and the removal of everything that distracts us from it. And while this looks
different for each person, it always requires its pursuer to further define his/her passions — and discover
intentionality because of it.

We found intentionality in our finances. Owning less did not provide us with more money (except
for the items we sold), but it did provide us with more opportunity for our money. Once we became
attracted to living with less and the hold of consumerism on our checkbook was broken, our money could
be used for more valuable purposes than the clearance rack at the local department store. New
opportunities to help others became available — and new decisions were forced because of it.

We found intentionality in our health. Six months after discovering minimalism, I was faced with a
pending birthday. After spending so many months removing the clutter from our home and life, the last
thing I wanted to receive was anything that could become clutter.
Brainstorming nonphysical gift ideas, I took notice of a new fitness gym that had just opened down the
street from my house. And for the very first time, I had the space, the motivation, and the finances to get
in shape and place priority on my physical body.

We found intentionality in our diet.  Interestingly enough, the last thing you want to put in your
body after working-out is junky, processed food. As a result, we started making healthier food choices:
more fruit, more vegetables, less sugar. I began to form new friendships with other simple living advocates
— many of whom modeled intentional diets. Over the years, we have experimented with many of their
ideas. Each time, we discover new foods to eat and increased understanding about the food we put in our
bodies.

We found intentionality in our spirituality. Minimalism offered the opportunity to slow down. It
also provided the motivation. As I began to realize how much of my thinking had been hijacked by
advertisements and a consumer-driven society, I was drawn to the practice of meditation and solitude. I
was drawn to find new voices for guidance. Being raised in a religious home, I was also drawn to find the
voice of a higher power — one who knew far more and could reorient my life around greater, more
eternal pursuits. This voice is still and small. And it requires each of us to slow down long enough to
listen.

We found intentionality in our relationships. Owning less opened the door for new relationships
in our lives. We were able to become more involved with our neighbors and our community. We were
more willing to have people in our home as preparing for their arrival became easier. We spent less time
shopping and cleaning and organizing and began to spend more time with the people who made life
enjoyable. Our capacity for and appreciation of relationships began (and continues) to grow.

We found intentionality in work. The longer we lived with fewer possessions, the more our view of
money began to change. It became less important. Our essential needs are met and we have enough left
over to practice generosity — what else is needed? As our view of money shifted, so did our motivation
for work. Work became less about the weekly financial deposit and more about the value and
contribution we could provide to peoples’ lives. It opened the door even wider for honesty, cooperation,
people, passion, and joy at work.

We found intentionality in our heart pursuits. Living with less opened the opportunity for
contentment, gratitude, and generosity to take root in our heart. It forced us to redefine happiness.
Happiness was no longer for sale at the department store. Instead, we discovered it was a decision
available to us all along. And once we stopped looking in the wrong places, we were able to find happiness
in the right places.

Minimalism was entered into because of discontent in our lives. But among its greatest gifts, it brought
us intentionality. And we couldn’t be more thankful.

Because if you only get one life to live, you might as well make it the best one possible.

Joshua Becker publishes the blog, Becoming Minimalist: Own less. Live more.
 10 Things to Do When Your Project
Takes Longer than Expected

In a recent interview about the documentary film that I made with Christopher Smith, TINY: A Story
About Living Small, a journalist said, "I have to ask: Did Christopher REALLY think he was going to finish
in three to four months? Do you think the documentary would've been less interesting if it had actually
been that easy?"

There's a scene early on in the film where I'm interviewing Christopher about how long he thinks it will
take to build the Tiny House. He says, "Oh, probably about three months." Spoiler alert: it took us much,
much longer to finish the house. I'm a project manager by trade, so I'm well-acquainted with projects
taking much longer (and being more expensive) than originally planned. In fact, I usually expect it.
Whenever I'm given an estimate by a designer or a developer for a project, I usually double — sometimes
triple — it. But I must admit that even I didn't realize exactly how much time it would take to complete
our Tiny House build!

And in the months that we've spent traveling with the film and meeting other people who are in the
process of building Tiny Houses, we've realized that this is a very common experience. Very few people
seem to truly know how much work and time will go into their Tiny House. Which truth be told, is
probably a good thing. It takes a lot of courage and a little bit of craziness to dive into such a big project,
and sometimes planning or over-thinking things can hold us back more than propel us forward. Plus, our
film probably would have been less interesting had everything moved along smoothly and accordingly to
plan. Where's the adventure in that?
Inspired by many of the questions that we've been asked since beginning this project, we've also recently
written and released an e-book about all of the things we wish we had known before beginning our Tiny
House build: http://tiny-themovie.com/ebook/

In this same vein, and because it's so common for building projects to take longer than originally expected,
I decided to compile a list of helpful advice for people who find themselves faced with this situation.
Though they were written based on the experience of building a Tiny House, they can apply to almost
any kind of creative project:

Ten Things to Do when your Project is Taking Longer than Expected.

1. Remember: this is the way it's been with every project, since the beginning of time.

Take it from a project manager: no one has ever completed a project exactly the way they planned, within
budget and on time. The unexpected ideas and snafus that we encounter along the way usually end up
improving our original ideas and improving the finished product. So don't be so hard on yourself ! Give
yourself room to breathe.

2. Find support, people to cheer you on and hold you to task.

It helps to have people to talk with, who understand your project and your motivations for taking it on to
begin with. They can help you to troubleshoot and give you perspective when you get stuck. Reach out to
friends who you think might appreciate and get excited by the project. Invite them out to your building site
and share your vision of how the project might turn out once you're done. Having a few people on your
side will go a long way when you need a little help and encouragement.

3. Connect with people who have gone through this process before, and who can give you
advice and encouragement based on their own experiences.

Having friends and family close by to give you moral support is a great thing, but it's equally important to
connect with people who have taken on similar project, and can give you advice based on their own
experiences. Fortunately, the Tiny House community is very active online. You can reach out to other Tiny
Housers by commenting on their blogs or sending an email or a message via Facebook. There are also
Tiny House meetup groups and in-person workshops offered around the country, which are great places to
make friends who are going through a similar project. These people will be there to commiserate with you,
and also to give you concrete advice about steps of the building process that you might be unsure about.

4. Don't be afraid to ask for help.

When we interviewed longtime Tiny Houser Dee Williams for our film, she told us that one of the biggest
things that she learned from building her Tiny House was learning to ask for help. Sometimes in our
culture, we can forget that being humble and admitting that we're in over our heads can be a relief, and a
sign of strength rather than a sign of weakness. Don't be afraid to reach out and ask for help, whether
concrete construction assistance or just moral support. In the end, it'll make your relationships feel
stronger and will help to build a sense of gratitude and belonging with those who helped you though.
Which is a huge part of what this Tiny House thing is all about.
5. Find ways of marking and sharing your progress

Sometimes the list of things left to do can overshadow the things that we have already accomplished.
Keeping a blog or sharing photos of the steps you have completed can help you to keep the excitement
going and share your accomplishments as you complete each new step. Don't be afraid to pull out your
phone and show photos of your in-progress house to strangers and friends. It's sort of like being a new
parent. And chances are most people will be excited and interested to learn about what you are doing and
how you're doing it.

6. Ask: what's holding me back?

Once you've stopped feeling so bad about things going slowly, it can also be helpful to sit down and take an
honest look at what exactly the hold-up is. Are you delayed because you are short on cash to keep things
moving? Do you need extra help at the building site? Is it taking longer than you expected to research and
learn about each step? Are you lacking motivation? Or obsessing over small details instead of moving
forward? None of these are bad things, but isolating them can help you to brainstorm solutions.

7. Give yourself a deadline

In the early stages of the project, I'd suggest being flexible with your deadlines as you figure out exactly
how long things will take you and what pace you are most comfortable with. But towards the end, the
finish line towards completing a Tiny House can be full of an endless list of small details. This list could
probably go on forever, so it's useful to set a hard deadline and to work towards that. Scheduling an Open
House or some kind of public event, even if it’s just for friends and family, can help to make that deadline
feel a little more official.

8. Take a break

Sometimes with big projects like this, you just need to take a big break to relax and regain your steam. I
recently talked to a friend who just finished the exterior of her Tiny House in Vermont, and decided to
close down the project for the winter months and come back to finish the interior of the house in the
spring. She wanted to take a break to travel, visit friends, to earn some money and regain a normal routine
in her life before diving back in to such a time-consuming project. During our Tiny House build,
Christopher and I frequently took breaks to film interviews with other Tiny Housers. You might be
working towards a deadline for a specific reason, but especially if you're in no rush to complete your
house, it makes sense to give yourself a rest and maximize enjoyment of the process.

9. Remind yourself of your original inspiration.

There's a point in every long project where we start to think, "What have I gotten myself into?!" This is
when it's helpful to remind yourself of why you thought this was such a good idea in the first place. Bring
out the coffee table books or log into Pinterest and spend some time looking at beautiful photos of other
Tiny Houses. Return to the stories that inspired you to begin this project, and remind yourself why you are
excited about it.
10. Enjoy the process.

As a Project Manager, I think one of the most valuable lessons that I learned from building our Tiny
House is to relax and enjoy the process of working on something, rather than being so obsessed with
deadlines and the finished outcome. Of course it does help to have someone thinking of ways to keep
things moving along, but focussing only on progress can take away from the actual experience that we're
having in the moment.

Despite a hectic schedule and the seemingly endless To Do list, Christopher and I both agree that the
actual act of building our Tiny House was one of the funnest things we'd ever done — and a huge stress
reliever. As soon as we arrived at the building site and set down our bottles of water and mugs of coffee,
the wide sky and fresh air took over, and time seemed to fade as we'd spend the next few hours focused on
the physical tasks of screwing, sanding, painting and fitting together the pieces of our slowly rising house.
Sometimes we'd work in silence for long stretches of time, looking up to laugh when the chickens came by
to peck through our sawdust, or stopping to offer each other a snack. At the end of the day, we'd be
sunburnt and hungry and exhausted — but we always went home feeling like we'd accomplished
something towards our bigger goal.

Being torn away from the computer — from the social media networks and email accounts that make up
our usual working days — made us feel healthier, calmer and more stress-free. Being outside, working with
our hands, focussing on the small details, and hanging out with each other made our quality of life so
much better on those days. The satisfaction of finishing was definitely worth it, but can never replace the
experience that we had as we went along. Looking back now, I see that even some of the low-points —
falling into a ditch in a snowstorm, getting caught in a heavy thunderstorm before the house was properly
dried-in — make for some great stories. I wouldn't trade that for anything.

Find more information about Christopher and Merete's Tiny House documentary on their website at
http://www.tiny-themovie.com

Learn more about their e-book, "A TINY Bit of Advice" here: http://tiny-themovie.com/ebook/
Click to view on Youtube

Purchase the iPad Version

Purchase the Print Book

 Tiny House DIY Ethos
by Logan Smith
loganblairsmith.com

In an age of experts and specialization most of us surrender to the complexity of a new problem and
pay to have a professional repair the issue for us. However, there is something about living small and
striving for simplicity that has changed my perspective and given me a sense of empowerment.
Experts call this improved “self-efficacy,” which means, you have greater confidence in your ability
to understand problems. When I run into a problem now I try simplify it and make it easier to
understand the parts that make up the whole. Recently I have noticed that many tiny house dwellers
share a similar do-it-yourself (DIY) ethos. Some people go so far as to build their own homes
without any construction experience. In this article I want to share a recent DIY success I had and
describe the limits I see to the DIY ethos.

I will be the first to admit that I use complex technology that I don’t fully understand daily. I do
prefer tools that I understand for obvious reasons, if it breaks I can fix it. Recently, I had a tragedy
occur to one of my favorite tools. I broke the glass touch-screen of my iPhone. After getting over my
feelings of clumsy ineptitude I realized I could learn how to repair my phone. After all, the glass is
only one part and parts can be replaced so how difficult could it be?

Even only twenty years ago it would have been difficult to accomplish a similar task because of the
lack of information. What tools are needed for repair? Where do you order these tools and parts for
the repair? How do you perform the repair? Experts were experts because they had more information
than others on a topic. With the advent of the Internet information age, combined with the altruistic
nature of other people documenting their knowledge in blog posts and YouTube videos, anyone can
address their ignorance. With the help of DIY websites called ifixit.com and powerbookmedic.com
I was able to order used parts and tools and learn how to fix my own device. Further, I used my new
skill and tools to repair my teenage cousin’s phone and teach her what I learned.

The success of my DIY project was fun to share with my cousin, however, it begs one big caveat:
What are the limits to DIY projects? When learning a new skill I try to imagine the risks of a
mistake. If I damage my iPhone during the repair, I can correct it with minimal consequence.
However, if I repair the brakes on my car and the repair fails, it may be fatal. You can certainly learn
how to perform complex tasks with greater risk, but I would advise getting an experienced teacher to
help check your work and lower your risk of harm.

My simple and smaller living philosophy doesn’t mean I have to grow every bit of food or repair
every tool that breaks. It means I enjoy living deliberately. By becoming smarter about my ignorance
I can help others and obtain more meaning from my contributions to my community. In this way I
can worry less about my personal value being tied to my financial spending power. I believe my
greatest contribution to society is not the money that I spend but how I spend my time.
 Imagine Your
Tiny House
New book with
over 200 interior
designs for tiny
houses. Use it to
help build your
own tiny home
ownership dream.

Purchase the eBook

Purchase the Print Book

Converted Transportation Bus
Tiny House Swoon

A decommissioned transportation bus converted into a

home in Even Yehuda, Israel.
Tali Shaul, a psychotherapist, and Hagit Morevski, an ecological pond water
treatment specialist, are friends who were looking for a creative project to
collaborate on.

In less than a week, they were the proud owners of an old public
transportation bus scrounged from the scrapyard. They brought in designer
Vered Sofer Drori, who assisted with tweaking the bus layout, measuring 2 by
12 meters.
Adapting their design ideas to fit around the existing windows, doors and the
large, interior wheel arches, the team was able to preserve the bus's unique
character, while also integrating a bathroom, rear bedroom, storage
throughout, a full kitchen and even hot weather luxuries like air-conditioning.

Now that the bus's swanky transformation is completed, the women are
looking to pitch this one-of-a-kind, motorized home to interested, local
buyers who might not be able to afford a house otherwise. With thousands of
public transportation buses going out of circulation annually worldwide, this
could be an efficient and stylish way to re-use them. More over at Oddity
Central and Xnet.

More info.
http://www.treehugger.com/interior-design/tali-shaul-and-hagit-morevski-
convert-public-bus-into-house.html
 Tiny House Listings

Backyard Quadra Small, Renovated Cottage

Price: $13,500 Price: $45,000
City: Loveland, CO City: Narragansett, RI

Student-Built Tiny House 20 acre ranch property

Price: $35,000 Price: $119,000
City: Healdsburg, CA City: Prineville, OR

Brand New Teardrop Floating Home

Price: $4,800 Price: $118,000
City: Marietta, GA City: Portland, OR
Marketplace
TINY HOUSE
magazine

Back Issues Click Here

www.tinyhousemagazine.co © Tiny House Magazine 2013