Tiny House Blog

Summerwood Products in Toronto, Canada has a fantastic website that is very detailed, and provides some excellent foder for the tiny house enthusiast. Summerwood sells finely crafted outdoor products such as garden sheds, pool cabanas, gazebos, garages, playhouses, home studios and spa enclosures, but I really fell for their tiny backyard cabins which don’t have to stay in the backyard.

You can buy a pre-cut kit, a pre-assembled kit or the plans for the tiny cabins. The pre-assembled format is designed for quick, convenient assembly, with most of the components pre-assembled and ready for you to put together on site. The pre-cut format is ideal for the consummate do-it-yourselfer. Summerwood designs the product, purchases and cuts all the materials, builds the doors and windows and ships the pieces to the buyer. Pre-cut structures will likely require about 50% more assembly time, but they are also less expensive and may offer greater satisfaction once the job is done.

Canmore Cabin 16x16

The tiny cabins range in price from about $9,000 to $30,000 for pre-cut, to $10,000 to $34,000 for pre-assembled. The plans are about $160. Until December 31, 2008, they are offering free plans. The buyer can customize their own cabin on the website.

Canmore Cabin

I really fell in love with the Canmore cabins which come in both small and large sizes. Less than 144 square feet for the small and 145 and up for the large. The largest is 20×20 feet. The Canmore has about 16 styles to choose from. Some of the larger styles of cabins are the Cheyenne cabins which are from 168 to 540 square feet and the Mountain Brook cabins from 168 to 512 square feet. The Breckenridge cabins are 12×18 or 14×24 feet.

The Summerwood website also lists the tools you will need to build your own tiny cabin, your assembly time, types of foundations to use, a breakdown of the cabin dimensions and materials and cut-away views of the construction. They offer different floor plans, 3D tours of the structures and options for customization. The homes can be fitted with electrical, plumbing and insulation.

After purchasing the base model, materials upgrades are available, including:

• Cedar siding to beautifully finish interior walls and ceilings
• 2-sided partition walls to create separate rooms and more private spaces
• Steel doors for a modern and stylish look
• Insulation for warmth and protection
• An array of available cedar upgrades for rafters, trusses, studs, floor boards, and roof boards

Summerwood ships to anywhere in the world, but if you live in the U.S. shipping is included in your kit price.

By Christina Nellemann

Breckenridge Cabin

Canmore Cabin

Camore Cabin

Cheyenne Cabin

Cheyenne Cabin

Canmore Cabin 20x20

Telluride Cabin

Telluride Loft

A portable countertop dishwasher eliminates dirty plates while saving energy and a little of the environment, too. Plus if you have a tiny house space is very valuable so a small dishwasher is a must.

Wash up to four standard place settings (10.5″ max diameter) with the convenience of operating right on your countertop. At just over 17″ tall, this EdgeStar portable countertop dishwasher (model: DWP45ES) has a low profile that fits comfortably under most cabinetry—no permanent installation required.

ENERGY STAR certified, the DWP45ES dishwasher consumes a measly 200 kWh/Year, or approximately 61% less energy than similar countertop dishwashers. And in addition to saving energy, this model wastes very little water as well. The DWP45ES has been designed to use less water per load than hand washing.

Extremely easy to operate, the EdgeStar DWP45ES countertop portable dishwasher features full digital controls with delayed start option, a stainless steel interior, a powerful spray arm, an included silverware basket, a rinse agent dispenser to minimize water spotting on dishes, and an internal water heater with sanitary wash cycle that eliminates germs and bacteria by boosting water temperature up to 158°F. The included quick connect faucet adapter and five foot hose make hookup to almost any faucet simple.

To see a selection of tiny portable dishwashers starting at $239 and two different sizes go to Compact Appliances.

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I wanted to wish all the Tiny House Blog readers a wonderful holiday season and a Merry Christmas!

Thank you for making the Tiny House Blog a popular place to visit. Please continue to come and visit to learn more about tiny house living.

I am looking forward to great new year as I am able to dedicate more time to tiny houses and this blog.

Merry Christmas!

If you are looking for the perfect tiny floating home, take a look at berkeley-engineering’s Cape Codder. Built with a 10 foot beam and either 20 or 24 foot length this cool little home is neat to look at and very practical and easy to build.

The Cape Codder is the result of many requests for a liveaboard/cruising houseboat. The Cape Codder makes it possible to have you own private waterfront home.

The Cape Codder is a home. It has a couch and end tables, a diningroom set, a complete galley and a head with a shower and toilet! There is plenty of cupboard and drawer space. The inside ladder leads up to the sleeping loft, which has room for full sized mattresses and more storage space. The forward wall opens up to enjoy your own private sundeck. A roof skylight lets you sleep under the stars.

Plans are available for the Cape Codder for $225 and you can buy them at the berkely-engineering site. Click on the Order Here link. Berkely-Engineering also makes a smaller trailerable houseboat called the Aqua Casa. I will feature this tiny floating home in another post.

Cape Codder Rear View

Cape Codder Open From Dock

Back Door

Living Room

Dining Room and Kitchen

Upstairs Bedroom

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During the holidays a tiny house can get cluttered up with decorations that are not sized or scaled to the space. When decorating for the holidays, people who live in tiny houses need to think small.

In a tiny house, the key is keeping it simple and close to nature. A red ribbon on the door, a few lights and some pine boughs will make a bigger impact in a tiny house than in a larger house.

Tabletop trees are probably the best use of space. They can also be placed on bookshelves or windowsills. You can even get a rosemary bush that is shaped like a small tree. Some florists and hardware stores will have tiny tabletop trees available.

Tiny Tree Made from Cuttings

When decorating the tree, it is best to stay with natural items that you can recycle or compost later, so you don’t have to store them. Decorate your tree with nuts, driftwood, seashells, popcorn, cranberries, ribbons, feathers, Japanese paper cranes, pine cones, flowers, leaves or painted eggshells. Maybe even knit or crochet small socks or gloves to hang on the tree and then donate them afterward to a local shelter.

Natural Ornaments

Pinecone Ornaments

I’m sure that Charlie Brown would be happy with these tiny Christmas trees:

Christmas Trees for Small Spaces

How to Make a Tiny Christmas Tree from Cuttings

How to Decorate a Small Christmas Tree

Natural Holiday Decorations

And, for people who celebrate Chanukah, you can even make a homemade Menorah.

By Christina Nellemann

Manzanita Branch Menorah

Have a wonderful (and tiny) holiday season.

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Not quite a tiny home, but fits very nicely in the small homes group. This cottage located in Poulsbo, Washington belongs to Candace and Geoff Daigle. The cozy cottage is a 900 square foot home perched above the water which gives you the feeling of living in a floating home.

It’s our perfect escape – a magical water front cottage on 100 feet of Miller Bay. The home’s warm cedar shingle siding, fir windows and doors echo the natural setting. Enjoy the company of eagles, heron and kingfishers. Kayak, fish or just relax and take in the view.

After sixteen years of living in this beautiful home Candace and Geoff Daigle are putting it on the market. If you would like this cozy cottage go here to get more information.

Living Room

Kitchen

Bedroom

View from Cottage

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David Fernandez of Timberlast is introducing the new S.M.A.R.T. Kits.

The S.M.A.R.T kit concept is to provide a small affordable,impressively strong,super insulated and attractive home kit shell that you the owner complete. S.M.A.R.T kits allow for a great deal of flexibility and savings by allowing you to control the pace and the materials you choose to finish with. We provide and help (with your labor) to erect the frame and insulation panels in 2-3 days , we then leave you to finish the rest. As much or as little as you like, using the finish materials of your choice.

A traditional handcut timberframe structure in two sizes and the prepared insulated panels(SIPs).

M1620 16′ X 20′ (320 square feet)+ 160 square foot loft. $21,900.00
M1624 16′ X 24′ (384 square feet) +192 square foot loft. $23,900.00
M1212 12′ x 12′ (144 square feet)  Kit addition                   $ 9, 700.00

Visit Timberlastsmartkits.com to learn more.

Floor Plan

Loft View

Addition 12 x 12

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Is this the 60’s version of the modern Tumbleweed Tiny House? I can’t say for sure that the pictures on the side are the actual interior of this mobile tiny house, but if they are someone has taken the time to fix up a real nice place for themselves to live.

The porch roof on the front tells me that this home is not going to be moved to often without a little effort and with the age of the truck you probably will not be driving across the country with this home.

Great idea for a retreat or small home. You can take something vintage and modernize it to fit your needs.

Update: I want to thank Malmö from Sweden for the update below.

This blog post entitled in Swedish really grabbed my attention in while catching up on my feeds in NetNewsWire. Yes, Google Translate is correct this time. “Mobila Hem Sedan 1963? really means “[KABE] mobile homes since 1963?

And, yes, in northern Europe Kabe is a well-known Swedish brand-name for caravans and recreational vehicles.

On it’s webpage http://www.kabe.se/ the company presentation proudly mentions Kabe has been around since the early sixties.

I think we can assume the picture represents the journey the company has taken from the first efforts to the luxury of today.

Modern Day KABE

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A few weeks ago I was visiting the small town of Virginia City near my home in Washoe Valley, NV and I came across a few small park models that I had never seen before. The models were available for short or long term rental in a small trailer park above the famous Virginia City cemetery.

The Sportsman Series from Superior Park Model Homes were smaller than other park models I have seen, but still had everything you need in a tiny home.

The one I visited had a main room with a ladder to a small loft, a back bedroom and a small RV style bathroom. The walls were paneled in warm cedar and it had the most recent appliances. On that gray, rainy day, it was very cozy.

Superior has four different model homes to choose from and about 23 different floorplans. Each model is about 11 feet wide and range in length from about 16 feet to about 40 feet long.

The Sportsman Series also offers:

• 10? Detachable Hitch
• Triple Axles, 2 Brake W/ 1 Idle and New Tires
• 2 X 6 Floor Joists 16? O.C.
• 3/4? Tongue & Groove Sub-Floor with a 50 year Limited Warranty
• Insulated Heat Duct In Floor
• 2 X 4 Exterior Walls 16? O.C.
• 2 X 4 Interior Walls 16? O.C.
• Windzone III, Tie Down Brackets Welded to the Frame
• 29 Gauge Colored Metal Roof or 20-Year Architectural Shingles
• R-22 Insulation in Floors, R-13 in Walls, R-22 in Roof
• Real Wood Log Exterior Stained, Sealed and Caulked

By Christina Nellemann

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Living at large in a Tiny House

by Carol Estes

“The more intentional you are in your choices, the more every change makes room for more changes … I just love that there’s this endless potential.”
—DEE WILLIAMS

Read the full article here at Yes! Magazine. Thank you Christina for bringing this to my attention.