This tiny garage conversion by Martin John Brown of Portland, Oregon attracted my attention because of the wonderful styling and details in such a small space. Check out that great purple color!

With architect John Perkins, Martin converted a detached garage into a beautiful 400-square foot house for his mother-in-law to live in. In his blog, bottleworld, John documents the process, including the issues he had with the city codes while trying to create an environmentally friendly tiny dwelling.

The house includes a curved kitchen counter, round windows, a loft and skylight and an alternating tread staircase. The staircase allows comfortable ascents and descents in a considerably steeper pitch than a standard stair. They are straight, making transporting long items (like mattresses) easier than on a small-diameter spiral stair.

It is interesting how Martin talks about how adding one extra foot in such a small space makes such a big difference. In most average sized homes, an extra room is usually needed for more impact on the living space.

The cost for the conversion came to $75,000 including $7000 for permit and $4000 for architect.

By Christina Nellemann

Photos by Martin John Brown

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