Tiny House Blog

True North Log Homes designs this log cabin for a secluded hideaway and for hunting and fishing weekends. It’s small stature provides a down-to-earth respite for the whole family. From sports adventures to quiet soul-searching to intimate weekends away, the cabin helps to keep life simple. There are two bedrooms and one bath, and the floor plan is simple and compact enough to fit on nearly any property. Though this is not considered tiny it is a small cabin worthy of checking out.

Amber provided me with photos of the construction of that home, as well as the floor plan showing the modifications. This home is 864 sq ft with a full basement and a flat ceiling. There is a timber frame entry porch on the front. The overall dimensions of the cabin are 34′ x 24′. The modifications are internal. Now, there is only one bedroom with an ensuite. The plan on the True North site allows for two bedrooms, but according to the company they are fully customizable! So, this plan works for everything from a hunting retreat to a retirement home and everything in between. This particular log home is made from 8″ logs. Continue Reading »

This week’s Tiny House in a Landscape almost does not look real and you have to follow the link below to see all the photographs. I had the hardest time deciding which one to post and probably should have put them all up.

This is called the Squish Studio and is designed by Saunders Architecture. The building is 322 square feet and is a contemporary artist studio located on Fogo Island, which is in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

The Squish Studio’s white angular form, situated on a rocky strip of coastline that could rival Italy’s western coast offers sharp contrast to the traditional vernacular architecture of the nearby picturesque community of Tilting. As its architect, Todd Saunders, has commented on the studio’s siting, “…it is out of sight, but close.” The approach to the front entry of the studio is dramatic, as the most southern end of the studio rises twenty feet above the ground, in sharp contrast to its most northern tip that measures only half that dimension.

Visit this website to get all the details, photos, floor plan, etc. http://www.homedsgn.com/2012/05/14/squish-studio-by-saunders-architecture/

Photo by: Bent René Synnevåg

I recently became acquainted with the Mandala Custom Homes company located in Nelson, B.C., Canada when they featured a small round cottage home on Facebook. I got in touch with Rachel and discovered that along with the cottage they also had a tiny house design. One had even won a design contest recently.

The Bonsai has not been built yet, but there is a lot of interest and hopefully it will soon go from a concept to home. Rachel shared some information about it with me and I thought I would pass it on to you. Maybe you will be the first person to build this cool tiny house.

The Bonsai 104/150 square feet (with a loft). Though Manadala specializes in building round homes, they are excited about this design.  If the building is not used for a residence, but used for a studio, it may not require a building permit. We suggest you contact the building department for details. On many levels this home is more accessible to more people. Continue Reading »

Rosie has been SOLD!

We are ‘snowbirds’ from Canada, 60 something, who have always tried to have a small footprint. We were environmentalists and vegetarians long before it was the ‘in thing’. In our retirement we sold all the trappings of our old lives and travelled in a van and backpacking tent. That proved to be the most liberating experience of our lives! It came to be though, that we wanted a home base in Canada so we bought a bit of land and built…by ourselves…as small a cottage as the local bylaws would allow. Winters, however, have been spent in Texas pursuing our simple passion for birding. For this purpose we bought an 1983 Airstream Excella, that we named Rosie, to refurbish and be our winter home. We have been comfortably living in ROSIE’s 232 sq ft for 4 months a year. She has everything we need and more. We enjoyed the challenge of making her liveable and easy to maintain.

A change came over us this winter though. We decided that we needed less space! We would like to explore but do not own a tow vehicle for Rosie. We needed to think even smaller and lighter to make more travel affordable; we needed to think even simpler to make boondocking possible. So, to that end, we have purchased a used 17 ft Casita Spirit Deluxe, already named Megg (for the EGG that it is ), that our Toyota can easily tow. We will be downsizing to 102 sq ft! Our plans are to stay down south for even longer periods, maybe up to 6 months. We’ll have the option of summer trips up north too. Continue Reading »

This week’s Tiny House in a Landscape is a little different. It is a tiny house under construction in a landscape. The photograph was taken by Dave Stonehouse of StoneHouse Woodworks in the Rockies of British Columbia, Canaada. Dave says: I live in Golden, British Columbia in the Rocky Mountains. The picture of the cabin under construction is actually in my back yard. We have a couple of acres. My company is Stonehouse Woodworks. I build log and timber cabins, do finishing carpentry, and build furniture (pretty much anything with wood).

You have to wear a few hats to stay busy in a small town, but I’ve always managed to.

Thank you Dave. I plan to feature this cabin again when it is completed, so, readers stay tuned.

Photo Credits: Dave Stonehouse

Continue Reading »

This is our 13 foot 1974 Boler we have been traveling in around Western Canada, the US, and Mexico since August. We can pull up anywhere, unload our cactus display stand and start selling our handmade guitar straps! We also have an online store at www.bluedogguitars.com.

When we tire of traveling, our plan is to set up our boutique guitar store in Vancouver BC, with the Boler in the showroom as a private space for people to try out guitars, as the acoustics in the Boler are amazing.

(Photo Credits Jenn and Paul)

Sleeping arrangements require the shuffling of a lot of the contents into our car, as we have modified the bed to become almost king-size with the use of two extra-large coolers, so the process makes it more of a camping lifestyle than your typical RV experience. We also have two rather large dogs, so a bivouac in a Walmart parking lot, in the rain, makes for some strategic planning. Continue Reading »