Pine Hollow Log Homes
On my road trip to the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park, I had to stop and take some photos of this darling little log home just outside of Cedar City, Utah. The Mini Pine Hollow log home by Pine Hollow Log Homes is 11 by 16 feet with a full loft and a 4 by 16 foot covered deck.
Pine Hollow offers this tiny cabin as a kit and will deliver it within 250 miles of Cedar City. It takes about two weeks to have a kit delivered. This particular home was unfinished inside, but the Pine Hollow website should have updated photos of the Mini log home soon.
The Basic Package includes:
- Blueprints
- Treated skids
- Floor framing
- 6″ starter/finish logs
- 6″ wall logs, gable ends
- 8″ oly screws/construction adhesive
- Calking for windows and doors
- Loft floor joists
- 2×6 rough sawn window/door bucking
- Windows and door
- Deck framing
- Roof framing with OSB sheathing
- Porch posts
- Porch framing with OSB sheathing
- Milled 3×2 handrail
- Dormer framing with 1×6 tongue and groove siding
Cost: $8,781.00 (plus 6% Utah sales tax)
The Deluxe Package includes:
- All of the above items
- 1×6″ tongue and groove soffit
- Batt insulation
- 1×6″ tongue and groove ceiling
- 2×6″ tongue and groove loft floor
- 1×6″ tongue and groove porch sheathing
- Tar paper
- Steel roof, trims, flashing and screws
Cost: $10,865.00 (plus 6% Utah sales tax)
Pine Hollow offers other log home kits, most around 1,000-2,000 square feet.
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Small Home Oregon
Over the holiday weekend, I visited Portland and the tiny house of Walt Quade of Small Home Oregon. Walt builds and ships lovely 325 square foot homes anywhere within the state of Oregon. Walt has been a residential designer/builder since 1992 and is dedicated to building smaller homes. This tiny house is built on a foundation in his backyard.
“With a small home, you have to take the extra effort to create an efficient space,” he said.
His tiny house feels a lot larger than 325 square feet and contains all the amenities of a larger home including a full bath and bedroom. I was impressed with the architectural details of the curved ceiling, the beautiful lighting and the use of a Murphy-style bed in the bedroom. The small home can be built with a loft or just a ceiling storage area.
Walt has built two tiny houses for other people who use them as recreation homes. He offers five floorplans and several configurations, and he can customize the space to whatever the buyer wants. Each house can also be placed on any type of foundation, has a 55 lb snow load and can withstand 110 mile an hour winds.
“You can put them on the beach or in the desert. Basically, they can go anywhere.” he said.
Walt is an advocate for off-the-grid living as well, and encourages buyers of his homes and plans that they look into several off-grid options for power, sewer, water and heat. His tiny house now is heated by small wall heaters, but he said that they can be built to use radiant heat.
The buildings come with a 1 year warranty and have been inspected and approved by the state of Oregon. Right now, Walt is only shipping within Oregon. Each tiny house costs around $40,000 and will cost around $4,000 to ship. Plans cost $265 per set. Walt also builds custom teardrop trailers if you feel the need to travel away from your tiny house.
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EcoScape Outdoors & Zoe Outdoors
I recently came across these two companies who design and build small, whimsical backyard and garden
cottages for a very affordable price. EcoScape Outdoors in San Diego, Calif. and Zoe Outdoors in Salem, Ore. are both run by different members of the same family and offer a wide array of unique customizable garden cottage studios and outdoor living products. Their tiny cottages are made with prefabricated wall panels, a roof truss system and floor system that a certified installer can complete in about three or four days.
Both EcoScape Outdoors and Zoe Outdoors are factory direct manufacturing companies which can save the buyer about 50 percent of the construction cost of one of these homes. They offer three sizes: a 10 x 12 cottage for $7,450, a 10 x 16 cottage for $8,450 and a 10 x 20 cottage for $9,450. These tiny homes also offer the following:
- High quality northwest building materials
- Insulated vinyl windows
- Low E glass insulated windows
- Steel insulated entrance door
- Natural, oiled cedar finish
- Architectural roof shingles with a 25-year warranty
- One year manufacturer’s warranty
Neither company provides wiring or plumbing, but a heavy duty commercial grade extension cord for electrical power is provided with each cottage. Having a contractor or electrician wire your cottage is an option after the cottage is built.
Zoe Outdoors also works with churches, shelters and other community organizations to provide cottages for the homeless and families who need emergency shelter. Zoe Outdoors will soon be offering a cottage on wheels.
They also offer distributorship opportunities for someone who would like their own tiny cottage business. They have showrooms in several areas of the country including Seattle, Boise, Tulsa and Las Vegas.
Trailer Version
Trailer Version
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Straw Bale Women
There is something feminine about straw bale homes. The warmth, curves and color of these natural spaces act like a hug when you walk in the door. While these profiled straw bale homes are small rather than tiny (most are around 400-800 square feet) they were envisioned, designed and built by women that I feel epitomize the beauty of the straw bale house.
Most followers of strawbale building and other natural building techniques know of the Canelo Project and Athena Swentzell Steen.
She and her husband Bill run this small non-profit organization that is dedicated to the exploration and development of living systems, including growing food and building homes that creates friendship, beauty and simplicity.
Straw bale cottage at the Canelo Project
Interior of straw bale cottage at the Canelo Project
Their latest book is Small Strawbale, which covers everything from building walls and open shelters to small and exquisite homes built out of straw bales.
Carolyn Roberts also wrote a book detailing the trials and triumphs of building her own straw bale home outside of Tucson, Ariz. A House of Straw: A Natural Building Odyssey profiles the challenges of passing her county inspections, the issues of building a house as a single woman while trying to raise two children, and the wonders of creating her own space and the friends she made along the way. Her website breaks down the cost of each part of the building process, and her total for the home (land not included) came to approximately $50,000. Because of the thick walls and use of passive solar, her electric bills average about $35 a month.
Interior of Carolyn Robert's straw bale house
Caroline Coalter Wilson built her house, Paca de Paja, to also serve as a small bed and breakfast. She works at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and runs the B&B part time. She was previously a park ranger and naturalist with the National Park Service and has written several publications on natural history.
Paca de Paja
I really admire these women who have tackled the building process from the ground up and utilize the beauty of natural products in their homes. More information for my fellow female dreamers and builders can be found in the book
The House That Jill Built.
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