“A series of bluffs up the East Tin Hat Ridge presented better and better views the higher we climbed. This is the last open bluff before Tin Hat summit, a somewhat flat and large, though uneven rock outcropping. We decided to build the cabin here.…Below follows a chronology of the construction of the hut which, complete with upgraded trail, took some 30 days over a period of about three months.”

The photos is titled: The first dusting of snow on Tin Hat Hut at the end of October.

Mike Massulo Photographer

The huts are made with 2×2 Red Swedish Pine frames for durability and the 8×8 pressure treated legs and subframe hold up the structure. The decks are pressure treated to resist moisture. Pine boards are used for the interior and the roofs instead of plywood and each hut is finished with galvanized hinges and locks. Each hut is also painted with an environmentally friendly water-based paint.

Many of these beach huts in the UK have storage, seating and dining options, gas or electric burners and sinks. With a little ingenuity, maybe a bed and a bathroom can be added on to create a tiny house on stilts.

Beach huts have been popular in the United Kingdom for over 250 years. The original beach huts were tiny houses on wheels that Victorian sea bathers would use to change out of their clothes at the same time the hut was being pulled by a horse directly into the ocean. The bathers would then be able to step directly into the ocean without having to show their modest bathing gear which usually consisted of skirts, pants and pantaloons.

Later on the huts lost their wheels and became more permanent fixtures on the beach. Some beach huts have been owned by families for generations and some pre-war huts have sold at auction for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Photos courtesy of James Ward Beach Huts

By Christina Nellemann for the [Tiny House Blog]

Ryo has a very interesting blog and you will enjoy reading it. It is a journal of his experiences in building his hut, so make sure you go and visit it here. I’m going to let Ryo tell his story now.

This past summer, I bought 60 acres of vacant land in northern California, and have been living there part time since August. Sleeping in a tent was fine while it was warm, but as the weather turned colder and wetter, I decided I needed something bigger, warmer, and dryer. I knew I didn’t need or want much; just something big enough for me to relax, cook, and sleep in comfortably.

In keeping with my theme of “minimalist comfort,” I decided to go for something small, just 6 feet by 8 feet, though with some insulation for warmth, and windows for light. Of course, it also had to be sturdy enough to not collapse under the weight of snow. I looked at pre-fab sheds at hardware stores, but even the tiniest, most shoddily made ones cost $500-600, with no windows or insulation. Naively, I figured that I could build a nicer hut for under $300.

With only a rudimentary (and incomplete) design I put together using Google SketchUp, I began construction in late October when a couple of friends came out for a weekend to help with the raising, and then worked on it alone for another 7 or 8 days before it was ready to be moved into. I built a loft for my sleeping pad, which left all the floor open for use, and left enough space for me to put in a small counter table for my propane stove.

The actual cost has since ballooned past $500, but it’s mostly done, and has been more or less comfortable enough to live in through rain, snow, and 20 degree (f) nights. It’s not the prettiest thing, but I’m proud of the fact that I designed and built a nice, cozy and sturdy hut for relatively cheap, despite not having any formal training in carpentry or architecture.

Ryo’s hut is not quite finished as he still needs to finish off the roof, be sure and follow his blog to keep up with his progress. Thanks Ryo for sharing your story.

John Chapman from New Zealand made a neat suggestion for a weekly post here on the Tiny House Blog.

Photo Credit: HB – click on picture to see full size

The idea is to show a tiny house, cabin, or hut in a landscape. It may be a meadow, a snowscape, a cityscape or any other setting.

With this first one I am showing a log cabin in a perfect setting. I am a big fan of log cabins and this is my choice for this week. This cabin is located in Montana and I like the setting with the clouds in the background.

Saturday will become know as “Tiny House in a Landscape day” and I want to encourage you to submit your favorite photo that you find in your search for a perfect tiny house for yourself.

You can email your photo to tinyhouseblog(at)gmail.com. Replace (at) with @.

The picture should be as large as possible and if you can get permission from the photographer please do. If you are not able to communicate with the photographer, at least get their name so they can have the photo credit.

A description of the location would be nice also and why you chose this setting or what your dream is for your tiny house.

I hope this will become a popular post. Please comment below if you have any suggestions or other ideas.

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