Tiny House Blog

For anyone with vision, a few building skills and a great set of tools, several of these portable buildings by Dix Enterprises in Wichita, Kansas can become a personalized tiny house. Better Built Portable Storage Buildings by Dix are outdoor storage sheds, barns, garages, cabins and offices that are built onsite in Kansas and then delivered by truck. At that point they can be customized by the customer. Dix claims all of their portable barns, sheds, cabins and garages are built to hold up under heavy use and provide a lifetime of service. Most of the buildings are for storage, livestock and gardening, but three of their designs may make a great tiny house: the Lofted Porch, the Portable Casita and the Mini Cottage.

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Alice sent me this listing of a quaint little log cabin on an island in British Columbia, Canada. Built in 1986 this 241 square foot cabin with loft on a small piece of property and a very good price of $89,000 Canadian dollars is a dream cabin which I wouldn’t mind if I could make it my own.

If your dream is to live on an island do some research on Galiano Island in British Columbia. Below is the listing and a few more pictures.

RUSTIC LOG CABIN WITH LOFT ON GALIANO ISLAND serviced with power and phone. The property is a small lot (plus or minus 0.1 acres). Located adjacent to Bluff Park. Court Ordered Sale (foreclosure). Separate small bath house with a shower, toilet, and sink serviced with water, and septic. Telus high speed internet is available at the property. To view the listing and more photos go here. Continue Reading »

Keith from Indiana sent me his story about his little log cabin that he built himself with no prior knowledge. Here is Keith’s story:

I built the cabin in 1990 with the help of a friend, both of us having zero prior knowledge or construction skills.

After reading three main books (Building a Log Cabin From Scratch by Ramsey, The Wilderness Cabin by Rutstrum and How to Build Your Home in the Woods by Angier) I decided the quickest and easiest would be a “trappers tilt” style, where the fat ends of the logs all put one way toward the front form the pitch for the roof as they go up higher.

These were considered temporary in their day and were built directly on the ground, but I used concrete piers and mine has an insulated floor.

I had purchased the wooded land a year before (50 acres) for a bargain price in southern Indiana and spent the year ‘90 working every single weekend and any vacation time felling trees, clearing the space and taking bark of of cedars and jack pines.

It was under roof by October 1st and I’ve been using spare time since to finish out the inside when the mood strikes. The first four courses of logs are cedar with the remainder in jack pine. We used spray foam between the logs and then put PermaChink on top of that.

The roof is very low, anyone over 5 foot 9 has problems with the middle log rafter! Since I’m only 5 foot 6, I don’t worry about it. I had a shed roof on it but it started to deteriorate and about 9 years ago I put a galvanized steel roof over that. It’s never leaked and the only problem I have is mice once in a while.

The stove was the smallest I could find but it sweats you out pretty quick if a window is not left open. However, one occasion it was 30 below and it took nearly 4 hours for the place to get up to only 50 degrees, even the oil lamp fuel was frozen!

The floor is parquet oak over standard subfloor plywood. It’s a pretty cozy place as long as it’s just me or one additional person. Any more than that and it’s crowded! Storage is at a minimum, so we pack light.

We only used cedars (which are plentiful and grow like weeds) or man-planted jack pines and used every bit of them that we could. I also later built an outhouse by my self. No pictures of it, but it’s not much to look at, regular stick-style and has a 5 foot deep shaft. It was built before they changed the laws against them and is now grandfathered in. It’s located as to not interfere with any water source and we use hydrated lime when we visit. It has a steel roof as well. It never smells very bad, even in the summer.

My only regret is not putting a few more courses of logs or not simply making a 12/12 pitch roof with a sleeping/storage loft. But I was a lot younger and wasn’t thinking as long term as I should have. Now, at 50, I can see more clearly what should have been done. However, we were lucky to get it as finished as we did because it’s three hours away from where I live and very remote with no power or running water. Ask me how much I like tent camping – I still am not fond of it after doing it every weekend for nearly a year. And this is coming from a guy who used to love camping more than anything!

Here is an entertaining video Keith put together that shows the interior. Thanks Keith for sharing your story with us.

by Kent Griswold (Tiny House Blog)

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Lyle Congdon a graphic designer who runs her business, Wild Spirit Designs in Colorado is also stepping into the tiny house and cabin business and will soon be opening Jalopy Cabins. She contacted me the other day to tell me about this jalopy cabin.

Jalopy Cabins gets its name from the old jalopy truck pictured at the bottom of this article. Lyle has one completed cabin pictured here and it is for sale. Here is how Lyle describes it:

This cabin is 140 square feet. We are asking $10K and can finish it out however someone may want.

I personally think it would make a great guest cabin or art studio/office as is. Currently wired with electricity, and does not have plumbing. We would consider selling it with some of the items in the picture (ie. wood stove, counter/storage).

We’ve moved it once before on a flat bed trailer so I feel pretty confident we could ship anywhere, will just be a matter of cost depending where the person lives. We are located in Southwestern Colorado (Pagosa Springs to be exact!) for a point of reference.

The Jalopy Cabins website is still being developed, if you are interested in getting more information you can email Lyle at info@jalopycabins.com.

Jalopy Cabin Kitchen/Desk

Jalopy Cabin Stove

Jalopy Cabin Bed

Jalopy Cabin Deck

The Jalopy the cabin is named after

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One of my own dreams was to have a log cabin in the mountains, for me the dream has not been fulfilled but for David Harell from Mississippi his dream has become a reality.

David originally alerted me in a comment that he was building his cabin and had started a blog to follow the process. Thinking I would let him get a good start, I waited to write a post on his progress. Now David has the cabin completed and I am finally telling you about it. Thanks for your patience, David. Here is the link to his Old Cabin Place Blog and following are some pictures and a few comments to explain his experience.

The cabin is located in Northeast Mississippi, on the edge of the Holly Springs National Forest which is abundant with wildlife and other natural resources. The cabin is 12′x24′  and is located in the woods and was built by David and his friend Casey Cappleman.

Another great Saturday for log building, Got the cable for the hoist raised up high enough probably to finish the walls now. We peeled three logs, placed two of them.

Saturday we woke up to about 2-3 inches of snow on the ground! Although it didn’t last all day, it was really nice to see it all white outside. We went out an installed the cedar rails we made this week in the shop.

We were able to install the remainder of the tin on the roof Saturday, a wonderful accomplishment that will keep our work safe and dry from now on!

This is the story of a kitchen. Once upon a time there was a lonely bare spot in the corner of a cabin, far, far away in the deep woods. Within the course of one week, however, this lonely bare spot was magically transformed into a functional, usable kitchen. The cabinets are made from cedar slabs (leftovers from the sawmill). It provides a very rustic look.

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In an earlier post we looked at the SingRV, their portable tiny home. In this post I want to show you Sing’s Log Cabin. Sing logs are made with Patented Sing honeycomb core for insulation that provides a warm, natural, comfortable and energy efficient home.

Sing has two type of logs, the Sing Square Log and the Sing Eco Log. The Sing Square Log wall has eight-inch thick wall with 3 inch insulated Sing Honeycomb sandwiched between two pieces vertical grain heavy plank cedar or Fir it is the most straight hi precision log ever made in log home history.

Sing Log Cabin

The Sing Eco-Log is made of a patented 3 inch thick urethane honeycomb core sandwiched between kiln dried cedar or Douglas fir double Tongue and Grove heavy plank. It is the most dimensionally stable, insulated, lightweight log ever designed at low cost.

With Sing Eco-Log you get a log-home feel at a lesser price with the same easy to build building system as the original Sing log.

To learn more visit the Sing Log Home site and visit their gallery and learn all details of this construction alternative.

Sing Logs

Log Construction

Walls and Roof

Almost Completed

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One of the neat things about keeping things small is the beauty of simplicity. I came across this neat Adirondack cabin and just love the basic style of the lean-to converted into a small cabin, simply by adding a log front, windows, and a door. The hand scribed logs are chiseled for a perfect fit and the craftsmanship is outstanding. The inside dimensions of this lean-to are 12 feet by 8 feet.

A lean-to can be a refuge, a retreat, a shelter, a lunch spot, an inspiration point, and a home away from home. To learn more visit the Adirondack Lean-to Company.

Natural Log Rv’s are an alternative for our Canadian neighbors who are interested in owning a Tumbleweed or Tortoise Shell Home but can’t afford to have them shipped to Eastern Canada. Built in Ford Bank, New Brunswick, Canada by Ron Hessel, the Natural Log Rv’s are pioneering in the field of Log Rv’s.

These units are designed to be used year round, with fully equipped kitchens, cooking facilities, sleeping quarters, full cathedral ceilings exposed hand crafted beam work, wood fire places, power independence and much more….

Sitting on steel trailers, these units are four season friendly, and require no extra taxes when parked on any property. Imagine a portable unit increasing in value instead of decreasing…  Everything changes when you step into the world of portable log cabins!

They have two models to choose from, “The Beak Away” and “The Stay Away.”

My favorite is “The Stay Away” which you can see a few pictures of here. I contacted Natural Log Homes and they are very busy building full size homes and lodges at the moment but promised to get back to me in the near future to give me more information on pricing etc. They also make a mobile cabin which would also work if you have a piece of land to park it on.

If you are interested in one of these go to the Natural Log Homes web site and contact them for complete details.

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Cub Creek Elevation

Cabin Plans

I recently came across this great site called Stone Mountain Cabins with some wonderful tiny/small cabin plans.

“I believe each person searches for solitude and comfort in many ways. I find comfort in the simple pleasures of life – a great book and the company of family. But most of all I find comfort in this great place of renewal, the cabin.”

Ken Pieper - Designer

Stone Mountain Cabins

My favorite is the Cub Creek a 2 bed and 2 bath 681 Sq. Ft. cabin. Find your favorite by going to his collection. Maybe you will find your dream home with one of Ken’s plans.

Visit more plans at Stone Mountain Cabins here.

Cub Creek Floorplan

It Was Once a Children’s Playhouse, and Is Not Much Bigger Now

The tiny hand-hewn log cabin not far from Deep Creek Lake looks like it’s always been perched on its windswept ridge above rolling fields and forests. As smoke pours out of the chimney and snowflakes swirl, it’s hard to imagine that the little house came within hours of being bulldozed into oblivion in a county nearly three hours away.

After being salvaged, moved and improved by Kelly and Rick Stieff, the cabin has a new lease on life as a weekend getaway. The Leesburg family, including four offspring ages 16 to 27 — two children are hers, two are his — gather there year-round to hike, kayak and fish. This time of year, the main attractions are skiing and snowboarding, starting right outside the cabin. Spruced up with radiant-heated chestnut floors, fieldstone fireplaces, a spa bath and built-in racks for Uggs and ski boots, the house — bigger now, but still compact — packs a lot in.

The cabin’s odyssey began six years ago when Kelly Stieff, who had long wanted a place in the country, dragged her husband to the Log & Timber Home Show in Chantilly. Wandering among the exhibitors selling newly built log homes and all the building materials and furniture to go in them, they got wind of the sad story of a one-room hand-hewn house of white pine and hemlock about to be demolished to make way for a housing development.

To read the rest of the story and see a neat slide show of the house click HERE.

Article written by Jura Koncius Washington Post Staff Writer

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