Announcement

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company has a long lineup of workshops that they are offering around the country in 2014. In the workshops you will learn the essentials of what’s needed to begin your tiny housebuilding journey. This includes the tools required and also majorly-important things like learning how to attach your tiny house to the trailer.

You’ll be provided with comprehensive, detailed information on tiny homes (from A to Z) that you can’t learn anywhere else—and you’ll get to meet many other like-minded people in a fun and engaging setting. Tumbleweed has taught 1000′s of people and have used their questions and feedback to make this two day event answer hundreds of questions you didn’t even know you have.

For five of the workshops Tumbleweed is offering a 25% discount on the admission price…

Here is a list of the workshops and links to signup for each. Each of them carries a 25% discount until tomorrow so you need to act fast. (January 28, 2014). If you are reading this after that time, Tumbleweed will be offering other workshops close to you in the United States and Canada.

• Orlando Workshop: February 8-9, 2014
• Las Vegas Workshop: February 22-23, 2014
• Denver Workshop: March 1-2, 2014
• Raleigh Workshop: March 8-9, 2014
• New York Workshop: March 22-23, 2014

Photo: Tiny House Giant Journey

Over the last couple of months I have been visiting Tumbleweed Tiny House Company and have had the opportunity to get know Meg Stephens, Tumbleweed’s tiny house designer and discuss with her, Steve Weissmann, and Debby Richmond some exciting new changes coming to the Tumbleweed Tiny House Company. One of the big changes is to the designs, with some new options as well as new names to some familiar faces in the line up. Steve has shared with me below an outline of the changes and also included some floor plans and photos to go along with it. You will see these on the Tumbleweed Tiny House Company’s website in the next few days and I wanted to make sure you heard about it here.

I am using the new Elm as an example. Several pictures of the Elm 18 Overlook (formerly Walden) and then the different floor plan options.

Elm 18 Overlook

Summary by Steve Weissmann

Over the past year Tumbleweed Tiny House Company has made a real effort to address the top wants our customers had in a tiny home. In particular, we found that people wanted more flexibility in house exteriors and interiors. Beginning this week, we will expand our lineup with 15 new floor plans, from six to 21 total homes. We also are offering “larger” tiny homes, adding many 20 and 24 foot models to our 18 foot originals.We have renamed our offerings to make it easier for builders and buyers to shop for exactly what they want and need, and to select different floor plans with their favorite exterior facades.

As we roll out now, there will be 21 ready made houses ready to order and deliver throughout the Continental U.S. For tiny home builders, we will introduce much-improved plans available for five homes, including our most popular models now. (More will arrive on site every month as well.) In celebration, Tumbleweed will run a $100-off sale from site roll out through Election Day, Tuesday, November 5th (Midnight, PST).

Elm 18 Overlook Great Room

Here’s a few highlights about the new homes:
All our homes can have dormers which allow for a king size bed upstairs.
We now have 14 floor plans with downstairs bedrooms.
We have new homes that are 20′ long and 24′ long allowing for more space
Bigger kitchens, ovens, and flexible shelving have all been added.

Major Improvements Between Tumbleweed’s Four Walls

When customers were building or buying ready made homes, Tumbleweed was frequently approached with ideas and changes that made sense. Keeping one standard floor plan encased in a specific facade was limiting! After extended work, we developed more flexible living spaces and comfort. Here are home improvements worth spotlighting:

• Sleeping arrangements are plentiful. Most homes have lofts for two adults, and now there are dormers included or optional to increase space and comfort upstairs. Yet many buyers asked for main-level sleeping and we have delivered a second bedroom in some plans, as well as room for a Murphy bed. Now we sleep two to four in the larger tiny homes.
• Kitchens are a hot-button as well. For the kitchen-centric, there are nice spaces in the back or in the great room. You’re able to cook with electric or propane gas cooktops, and it’s possible to have a real oven. The sink is larger, though the refrigerator-freezer unit remains under the counter. You can have beautiful counters in steel or butcher block.
• Feeling the upgrades. In Tumbleweeds, the R20 rating is three times more than code requires and our insulation controls temperatures well. Beyond a great heating system, we have added air conditioning to all models. The bathrooms now have a sink, to accompany the toilet and full shower. It’s nice to feel comfortable at home.
• Options and more options. Tumbleweed sells homes, so it made sense to offer external options related to wood cladding, shutters, windows and colors. There are both cork and bamboo flooring options and paint colors. Other options include different shelving units and bookcases. Some homes take advantage of a portico to create even more internal space. These options make a big difference to tiny dwellers, when building or ordering a home.

Elm 18 Overlook Kitchen

New names
At this stage, you may wonder what happened to our iconic Tumbleweed house-to-go models. Our popular and original Walden, Fencl, Lusby and Popomo designs have not disappeared! They have simply been given new names, to join their respective exterior facade family and to accommodate expanded choices.
If you look in the buyer guide, you’ll get a good sense of how we did the naming. All the names come from mother nature. Our “cabin” look homes like the Fencl and Lusby are named after trees whereas the Popomo is named after the element Mica.
Here’s the decoder ring:

• Walden – Elm 18’ Overlook
• Fencl – Cypress 18’ Overlook
• Lusby – Elm 18’ Equator
• Popomo – Mica 20’ Clear

The interior floorplans are repeated through the different models. Each floor plan has it’s own name.

• Clear – provides one-level living complete with a twin-sized bedroom, separate kitchen and bath, and great open views.
• Equator – offers a loft and downstairs sleeping quarters. The downstairs sleeping area sits next to the bathroom, and opens to the great room with kitchen area.
• Horizon – also offers a loft and downstairs sleeping quarters. The bathroom separates the downstairs sleeping area from the great room with kitchen area.
• Arise – features a sleeping loft and downstairs Murphy bed option. The kitchen area is in the back of the home and next to the bathroom, leading to the great room.
• Overlook – maximizes open, great room living. Sleeping quarters are up in a loft, while the kitchen area is in the back of the home and next to the bathroom.

Thank you,
Steve Weissmann
President
Tumbleweed Tiny House Company

Elm 18 Overlook Bathroom

Elm 18 Overlook Loft

by Kent Griswold

Last week my wife Janelle and I took a mini vacation across the Healdsburg, California valley at the Tumbleweed Tiny House Linden home. Though less then ten miles from our own home this short one night vacation was a lot of fun and relaxing.

The Linden is a new Tumbleweed Tiny House designed by Meg Stevens an architect for the company. We found it to be perfect for a tiny house getaway. The goal of Tumbleweed is to give those interested in living the tiny life a chance to spend some time in actual tiny home so that they can get the feel of what it might be like to live in something this small.

Tumbleweed Linden

We started our evening by eating out at a local Healdsburg restaurant and spending a little time on the square looking at the shops etc. Playing the tourist in our own town. Then we drove the few miles out to the house which is located in a redwood grove with a pond out a windy road. You really feel like you are out in the boondocks.

We arrived and unpacked and toured the home. We had seen it briefly at the Sonoma County fair but it had been crowded with visitors so did not get a true feeling for the home. The house has a nice porch with some chairs overlooking a small pond. Another little home sits across on the other side of the pond.

Kent and Janelle in the living area

Inside the door is the great room with an easy chair, a table with a couple of smaller chairs, and entry into the kitchen. The bathroom with toilet and shower are off to the left as you go into the kitchen area.

The sleeping quarters are a loft above the kitchen with a moveable ladder accessing it. We settled in and played some table games and did some reading before climbing into the loft and going to sleep. The most challenging aspect of staying in this tiny home is the loft. Though well designed and with an extremely comfortable bed you do still have to climb up and down a ladder to get into it. The loft is roomy and light with two big windows behind the bed and another facing the pond. We had a full moon so light streamed in through the windows as we went to bed. We slept fairly well, though as most people know the first night is usually an adjustment to any sleeping quarters.

The Sleeping Loft

In the morning we fixed a light breakfast using the supplied cooking utensils and found the kitchen to be a very nice place to work in. We then went on to try out the shower. The Linden is hooked up to a septic system has good water pressure and uses a instant hot water heater so you don’t feel like you are roughing it.

We then took a walk on a trail on the property which was about a half mile up a creek bed through the redwoods. When we got back we relaxed in the main living area in the house. I really felt relaxed and like I was on vacation.

I would highly recommend staying here if you have a chance. You really get the idea of what living in a tiny house is all about. To reserve time in the Linden go to the Airbnb site to this link. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1287779

I hope this type of vacation becomes more available across the country.

Entry way and folding table

Side View to Pond

Tiny House across the pond

Linden lighted at night

By Alyse Nelson

While attending graduate school in Portland, Oregon, Lina Menard didn’t rent an apartment or live in a dorm. Instead, she lived in a tiny house. During her tiny home tenure, Lina has learned to live and love tiny spaces. Lina became a tiny-house advocate, organizing tours of small homes, learning about the regulatory barriers of tiny home acceptance, and interning at PAD and Orange Splot, where she helped build tiny houses.

Lina Menard with her possessions, sitting outside a tiny home she lived in for 10 months. Photo credit Lina Menard, used with permission from her blog, thisisthelittlelife.com.

After spending almost a year in a 120-square-foot tiny home, Lina has a good idea of how to live well in a small space. “I think one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that I’m much happier when I live with just the things I like best. My relationship to stuff has shifted dramatically over the past year and a half. I’m much less materialistic than I used to be. But I really appreciate the little touches, too. It’s not about deprivation, but about intension,” Lina told me.

Lina’s tiny home includes a sleeping loft that she shares with her cat, Raffi. Photo credit Lina Menard, used with permission from her blog, thisisthelittlelife.com.

When you’re measuring square inches rather than feet, every detail counts. Lina’s tiny home features a dining room table that expands to fit guests, a window seat that doubles as extra seating for big meals, and lots of windows to let in natural light. Every single possession Lina has in the home has to serve a purpose, but she doesn’t mind: “It’s liberating to not feel tied to stuff,” she told OR Magazine.

Embed video with Lina’s tiny house:

She recognizes that tiny-home living isn’t for everyone, but thinks there’s a way to broaden its appeal: the “cohousing” model, where tiny homes would be coupled with shared kitchens, laundry facilities, guest rooms, and even amenities like barbeques, workshops, and gardens. “Tiny cohousing would just push the envelope,” Lina writes in her blog. “People who lived in a tiny house community would have access to all these things, but they wouldn’t have to own all these things themselves,” she explains. Continue Reading »