Small House Feature

Mike’s Tumbleweed Mulfinger

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Mike Moore recently sent me his story about his small house build, using a modified version of Jay Shafer’s Mulfinger. It is neat to see one of Jay’s larger homes built as most have never been constructed. I’ll turn the story over to Mike and he can explain the process he used to get his home built.

I found Jay Shafer in 2004 by googling “tiny houses.” I had been following construction techniques and architectural ideas since the 60’s, but it was Jay’s work that really resonated with me. I started with the Mulfinger plan, which Jay modified for me, enlarging it to a footprint of 16 x 20. It took me about 3-4 years to build it, with LOTS of help; you can see the results in the attached photos.

For those that are curious concerning codes, let me relate my story of dealing with the planning/building departments of Person County, a mostly rural area in central North Carolina.

There were several aspects that had to be addressed, some of which I discovered by researching county and state codes. This was in 2005, and codes change frequently, so some of these might not currently apply.

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Simply Living in a Small Rustic Cabin

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by Gabrielle Songe

Each day I am blessed to awaken in my little cabin-on-wheels to look out the sliding glass doors at the morning sky dawning under the pitched roof.

For years, I have wanted a rustic home. Walking up to the cabin immediately after delivery I was struck by the fragrance of cedar emitted from the exterior siding. Following that initial impression I entered and noticed the scent of new wood throughout.

I still get tickled coming in and out of a room, looking around at the rough, pine trim everywhere, around doors, windows and corners giving the cabin the rustic appearance I long desired.

The central heat and air is all contained in an outside package unit save for a small heater in the living room that is manufactured to look like a corner fireplace below an entertainment center. In my younger years I would have scoffed at a “fake” fireplace. However, during cold winter nights it was joyful to turn on the flame and embers along with the heat. Now, I would not trade my fireplace replica for any other heater.

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