design

ÖÖD House: Space-Age Meets Scandi Style

Fully bringing in nature while still creating optimal shelter was the impetus for the ÖÖD House. The ÖÖD House has three mirrored walls. Designed by Jaak and Andreas Tiik from Estonia, this unique tiny house nearly disappears into any landscape due to its mirrored walls. The Tiik brothers wanted to design a building that could withstand extreme climates yet still offer amazing views. The interior features a clean Scandinavian style. The ÖÖD House house has these views in spades with floor-to-ceiling windows on three of …

Bellingham’s Big Freedom Tiny Homes Build by Hand

by Christina Nellemann

Handcrafted by the owner, each of these Washington homes features a unique mix of high-end finishes and personal touches in optimized spaces. Big Freedom Tiny Homes are handcrafted in Bellingham, Washington. Big Freedom Tiny Homes was founded and is run by Shannon Black. He began his self-taught business in Taos, New Mexico and brought it up to the Pacific Northwest. He offers several lengths of tiny homes and layouts that offer maximum living. The homes come in 26-, 28- and 30-foot lengths. The base model …

Precious Price’s Backyard Tiny House and Rental Business

by Christina Nellemann

One of the best ways to see what it’s like to build and live in a tiny house is to see it directly from the owner’s point of view. One of the best views is coming from a 26-year-old entrepreneur in Atlanta. Precious Price transformed a shed into a tiny house in the backyard of a home she owns in Atlanta, Georgia. She documents all the ups and downs of her tiny house journey on her YouTube channel and she was recently featured on the …

Make this Tiny Christmas Tree for Free

by Christina Nellemann

Even the classic, fresh Christmas tree is not immune to inflation. According to CBS News the price of Christmas trees this year has gone up between 5 and 15 percent from last year. This is due to the increased cost of growing the trees as well as transporting them to lots. Of course, you can always go the fake tree route, but there is something so nice about the smell of a real tree and the feeling of nature inside your home—tiny or not. I’ve …

Airbnb’s Backyard Tiny Homes Come to California

by Christina Nellemann

The popularity of accessory dwelling units in California due to SB 9 has become a baseline for the rest of the nation. These tiny backyard houses are helping to fill a need in the low housing stock and the rest of the country is taking notice. ADUs on single-family properties are allowed in California due to SB 9. One person who understands the value of adding extra housing is Joe Gebbia. This former co-founder of Airbnb has a new company that is building ADUs in …

Make Space in Your Tiny Home for a Miniature Home

by Christina Nellemann

Most tiny houses are measured in square feet, but how about we visit some even tinier houses that are measured in square inches? The art of miniatures homes is sweeping the internet with charming, hidden rooms made for mice, fairies, or other tiny creatures. This tiny mouse house was integrated into a wall and features motion lights. These minuscule spaces are not traditional doll houses, but rather little rooms integrated into a wall, cabinet, or bookcase. They usually include tiny furniture, objet d’art, lighting, and even …

The 1970s Return with the Toyota TacoZilla

by Christina Nellemann

There are several reasons why the Toyota Tacoma is sold more often than the Ford Ranger, Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon combined. Reliability, dependability, and re-sale value rank at the top, but customization should be high on the list as well. Especially with the ability to add lightweight custom campers into or onto the truck bed. The Toyota Tacoma is the best-selling mid-size truck. With a payload of around 1,100 lb. Taco owners can add small truck campers such as the Kimbo or a popup such …

Tiny Beautiful Balconies and How to Create Your Own

by Christina Nellemann

Even though winter is on its way for the Northern Hemisphere, let’s still give some applause to tiny, beautiful balconies. Not everyone is lucky to live in a tiny house or even a traditional larger house. In fact about 1 in 8 people live in apartments with no outside space to call their own—unless they have a balcony. The basic apartment balcony doesn’t have to be boring. Balconies (or even small decks) are a great place to practice living with a tiny space. The average …

RV’s too expensive? How about a handmade vardo instead?

by Christina Nellemann

A friend recently gave me an example of the crazy prices that RVs are currently going for. A private party sale of a traditional “white box” travel trailer started at around $14,000 and a bidding war bumped up the final price to $40,000. The Gypsy BLISS Wagons* are far removed from the traditional “white box” RV. The high demand for RVs in 2020 have been keeping the prices of these getaway vehicles consistently high in 2021. If the idea of spending that much money on …

Norida Pods: Scandinavia Meets Florida

by Christina Nellemann

Even though Norida glamping pods and tiny houses are built in Florida, they look more like what you would find in Sweden or Norway. Founded by two Swedish-American families, the Norida Pods company offers smart, innovative and affordable tiny house solutions. The combination of Swedish design and U.S. construction blends together to make high quality glamping or living options. Norida Pods build and ship glamping pods and design tiny homes and saunas. All the models are built to withstand harsh nordic climates and can be …

Do Laundry with Your Bike: SpinCycle Technical Guide

by Christina Nellemann

There are some lucky tiny house dwellers who enjoy the convenience of a washing machine or a full laundry center in their home. However, many tiny houses are not built with a washing machine and the owners are required to head to the laundromat or find alternative ways to wash clothes. Some tiny house dwellers depend on portable washers to do laundry. There are some great countertop, handheld, or even portable washing machines available on the market. Some of these include the Wonder Wash or …

HONOMOBO Modular Backyard Homes and Offices

by Christina Nellemann

From California to Canada, a home design company is bringing modern minimalism to modular homes. These homes are not only made for traditional housing, but the company also offers their designs for tiny, efficient dwellings that can be tucked into a backyard. HONOMOBO buildings are ready to be crane-lifted into a backyard. HONOMOBO homes are factory built and constructed with rigid steel or shipping containers. Each home comes with a fixed floor plan and a variety of finishes and upgrades. HONOMOBO’s concept with this is …