Living in the heart of San Francisco is not the most inexpensive option in the world, but designer and woodworker Moksha Osgood has been making it work for over eight years. Osgood, of Moksha Woodwork Designs, built a simple, but beautiful tiny house in a friend’s backyard. It only took him three weeks and just $1,500 to create his getaway named Cabana.
Osgood built Cabana in three weeks and for only $1,500.
Cabana is 80 square feet and contains Osgood’s sleeping and work space. He pays his friend a $400 monthly rent (a killer deal in a city where the average rent for a studio is over $2,700 per month) to use the main home’s kitchen and bathroom. He also runs an extension cord from to the house to a ceramic heater for the colder months.
Cabana is 80 square feet; Osgood has access to the main home’s kitchen and bathroom.
“I totally lucked out with this opportunity,” Osgood says. “The space is efficient and meets my basic needs.”
Cabana is Osgood’s retreat from city life.
Cabana is made of raw, rustic wood and has a galvanized metal roof and tall windows that let in lots of light. The interior is fully insulated, has a bed, a desk and shelving that holds clothes and a few files. In addition, Osgood has a Japanese style dining table and seat and LED lighting.
“I like to use tried and true methods, but just make the structures smaller,” Osgood says.
The shelving and drawers profile Osgood’s cabinetry and furniture skills.
Cabana’s interior is influenced by Asian designs.
“This is the space where I sleep, meditate and do yoga,” he says.
Cabana was Osgood’s first foray into backyard dwellings and he has built a few more since for clients in the Bay Area. Osgood also likes to experiment with Buddhist values, Asian design and interesting shapes. His two mobile designs, Incubate and Abide are available for sale and the proceeds will help fund his Dwellings for the Unhoused.
Osgood has also built backyard cabins for Bay Area residents.
The unique Incubate and Abide mobile dwellings are both for sale.
Osgood’s passion is to create little shelters on wheels for the area’s homeless population. Rather than just a box on casters, his designs are reminiscent of Asian temples and kites with their flowing polyethylene tarps that work to keep the interior cool. Osgood is working with the Saint Francis Homelessness Challenge to raise money and supplies for the little shelters.
“Beauty is a basic service and everyone should have it,” Osgood says. “It shouldn’t be expensive and everyone should have access to warm, inviting spaces.”
Osgood’s Dwelling for the Homeless are elegant little structures on wheels.
If you want to learn more about Osgood’s designs, download a copy of Tiny House Magazine #53 for an in-depth story.
Photos by Moksha Woodwork Designs
By Christina Nellemann for the [Tiny House Blog]