Building
My Tiny House on Wheels and Beyond
People often ask me, what made you want to build a tiny house? There were a number of things that brought me to design and build my house. I brought my children up in a 750 sq ft cottage, that also fit a bunch of their friends on weekend evenings. I thought that once I had my dream of land I would recreate that design. Then I learned of tiny houses which my stepson has been building in British Columbia: Nelson Tiny Houses.
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Given that I didn't know how long it would take me to get land, I wanted to put my house on a trailer to move it when I need to.
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I watched many videos on You Tube, Tiny House Nation on TV, photos of houses. There is a lot of information out there on tiny houses and many people know about them and smile when I tell them I have built a tiny house.
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Having spent a year collecting recycled/reused materials, as well as using much of what I already had, for my tiny house, I am proud to have what some say is an art piece in itself, beautiful yet practical. Living in it as I built it with help from family, friends and East Bay Tiny House Enthusiasts, it is finished and I am happily living in it still, and so very satisfying in its finished form! And love to have people come to see it, and be inspired to live sustainably in their own ways..
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My long term vision is to create a community living on land with a working small farm, a place for retreat, learning, sharing, celebration, a place where a diversity of people can feel safe and comfortable to be in Nature.
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Please see my blog for more information on how I built my house, some ideas, what to do and not do, etc.
And beyond my own house is a great desire to see more people be able to live in one too!! To be able to get off the streets or out of their cars. To be able to live easily, peacefully, truly affordably, and legally in our cities and suburbs. It seems to be easier to live in them in rural areas.
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I hope to work in a group to legalize tiny houses on wheels in the SF Bay Area. Please watch Living Tiny Legally Parts 1 & 2 on You Tube. Let's do it!!
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In the meantime, let me make curtains for your tiny house (check out the second box), or frame your photos and art work in light weight "quilts".
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To see full size photos, click on the photo.
Each piece that made the house look more like a house was amazingly exciting !! Trim, siding, roof of course.
Well, for now, until I get to put on all the gutters, a deck for added space, a shade roof over that for hotter days, rain catchment at each down spout. When I get to a more permanent site.
The shed on the tongue of the trailer holds the main breaker box with room to add batteries, inverter, etc for solar, as well as camping supplies.
To the left is the sink area, and to the right is the prep and cook area. Looking through to the closet, bathroom and back door. The nearest is the stairs to the bedroom loft.
I used as few plumbing materials as possible. The shelf (for dishes in kitchen)wall to the left of the shower holds the plumbing, I only use a handheld shower to not have a pipe in the wall. Bamboo holds the shower curtain. The top of a former shower curtain with an apron of waterproof material protects the window that lets in daylight and sun warmth to keep out mold! A vent on the right wall also helps with that.
I am a quilter and an artist so storage over and under couch was essential. It works well. Hand made ladder from reused materials, jacket and shoe closet behind.
Spacious and airy. All windows in the house open. Some windows came with screens. I am making "screens" with lacy fabric, doilies, just enough to keep the bugs from coming in easily. I have space to "stand" up to make bed. No knee crawling!
I'm in a yard of a large house, with another tiny house in front of me. A little garden in the back, as well as the front.
My French doors from Habitat for Humanity Restore store in Oakland, I knew I wanted since I was designing a passive solar house. It gets hot in the winter!! The sun is low enough to come in all winter, in summer, no sun comes in through these doors as long as I face this side of house to the south
Very exciting to start buying pieces of my house. Important to buy all the reclaimed windows and doors first to know how to frame the walls, what size openings
Doubles as. place to store my sleeping bag. This is on a picnic bench at a campground with a blanket, and couple of pillows. Otherwise it makes a good place to take up the space on the couch since it is deep enough to hold person to sleep.
My French doors from Habitat for Humanity Restore store in Oakland, I knew I wanted since I was designing a passive solar house. It gets hot in the winter!! The sun is low enough to come in all winter, in summer, no sun comes in through these doors as long as I face this side of house to the south
Please see full description in the art quilt section about how it was made and by whom, me and a friend. It is backed with curtain/shade fabric to add some impermeability of cold air. I have it made to roll up to get light in.
This is a watercolor framed by fabric instead of mat paper and wood or steel frame. Much lighter on the trailer axles!!
Since there are few walls in my tiny house, I use practical art for my art!
Please see full description in the art quilt section about how it was made and by whom, me and a friend. It is backed with curtain/shade fabric to add some impermeability of cold air. I have it made to roll up to get light in.