Issue 33 – November 27, 2009
Tiny House Living is a weekly newsletter that is published every Friday morning. We cover the world of tiny houses and simple & sustainable living.
There are so many great stories lately that I’m having trouble getting them all posted here and on Tiny House Design. I’m posting the overflow stories to our Tiny House Design Facebook Page. You can also Follow us on Twitter and as always Subscribe by Email.
Living Earth Structures
I always learn new stuff while reading Lloyd Kahn’s blog. This week I spotted this funky little tiny house built by the folks at Living Earth Structures in Petaluma, California. These folks build all sorts of earthen structures including benches, walls, ovens, and houses. They also offer adobe and cob workshops for those who want to learn about building in this extremely low-cost and sustainable building method. Below is a video from their website.
10 Amazing Earthen Buildings
I’m starting to think that building with earth makes more sense than any other building method. I must admit I’m terribly biased because my real professional training and education is in the ceramic arts. The main disadvantage is that they are no portable like so many of the tiny houses I write about and explore through design.
Here’s another great find from Lloyd Kahn’s blog… it’s an article on 10 Amazing Earthen Buildings.
Alternative Energy on a Tiny Scale
This might seem a little off-topic at first but I’ve been getting some great suggestions from a regular reader about small scale sustainable energy. Here are a few recent solutions that might work great for those searching for ways of powering a simple and sustainable lifestyle. Thanks again Dave!
Tarsha’s Tiny House
It’s always exciting to stumble upon a new tiny house construction project. This one got a great jump start with a good old fashion family barn raising. This little house will look a bit like a little red barn when complete. I’m really looking forward to watching Tarsha’s progress.
Tye River Cabin
While I really prefer inexpensive do-it-yourself housing solutions it’s always inspiring to find a really well done architect designed small home. This one was designed by Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects and is a cavernous 600 square feet. While the giant opening glass walls may not be very practical and seem a bit out of place with such an extravagant interior it seems like a great design approach for someone who wants to be more connected with their natural environment. It’s definitely worth a look though.
Tiny House in the Outback
Remote cabins often need clever solutions for securing them while the owner is away. Here’s a great solution for an isolated home. It’s a 10′ by 10′ two-story prefab house with a rainwater collection system and metal flip-up siding. It’s located in Australia. Great design and definitely has a lot of potential for sparking the imagination.
Tiny Houses Plans Turning Up Everywhere
One of my readers, Mark, sent me a link to this cool little house plan. It’s only 262 square feet and is a design being sold at a mainstream house plan website. It’s a great little design concept that looks a lot like a cross between a fire lookout tower and an old water tower. I’m still suffering from sticker shock at the price of the plans but still inspired by the design. Thanks again for sending this my way Mark!
Tiny House Plan Sales
There are two tiny house plan sales going on right now I thought you might like to know about. The first are the plans for Jay Shafer’s smallest tiny house design, the XS-House. Jay lived in a house of this design for a year and if you’re extremely frugal I suspect it would work nicely for you too. For those needing a little more space than 65 square feet, Sheldon Designs is offering big discounts on all their plans.
- Tumbleweed XS-House Plans – $99
- Sheldon Designs – All House Plans 50% Off (use code THKYOU when you checkout)
Please note that some of these discounts are good for this weekend only.
More Simple Living Resources
Tiny house and simple living websites:
- Tiny House Blog
- Tiny House Design
- Tiny House TV
- Shedworking
- Shedblog
- Natural Homes
- Tiny House Journal
- Small House Society
- Small Living Journal
- Coming Unmoored
- Rowdy Kittens
- This Tiny House
- The Tiny Life (Map) (Forum)
- Constructing a simpler life
- Gypsy Rose Tiny House
- Green Hamlet
- Small House Style
- Building With Awareness
- Shelter Publications
- Living Large in our Little House
Tiny House Builders, Plans, And Kits
