Have you heard of tiny houses? They’re extremely teensy homes on wheels. If you want to see what one is like inside, check out this slideshow.
These homes are sort of a reaction to the McMansion communities that populate many suburbs in America…instead of going extreme on the big end of things, people who own tiny houses are going extreme on the small end of things.
These homes use very few materials, require very little in the way of upkeep, and cost almost nothing to heat. They’re definitely green!
But they’re also definitely not for me.
I’m not a McMansion kind of girl, to be sure. I can only use so much space, and besides, I can only afford so much in the way of a mortgage payment. And I do think that a lot of us Americans buy more home than we really need.
But instead of going extremely big or extremely small, I’ve gone middle-of-the-road, and I actually think that our house is just about the perfect size for us.
Which is really the point.
I think that if we all lived in homes that met our needs without grossly exceeding them, we’d consume far less in the way of resources and we wouldn’t all have to resort to living in homes the size of a walk-in closet.
Honestly, homes like that only work for households of one person, or maybe two.
My family has six people, though, and 5/6 are home almost every single day. I want space for schooling (and for storing school supplies), I want a real kitchen to prepare food for the six of us, I want space to have company, I want space for my children to have sleepovers, I want room for a chest freezer, I want a place for a piano, I want space for a sewing machine, and I really, really like having a bedroom separate from my children. 😉
Because of all that goes on in our home, I really do feel like every bit of our house gets used on a regular basis. We have no empty rooms…no spare bedrooms, no un-used living rooms, and no empty closets. We use our home well for ourselves, and we use it to bless other people as well.
So, I don’t feel remotely guilty about the home I own. It fits our needs well without exceeding them, and that, I think, is what is important.
What do you think about the whole house size issue? And what do you think about tiny houses?
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p.s. Thank you all for the lovely birthday messages you left for me yesterday! I do have birthday pictures to share, but I’ll do that sometime in the next couple of days.
Today’s 365 post: It has to get worse before it gets better.
Joshua’s 365 post: Happy Birthday, Mommy!
Moonwaves
Monday 2nd of May 2011
The article talks about 'rightsizing', which I think is a good way to describe it. Not everyone needs a tiny house, but lots of people don't need all the space they do have either.
If anyone's interested in more, an online friend's tiny house was featured on this website recently: http://thistinyhouse.com/ - some interesting and some downright strange stuff on that website. Although I could undoubtedly manage in far less space than I have (58sq mt, about 620 sq feet), I'm also a bit claustrophobic so something that you have to bend over to fit into would not be for me. Even your body will determine to some extent where you feel comfortable living - I'm 5'9", ceilings less than about seven feet make me feel hunched over all the time. Someone who's 5'1" might not care so much.
Ben Law is a guy who bulit a small house in the New Forest and was featured on the program Grand Designs. I was really interested to see how they did a follow program a few years later when he had married and had children and they showed how he then extended it to accomodate the new family size. It's worth googling to watch - I think most of it's on youtube.
One thing I do know is that aside from the question of actual space, I need to have more than one room. So I could live with having less space, but I really don't want to ever just have one room again. Open plan is not for me.
Stef
Saturday 30th of April 2011
I wish houses were more affordable. I moved from a 3 bedroom home to a four bedroom. I am very happy with it, it has a great guest room and each child has his/her own room. But the mortgage is getting unaffordable because of the economy, who knew? I would love my 3 bedroom back but then again I wish to have this house paid off. (I can't figure out how to place a dizzy face on here!) I would not like one of those dinky homes because we are having our 3rd child and I do love to cook, place our in-laws in a separate home, have a large living room for guests, etc. Maybe when I retire, achem, 50 some years down the road, lol. I also think it is important to make the most of it, what ever you have, get real organized with small spacies and be thankful!
Tina
Saturday 30th of April 2011
Really to me it looks like she doesn't really enjoy life much. I didn't see any books, photos, hobbies of any sort, tv, computer, musical instruments, bikes, skis, clothes, make-up, etc... I'm all for being frugal and using less but really can someone really be happy with just working and trying to live in a tiny house. Definitely, a minimalist to the extreme. I wonder how long you could really live that type of lifestyle. I'm happy to keep my things especially my photo albums. I don't think I could live without them.
Kristen
Saturday 30th of April 2011
I don't doubt that she's happy...she seems to be pouring her time and energy into stuff that doesn't require storage space, and it seems like that's working for her.
I just don't think I'd prefer to live like that if I didn't absolutely HAVE to.
Julie K.
Saturday 30th of April 2011
The concept of tiny houses does not meet the requirements of bigger families. However it is great starter for young couples, especially for those who want to live responsibly. It has its unique charm. I am not a fan of huge houses, I identify with your perspective, people should have adequate space for their living.
Kathy
Friday 29th of April 2011
These tiny houses are too small for a family to live in, but I have several that are used for various things. I have one that we use as a tea/relaxation/reading/writing space, one that I use as my work studio, and we are currently working on one to house our garden tools and gardening books close to our greenhouse. I know several people that use these houses for playhouses for their kids (I had an amazing one with real furniture/dishes for tea when I was growing up), home offices, guest houses, or exercise studios. My mom actually has an old sheepherders wagon on her property and she loves it for her crafts and projects. As a contractor, I think this idea made slightly bigger would work great as beach/lake/vacation getaways.