Bloomberg story on tiny house movement
Bloomberg news has a great story on the economic forces driving the tiny house movement. They note that home ownership has fallen to the lowest level in 20 years.
This is a great post with tons of links to tiny house advocates. It also brings up the obstacles, such as zoning and building codes, that can prevent going small.
Salon: Living large
Salon has a post on the ‘tiny housers’ movement which is a pretty good overview of the desire to downsize as told through an interview with Ryan Mitchell.
Ryan is the editor of TheTinyLife.com and first got interested in living small when he was laid off from a corporate job in 2008. But he’s just getting around to moving into his own tiny house.
One of the points that Ryan makes both in the interview and on his own blog is that changing one’s life to live small, with a smaller footprint, is more than just moving into a smaller structure. You have to change all your habits.
Tiny House Nation on FYI network
Tiny House Nation is a new reality TV series on fyi network, featuring hosts John Weisbarth and Zack Griffin, who visit tiny house projects in progress. The first episode, which aired July 9, follows a couple with a young child as they move out of a three-bedroom house into a 172-sq-ft trailer-based home they’re building. The drama, such as it is, centers around the problems of getting rid of stuff. The first episode is slow paced but may be of interest to those thinking of downsizing.
Downsizing is big.
I recently picked up a copy of Tiny Homes on the Move by Lloyd Kahn. It’s his latest in a series of books on shelter dating back to 1973. Kahn was an editor for the Whole Earth Catalog, to give you a sense of how long he’s been covering the alternative housing scene.
Tiny Homes on the Move is a catalog of small and nomadic housing, from sailboats to trailers, converted school buses and gypsy wagons. The defining thread is uniqueness and an independent spirit among the owner-builders.
The book is laid out with a two-page picture spread and a short text entry for each home. Many of the ‘homes’ feature exquisite workmanship by the owners, most of whom have moved into alternative housing to get away from expensive mortgages and landlords. Green is also a common theme, with many homes off the grid.
All the shelters are small. From Derek Quessenberry’s Westfalia VW van to Rob Mason’s French army truck; from a fairytale vardo lived in by Kera the Dreadnaught Darling, to the Moron Brothers‘ shantyboat in Kentucky, these homes are an escape from suburbia and all the responsibilities of traditional living.
Tiny Homes on the Move is available in book stores and from Shelter Publications for $28.95.
The Moron Brothers of Kentucky
The Beermoth, a 1954 Commer truck.