Living Tiny: Would you? Could you?

[auntjess]

True. 
Besides any stigma, they also give up safety standards and easy mobility, and design and layout that comes from a lot of experience.

[Snarkette]

And proper bathtubs and toilets!

[Grommet]

Here's an interesting article about how the bloom is coming off the rose for many tiny house people:

 

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/home-and-garden/architecture/teeny-house-big-lie-why-so-many-proponents-of-the-tiny-house-movement-have-decided-to-upsize/article28035056/?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link

Edited January 8, 2016 by Grommet

[SmithW6079]

Here's an interesting article about how the bloom is coming off the rose for many tiny house people:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/home-and-garden/architecture/teeny-house-big-lie-why-so-many-proponents-of-the-tiny-house-movement-have-decided-to-upsize/article28035056/?utm_source=fark&utm_medium=website&utm_content=link

Very interesting. Good to see some reality.

[paloma58]

Just got back from a cruise. Lying in bed one night, I realized our cabin was the size of many of the tinies we have seen. Decided I am over the Tiny House movement and can delete all programs from the DVR.....

[needschocolate]

Just got back from a cruise. Lying in bed one night, I realized our cabin was the size of many of the tinies we have seen. Decided I am over the Tiny House movement and can delete all programs from the DVR.....

 

Your stateroom probably didn't have a kitchen in it. Imagine how much smaller that it would feel if it did!a

 

And I doubt that you brought along every pair of shoes or pants that you own or most of the other stuff you use/need to live happily at your normal residence. 

 

I've seen tiny houses that would be fun for a week or two on vacation, but live it one? - no way, I couldn't/wouldn't do it. 

Edited January 17, 2016 by needschocolate

[paloma58]

Needschocolate - funny you should mention shoes. At one point, I even said that I had brought too many shoes! And I pointed out to my sister that the kitchen would have to go where the vanity area cwas in the cabin! I was mentally rearranging things and adding storage cubbies... . We each had a closet space about 18" wide and 2 shelves

[auntjess]

 

Decided I am over the Tiny House movement and can delete all programs from the DVR.....

I pretty much over it too, unless an episode sounds interesting.

Same thing with flipping.  I'll watch one or 2 shows.

This is what happens when the networks flood the schedule with shows.

[RococoChanel]

I've been living "tiny" all my life without realizing it! Growing up there were 4 of us (mom, dad, brother and me) in a -700 square foot NYC apartment, and it was awesome. It never occurred to me that all the apartments I like (this size or smaller) are "tiny."

[debraran]

I think many people can go tinier, most of us have too much stuff, but some of these people go way too tiny. On Tiny House Hunting, I see many tiny homes on foundations that have 2 bedroom spaces, closets, small kitchen, but still a small footprint. One had 2 lofts and the owner used the second for storage and he had one bedroom and a kid the larger loft.

 

One thing that irks me with these shows, is that they have been on a few years, the participants must watch them, understand the plus and minus's. They all act surprised they can't hang their coats or buy in bulk. Maybe the "script" says they have to act a little surprised but it makes them seem naive or just stupid at times.

I still like it, but like seeing homes that aren't portable because they are more realistic to many. 

[DownTheShore]

I want to see tiny houses that are built in place; enough of these 200 sq ft ones that can be towed. I'm over tiny lofts where people bang their heads if they sit up. I want to see a realistic tiny house that conforms to building codes and is hooked up to a sewer or septic system.

[RococoChanel]

Me too! For me the tiny sweet spot is like 500-900 square feet, the size of an apartment. To me, that is tiny living. There is no point in living in 56 square feet and bumping your damn head every morning... lol

[debraran]

Or having your kid in the loft and having to sleep with him to make sure he is safe (that would get old fast)

 

they have previews of new season on their facebook page, did see some on wheels but a few looked larger, so I'm intrigued.

[holly4755]

I lived in a travel trailer at the beach and I would have liked one of the tiny homes without the built ins of the travel trailer - why you need a huge dinette set I never understood, if there had not been a storm I would have remodeled and tore that out. and had floor space for the dog. It is not like I ever had 4 people in there. I stayed alone with the dog and the dog slept on the bed with me for lack of floor space. I used the bunk beds for storage, they were so enclosed it was like being in a tomb.

The thing is I would live alone in one, no problem, and maybe have an occasional guest. the house has become too hard to maintain and I need something smaller now, but an not comfortable in apartments, they don't have small villas here for an affordable amount and they are shutting down all the trailer parks, so I guess I will live here until I die.

[psychoticstate]

Is anyone watching the new season?  

 

I liked the episode last week, with the couple from Atlanta who wanted to use a tiny house as both a house and a pop up kind of store. They are crazy but using the tiny solely as a store isn't a horrible idea.  Having random people likely sit on the couch that is also your bed?  No, thank you.

[debraran]

Yes, the couple seemed very nice and the guy was thanking people on TH facebook page for kind words. I see them one day settling into one area and using the store as just a store but for now, it's a good starter.

 

This Saturday is a photographer, I think they are hoping to get some variety in ideas. I just hope the "reality" part doesn't take over the actual reality of living in a tiny home and they have more success's than failures. I'm sure many have stayed but there have been many who sold within a year, it's really a live change long term.

[psychoticstate]

Yes, the couple seemed very nice and the guy was thanking people on TH facebook page for kind words. I see them one day settling into one area and using the store as just a store but for now, it's a good starter.

 

This Saturday is a photographer, I think they are hoping to get some variety in ideas. I just hope the "reality" part doesn't take over the actual reality of living in a tiny home and they have more success's than failures. I'm sure many have stayed but there have been many who sold within a year, it's really a live change long term.

 

If you check out the new thread for this show, the Atlantans have put their tiny up for sale.  I'm wondering if the show was just an advertisement for their business?

 

Anyhow . . . I liked what Zack did for the photographer couple.  They got a decent amount of space for themselves and their toddler son, as well as space to keep their camera equipment.  I think it was pretty obvious though they weren't selling their condo and were only going to use the tiny during the colder months when the wedding season was nonexistent in Colorado.

[debraran]

Yes, I loved how the space really seemed to fit them, the son had room, storage in the headboard and other places seemed more than in recent tiny homes.

 

I know the TH producers are always looking for people, they approach some who are building on their own and offer to finish (for a price) and check out requests on their web site. I just feel the need to fill the time slots make them just take people who really don't want a tiny home or understand the laws, etc.

I don't mean to judge but I read so many gave up home "because they couldn't find a place to park it" Even John Weisbarth said in an interview one couple was still looking.

How could you spend over 30,000 on a home and not know where to put it?

 

Not my money but puzzling.

[auntjess]

Here, or in other tiny house topics, I've seen people talk about small apartments they've lived in.
Here's an interesting story in the NYT, on the downsizing of fictional (TV) NY apartments, in the past decade or so.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/18/realestate/fictional-new-york-city-apartments-get-real.html?WT.mc_id=D-NYT-MKTG-MOD-39892-9-16-HD&WT.mc_ev=click&WT.mc_c=
 

[Snarkette]

Here's a really offbeat (and super political -- I warn you!) take on tiny houses: http://www.coyoteblog.com/coyote_blog/2016/09/your-good-intentions-mean-virtually-nothing.html It caught my eye because getting approval for tiny zoning is starting to become a big problem. (See what I did there? I'm like John Weisbarth.)  This is more about providing tiny traditional units than portable tiny homes:

Quote

From this is born the great idea of micro-housing, or one room apartments averaging less than 150 square feet.  For young folks, they are nicer versions of the dorms they just left at college, with their own bathroom and kitchenette...

 So we need to set minimum standards for the size and amenities of apartments.  We need to make sure they are safe!  So they must go through extensive design reviews.  We need to respect the community!  So existing residents are given the ability to comment or even veto projects.  We can't trust these evil corporations building these things on their own!  So all new construction is subject to planning and zoning.  But we still need to keep rents low!  So maximum rents are set at a number below what can be obtained, particularly given all these other new rules.

As a result, new micro-housing development has come to a halt.

And from Washington DC:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/where-we-live/wp/2016/05/16/d-c-shift-could-make-tiny-houses-more-abundant/

[auntjess]

Tiny houses from decommissioned subway cars?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/a-district-architect-thinks-old-metro-train-cars-should-be-turned-into-tiny-houses/2017/02/22/9ea32a96-f876-11e6-9845-576c69081518_story.html?hpid=hp_local-news_kellycol-metrocars-5pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.0afd03334ed4

[Gam2]

My husband and I could have a tiny house on a lake with a nice dock and boat. Go up on Saturday morning and come home on Sunday evening. More than that, no thanks.

[SmithW6079]

On 2/23/2017 at 0:52 AM, auntjess said:

Tiny houses from decommissioned subway cars?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/a-district-architect-thinks-old-metro-train-cars-should-be-turned-into-tiny-houses/2017/02/22/9ea32a96-f876-11e6-9845-576c69081518_story.html?hpid=hp_local-news_kellycol-metrocars-5pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.0afd03334ed4

When I commuted, I would often imagine how I would redesign the train car as a living space. That idea sounds cool.

[Ina123]

My interest in tiny houses is only in the innovative ways they make everyday items multipurpose. I guess I just like design.

[DkNNy79]

I think as a vacation house it would work for me.    Where you only need the basics things to live on and you're bring a suitcase or two, not your whole wardrobe. 

Also, I don't know how the folks do it with kids - there is just no privacy.  I watched an episode where it was a family of 7 (5 boys).  3 boys were in the loft bedroom where it looked like they would have to slide out of bed, because they had maybe 8-10 inches from their pillow to the ceiling.  I want to know how many times they bumped their head on the ceiling waking up.

[Snarkette]

https://theestablishment.co/the-troubling-trendiness-of-poverty-appropriation-4d3681406320

Quote

The Troubling Trendiness Of Poverty Appropriation

It’s become trendy for those with money to appropriate the poverty lifestyle — and it troubles me for one simple reason. Choice....This background, this essential part of who I am, makes it particularly difficult to stomach the latest trend in “simple” living — people moving into tiny homes and trailers. How many folks, I wonder, who have engaged in the Tiny House Movement have ever actually lived in a tiny, mobile place? Because what those who can afford homes call “living light,” poor folks call “gratitude for what we’ve got.”

...It’s likely, from where I sit, that this back-to-nature and boxed-up simplicity is not being marketed to people like me, who come from simplicity and heightened knowledge of poverty, but to people who have not wanted for creature comforts. For them to try on, glamorize, identify with...

[qtpye]

On 4/21/2017 at 2:20 PM, Snarkette said:

https://theestablishment.co/the-troubling-trendiness-of-poverty-appropriation-4d3681406320

https://timeline.com/history-trailer-part-mobile-home-poverty-74bb8a7c44be

These type of stereotypes are probably the reason a lot of the tiny house people do not just live in trailers.

[auntjess]

FYI network is showing some episodes of My So-Called Simple Life, tomorrow, 7/8, beginning at 10AM ET.

[tessaray]

6 hours ago, auntjess said:

FYI network is showing some episodes of My So-Called Simple Life, tomorrow, 7/8, beginning at 10AM ET.

We don't have FIY anymore so I Googled this and it must not have done well. I couldn't find much of anything about it. 

[auntjess]

I looked at little, and quit.  It seems to follow certain couples.

[TheLastKidPicked]

There is one thing people could do, and it is so obvious that I can't believe they never mention it on the show:

If you are thinking about joining the tiny house movement, then rent a camper for 30 days.  Live in it exactly like you would live in a tiny house to see how you like it before taking the plunge.

Of course, that would eliminate much of the drama for the show.

[laredhead]

Here's a link to a story that I read today about a woman who is living in an RV/camper with her partner.  It's not all fun and games.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/truth-tiny-home-living_us_5b6dd1cde4b0ae32af97f3d3 

[qtpye]

On 8/1/2018 at 1:33 PM, TheLastKidPicked said:

There is one thing people could do, and it is so obvious that I can't believe they never mention it on the show:

If you are thinking about joining the tiny house movement, then rent a camper for 30 days.  Live in it exactly like you would live in a tiny house to see how you like it before taking the plunge.

Of course, that would eliminate much of the drama for the show.

 

On 4/17/2017 at 4:57 PM, DkNNy79 said:

I think as a vacation house it would work for me.    Where you only need the basics things to live on and you're bring a suitcase or two, not your whole wardrobe. 

Also, I don't know how the folks do it with kids - there is just no privacy.  I watched an episode where it was a family of 7 (5 boys).  3 boys were in the loft bedroom where it looked like they would have to slide out of bed, because they had maybe 8-10 inches from their pillow to the ceiling.  I want to know how many times they bumped their head on the ceiling waking up.

 

On 4/18/2016 at 5:37 PM, debraran said:

Yes, I loved how the space really seemed to fit them, the son had room, storage in the headboard and other places seemed more than in recent tiny homes.

 

I know the TH producers are always looking for people, they approach some who are building on their own and offer to finish (for a price) and check out requests on their web site. I just feel the need to fill the time slots make them just take people who really don't want a tiny home or understand the laws, etc.

I don't mean to judge but I read so many gave up home "because they couldn't find a place to park it" Even John Weisbarth said in an interview one couple was still looking.

How could you spend over 30,000 on a home and not know where to put it?

 

Not my money but puzzling.

This lady was nice enough to talk about some of the issues of going tiny and she enjoys the experience.

[AngelaHunter]

I just watched a "Tiny House" show for the first time. A couple decides to re-fit an 80sq ft van into a home for them - wife doesn't like the idea of hauling a trailer -  their 3-year daughter (no, I'm sure she'll never fall on that ladder leading up to her bed) and a dog. Husband is one of those skinny, man-bunned little hipsters who doesn't know which end of a hammer to use. They call a carpenter who does an amazing job, but I can't imagine anyone - let alone a family of three - living in a place where the toilet is in the tiny shower stall, right under the shower, and a three-year old sleeps 4 feet away, on top of Mom and Dad. I wonder how long it took them to get sick of all that.

In general, concerning "tiny houses" I guess it might be okay for someone really young starting out, but for myself, never ever would I live in any dwelling where I have to enter my bedroom on my knees.