When we first decided we wanted to build our own house we were always interested in some type of alternative living situation. The reasons for this are varied and some are probably rather unexplainable. The best way to articulate it is that we wanted to prove to ourselves that we could live comfortably and inexpensively at the same time.

Before we decided on building an early Tumbleweed Tiny House model we considered some other alternative building solutions like a Cordwood Masonry structure or an Earthship. Our experiences with both of these types of building were based on off the grid systems.

By going off the grid we could reduce our dependency of resources and essentially eliminate our monthly utilities payments. There were some added benefits of being more environmentally conscious but to be perfectly honest these considerations were secondary. The first priority was to build our own home and be able to quit our conventional jobs and not have the expenses that traditional housing requires.

We wanted to live off the grid to prove we could do it.

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How about a mini tiny house community you can put together yourself with a small group of people and as little money as possible?

The other day I posted a WANTED ad in my local craigslist so I can find a plot of land to rent so I can park and live in my future tiny house on wheels.

I got one response so far and it was another tiny house person interested in the same thing!

As I was emailing back and forth with her I got to thinking about a simpler way to create a tiny house community. I’ve been thinking about this a lot especially since Jay Shafer’s announcement of a tiny village in progress. Unfortunately, that never came to pass. But maybe someday it will still happen.

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Have you met Collin and Joanna before? They’re a young couple who built and lived in their own Tumbleweed Fencl tiny house on a trailer. They bought the plans, ordered the trailer, built the house, and moved in!

But now they’re very happy to announce that they’re starting a family so they will be upsizing to a home that will be better for them to raise a child in. So that means their gorgeous little house is up for sale. The tiny house has sold but you can still see it below!

This is one of the most elegantly designed tiny houses that I’ve seen to date. They used Jay Shafer’s Tumbleweed Fencl building plans to build it and they did an excellent job of decorating as you’ll see in the pictures.

It’s a 130-square-foot design meant to be built onto a 7’x18′ trailer. To date, we’ve featured numerous builds that have used the same plans which you can check out at the bottom of this page.

So yes – the Fencl is definitely a popular tiny home design to build and live in. So, without further adieu, here’s Collin & Joanna’s beautiful self-built tiny home…

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Collin and Joanna’s Beautiful Self-built Tumbleweed Fencl Tiny House

Luscious, isn’t it? Wait until you go inside.. They spared no expense when it came to making this a lovely home to live in.

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Do you ever wonder what it’s like living in a tiny house?  The best way is to go rent one and spend a few nights in one. That’s why we have a tiny house vacations category. Go try one out if you’re serious about it. But another fun way to explore the idea of tiny living is to sort of daydream and imagine what it would be like living in a tiny house, right?

And the best part is, you can do that right here right now without having to go anywhere or spend any money. So here are a collection of videos that will help you imagine and almost experience what it would be like living tiny! Please enjoy, bookmark this page and return later, and please let me know in the comments… How do you think your life would be like if you went tiny? Would it be better than it is now, you think? Why?

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What It’s REALLY Like to Live in a Tiny House And How to Figure out if it Would be Good or Bad for YOU…

Images © Modern Tiny Living

To tiny… or not to tiny?

That is the question, right? Let’s explore that questions below.

The Fosters’ unique homestead in New York sets a good example for marriages as well as tiny houses. Sandra Foster, 42, shares a rundown 1970s trailer with her husband Todd on a 14-acre property in the Catskill Mountains but each spouse also has a private retreat customized to their personality.

They met over their mutual love of gardening and married in 2000. Todd has two big dogs while Sandra has two Maltese. Todd doesn’t mind mess and grime whereas Sandra likes things to be sparkly clean. This quirky couple doesn’t let their differences get in the way.

After an attempt at refurnishing a huge farm house left them both emotionally exhausted, they bought their current acreage. A rustic hunting cabin on the property caught Sandra’s eye and that was the beginning of the tiny and gorgeous Victorian themed studio that she finds sanctuary in today.

Sandra spent only $3,000 building and furnishing her stylish retreat. Much of the materials she found used in thrift stores, antique shops, salvage yards and on Craigslist. She was able to find classic wavy glass and support columns in vintage stores all over New York.

Though a fiscal administrator in her day to day life, Sandra renovated the cabin completely by herself.

She cut off the front-end of the cabin in order to extend the porch four feet. Tools, materials and furnishings all had to be carried over a rickety bridge spanning a rocky stream and then up a steep hill to reach the construction zone.

While Sandra is adding to her China collection in her prim studio, Todd finds a shed covered by a tarp meets his needs just fine. His retreat features a big screen television, cooking equipment and two heated cages for raising chickens and pheasants.

Sandra and Todd Foster have three tiny living spaces: one for her, one for him and one to share. Rather than fighting each others standards of cleanliness and organization, they’ve found a unique way to live passionate, creative lives side by side.

Written by Newt Stremple for Tiny House Talk

Be sure to visit the original article on this Victorian Tiny House Cottage over at the New York Times.

Photo Credit: Trevor Tondro for The New York Times

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This week I wanted to show you Dan Louche’s latest tiny house plans. He calls this design Tiny Living.

It’s a 20′ long house that includes enough room for a bathroom, sleeping loft, kitchen and plenty of room for your belongings.

Tiny House Plans: Tiny Living by Dan Louche

The entryway on the house is on the rear end of the trailer and as you can tell it does not have a built-in porch.

Since a patio or deck is something you can easily add later, I appreciate how Dan left the porch out to maximize the interior living space.

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Tiny Living House Plans from Dan Louche

Photo Courtesy of Dan Louche

Ways to get your own Tiny House on a Trailer

If you’re here, you probably see a tiny house in your future. Either for you, or one of your loved ones. So how do you go about getting one?

Here are four ways you can start:

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It’s Thursday plans day again. Today’s tiny house plans are from Dan Louche of Tiny Home Builders.

For those of you who don’t know Dan this is second tiny house design named Tiny Living.

Tiny Living Tiny House Plans

Tiny Living is one of Tiny Home Builders latest designs after Dan created Tiny Retirement for his mother.

Not long ago I took a trip up to North Florida to check out the latest progress on his build. I’ll show you the pictures I took in a minute.

Dan Louche and Tiny Home Builders

Dan has been designing and building his own tiny houses for the last couple of years. Since then he has put together a wonderful resource for those who want to do the same.

He currently offers two designs:

• Tiny Retirement
• Tiny Living

If you wanted to purchase any of those plans he packages them together with his Tiny House Construction Guide that you can alternatively buy separately for just $34.99.

Tiny Living

Let’s take a closer look at Dan’s new house which he recently took a video tour of.

The house is 20′ long with a width of 8′ 6″ on the outside.

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