These tiny homes go up quickly in a day, but even better they are built on “derelict sites”- empty lots. The Dutch firm Heijmans needs to visit Detroit, where there are many vacant lots. If you ever wondered if you would feel catastrophic in 200 square feet, spend the night at the Tiny Caravan Hotel […]
So Hard to Contain Me
You know my passion for small spaces and recycling so when I found this site Montainer they are a one stop shopping site for taking a shipping container and creating your home, office, ADU, yoga studio or an extra sleeping room. They have a team of architects, engineers, builders and designers that put the package […]
Tiny House Hotel
Caravan- The Tiny House Hotel is Portland Oregon’s first hotel that is connected to the city water and power grid, six tiny homes on trailers complete with wheels. Owners Kol Peterson and Deb Delman persevered in the red tape to develop a business with 6 tiny magical homes circling around a fire pit and awning. […]
Shelter or Sculpture?
Often my posts are about the newest, smartest way too live small or how to downsize and stay sane. Since summer is here everyone is trying to find the best beach rental cottage, camp ground to pitch a tent or the latest boutique hotel to land and relax at the Oregon Coast. This month I […]
Trashy Art
One of my favorite places to visit is Manzanita on the Oregon coast only two hours from Portland. There is a recycling center CartM which is creating a zero waste community at the coast. One of the best events is the Trash Art show located in the Trash Gallery – inside the Refinery Resale store. […]
What do you call – IT ?
PDX Small Homes Go Big -is about how the City of Portland Bureau of Planners and Sustainability and Department of Environmental Quality have put together this great video explaining ADU’s- or is it Laneway housing or Mother-in-Law studio or Secondary Dwelling or Accessory Dwelling – OR – What do you call it? – watch the […]
Granny knows how to Downsize
My 95 year old mother in-law lives in a Granny Flat, she came west from cold Ohio to live behind her sons home in warm San Luis Obispo 15 years ago. Evelyn climbs the exterior staircase to her one bedroom 400 sq ft apartment above a garage. I was inspired to build my own studio […]
AIA Tour in PDX = small + smart
I wanted to share the highlights of the AIA Portland, 2013 Design Matters: Tour of Exceptional Portland Homes. It was in conjunction of the Portland Design Festival. It started with a bit of a drizzle and by the end of tour the sun was out- so PDX. Most of the homes were owned by the […]
French Garage Makeover
Hi all! Happy New Year! I’m getting back into the swing of things finally and today, I have a fabulous garage make-over to share with you – all the way from Bordeaux! (You all know how I have a thing for garage projects!) This tiny 441 sq. ft. space was designed by the ingenious team at […]
Airstream Dreams
Downsizing is all about priorities. What do you really need to live, work and play? What are the essentials? Arriving at a place where your space is smaller may actually lead to a larger lifestyle. Mobility, less financial burden, a clutter free existence – FREEDOM! So, I love it when I see successful people living […]