Tiny Houses – An Alternative Way of Building and Living

Is a huge house the ultimate goal? Not for everybody.

In the United States the average size of new single family in 2013 was 2,662 square feet (247.3 m2). The small house movement (also known as the “tiny house movement”) is a description for the architectural and social movement that advocates living simply in small homes (source: Wikipedia).

Tiny houses are a statement. Do they remain a curiosity or could they possibly become an industry in the future? I chose a few videos that feature different aspects of tiny homes. In addition, the last video demonstrates how apartments can be both tiny and mobile.

Tiny house as a lifestyle choice

A tiny house on wheels in four months for $22,000

“Built for $22k ($33k including all cabinets and appliances), our tiny house feels spacious, roomy and totally livable. ”

A tiny cedar house

Lustado spent a year — and about $40,000 — planning and building her home, which she moved into in early 2014. She designed and built the house to be her home for life.

Read the whole story

Shipping container homes

“Nova Deko is an established international manufacturer of high quality granny flats, transportable, relocatable and temporary buildings.”

A Norwegian rural prefab cabin

Norwegian architect architect Marianne Borg  wanted to create a modern version of the traditional, simple Norwegian cottage. Her Woody15 is a 15 square meter one-room cabin with no kitchen, bathroom or electricity (but complete with wood-burning stove).

The Norwegian spruce cabin is made of 29 cross-laminated timber (CLT) pieces. It can be assembled in one day, except for the cladding, foundation and windows. In the video Marianne shows us the Woody15 on her friend’s organic farm outside of Oslo.

Kasita – mobile tiny apartments

“We have created the ideal compact urban home through a completely new approach anchored in industrial design. The 208 square ft (19.3m2) space has been carefully crafted down to the last cubic inch with a focus on elegance, 
comfort and function – from the smart home technology embedded in its walls to the intelligent mattress to the cantilevered glass cube.” – Kasita.com.