Adventure Van Dwelling ~ How To Live in Your Car, SUV, or Van…

Ok, so its not for everybody, but the van-dwelling community out there is growing. Some entered by way of financial necessity…others by way of their internal call of freedom. Whichever may be your point of entry, Van/Vehicle dwelling may be an up and coming trend for some time to come.

I do plan on addressing this specific venue on a regular basis, posting everything I can find of value to our readers.

Please enjoy this re-post from TinyHouseTalk.com

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How to Live in Your Car, SUV, or Van while Traveling.. Adventure Van Dwelling

In late 2009 the downturn in the economy dramatically changed the overall substance of 30+ year business professional, Brenda Curtiss’s life.

In her words, “Even though I had always dreamed about and somewhat planned for the day I could be ‘free’ to full-time in a small RV or camper van, the need to do so financially, seemed to suddenly be thrust upon me when the once thriving Tax Planning Firm I managed for years, had to close due to the economic downturn.

I had bought a 2000 Astro High-Top Conversion Van with my meager savings and started my full-time vandwelling  journey in it at a membership vacation community in the scenic North GA Mountains where I had bought memberships in better times.

When I started out I was on shore power (electric hook-up) the majority of the time and not very well equipped without it. It was a beautifully scenic area, but after I had explored it extensively, and entertained family and friends who came to visit throughout the year (staying in the cabins there) the excitement began to wane and the nomadic side of me that had always longed to explore God’s amazing artistry began to rise up in me once again.

Photos Courtesy of Brenda Curtiss

By the end of 2010 I was ready to hit the road to travel across the USA in my little campervan! Some good friends helped me get a good battery system set up and further ready my van to live more self-sustainably.

So here it is just over a year later, beginning 2012… Wow, what a journey it has been thus far! I have enjoyed so many wonderful discoveries as I have meandered along exploring all kinds of eclectically picturesque places and people treasures on this awesome journey.

Even with it’s challenges, I love this lifestyle! Photo journaling and sharing my travels and experiences are amazing silver linings! And there are so many wonderfully diverse things, places and people yet to discover!

Unfortunately, due to a mechanical failure I had a horrendous accident in Montana on September 25, 2011 that totaled my beloved van home and most everything I owned within it. My puppy Gabriel and I miraculously survived; so even though starting over has been more than a bit challenging, I am thankful beyond measure.

I purchased a 91 Chevy G20 High-Top Conversion Van on October 15th, moved in two days later, and have been in the process of setting it up since.

Some people were surprised I chose to jump back into the vandwelling lifestyle so rapidly. But I truly enjoy the freedom this lifestyle gives me of meandering at will without the confines and costs of hotels, rent or mortgages.

It’s not for everyone, but I much enjoy my life in my little van home. Hope to see ya’ down the road!”

Brenda invites you to share her journeys via her blog & photo journal comprised of 1500+ (& growing) photos she captures along the way! Check out her Blog & eBooks @ www.LordandCurtiss.ws

http://www.tinyhousetalk.com/how-to-live-in-your-car-suv-or-van-while-traveling-adventure-van-dwelling/

Tiny House Geeks: Win a copy of Jay & Deek’s book

Isn’t This Cool???

Tumbleweed

Tiny House Geeks: Win a copy of Jay & Deek’s book

Hey All,

Well, a few weeks back I returned from Seattle’s Tumbleweed Tiny House Workshop, where I was a guest speaker and part of the workshop’s Q&A session, and aside from having a great time out there, shooting some upcoming tiny house tour videos for “Tiny Yellow House” on youtube (with Christopher Smith of Tiny: The Movie), and photo shooting for another book (an eventual sequel to my new edition of “Humble Homes, Simple Shacks”, I got to meet some equally obsessed folks in the field. What a gathering! The exchange of ideas with so many likeminded people on coffee breaks was incentive enough to attend this.
Many of these people I had communicated with online before, but had never had a chance to hang with, or have lengthy conversations with, and the experience was just inspiring, fun, and enlightening. Jay Shafer at one point said to me “Ya know, I don’t think there’s ever been a tiny house gathering of this many builders, teachers, and bloggers all in one place before.” I think he might have been right, and I just wish I could have gotten a photo with ALL of them in it. I came somewhat close though…

Can you name the people/builders/bloggers/designers in this photo? There’s one random guy in the mix I can’t even name (sorry, whoever you were- real nice guy though!). Give it a shot, submit your answers, and the very few who can get them all will be entered to win both The Small House Book, by Jay Shafer, and a copy of the new-expanded edition of my book Humble Homes, Simple Shacks.

Submit your answers to brett@tumbleweedhouses.com

Winners will be picked this time next Wednesday.

- Derek “Deek” Diedricksen

http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com/blogs/tumbleweed

Our Tiny House…Fits us like tailored clothing!

http://www.katu.com/news/local/This-house-fits-us-like-tailored-clothing-139856793.html?tab=video&c=y

Secret Storage Spaces in My Tiny House ~ Tammy Strobel of Rowdy Kittens Blog

Great  Idea~ Especially for hiding valuables… RB

http://rowdykittens.com/2012/02/storage/

social change through simple living

Secret Storage Spaces in My Tiny House

by Tammy Strobel on February 9, 2012

{Note: During February, I decided to experiment with my writing and focus on a theme. This month’s theme is: noticing life’s lovely details.}

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to spend time with my friend Dee. While we were waiting for Logan to get home from work, we sat in the tiny house talking. She was snuggled up in the window nook and asked, “Now that you’ve been living in the house for a while would you change anything about the design?”

I thought about her question for a minute and said, “No. I love the house and it fits us really well. I think that’s because we spent so much time designing the space.”

Dee helped us design our little house and during the process we were thoughtful about our storage needs. We didn’t want to go overboard with storage, but we knew we’d need a few hiding spots for our stuff. As Logan noted, “I learned from Dee that storage should be near the ceiling or under the counter, in tiny homes, because it’s less obtrusive and it gives people a greater feeling of space.”

For example, we have a dedicated drawer for computer cords and other odds and ends. Leaving these items out on the counter would clutter up the house quickly. In addition, I love our window nook. It’s a space to read, it folds out into a single bed, and under the seat is storage for our camping stuff.

As we were talking, Dee suggested that I do a post about all the secret storage spaces in the tiny house. Yesterday, I spent time taking photos of all our hiding spots; all of the little details you haven’t seen yet.

You can take a tour of our secret storage nooks in the gallery below:

Parting words . . .

Tiny homes don’t have to be cramped. These little spaces can feel open and spacious; it’s just a matter of designing them well.

As Antoine de Saint-Exupéry said, “You know you have reached perfection of design not when you have nothing more to add, but when you have nothing more to take away.”

Replace Your Cabinet Kickplate with Tiny Drawers to Increase Storage Space

This is such a great idea…in any size house…even better in a tiny house!

http://lifehacker.com/5913644/replace-your-cabinet-kickplate-with-a-tiny-drawer-to-add-storage

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By David Galloway

May 27, 2012 11:00 AM

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Replace Your Cabinet Kickplate with Tiny Drawers to Increase Storage Space

Live in an extremely small house/apartment and looking for any way to increase your storage space? Tiny house dweller Tammy Strobel developed several innovative “hidden in plain sight” storage areas for her 128 square-foot home including small drawers under her kitchen cabinets where most people normally just install a kickplate.

The drawers don’t store an incredible amount; maybe two reams of paper side-by-side. In their tiny home it serves as an electronics cord and hardware “junk” drawer. Little storage areas like this not only increase the total storage capacity but they also keep clutter down—an especially needful activity in a tiny house.

No instructions are posted on Tammy’s weblog Rowdy Kittens, but just about any standard kitchen cabinet drawer instructions should work that don’t require extra height for the drawer hardware. This DIY project is definitely not for everyone, but if you live in a studio apartment or a tiny house it might be up your alley.

Secret Storage Spaces in My Tiny House | Rowdy Kittens

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Family Builds a Tiny House for Mortgage Free Future

This is sooo cool.

http://www.tinyhousedesign.com/2012/04/08/family-builds-a-tiny-house-for-mortgage-free-future

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Michael Janzen

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Anderson Cooper has a great story scheduled for Monday April 9, 2012 about a family that is rebuilding their lives by leveraging tiny house living.

Carl and Hari were restaurant owners in 2008 when the recession hit. Like so many small business owners they lost their home when their business failed. Extreme times call for extreme measures so they built a tiny home for $12,000 as a stepping stone to a mortgage-free future. Eventually they plan to build a larger (yet still small) home when they’ve saved enough money. In the mean time they avoid rent and high energy bills. Their overall consumption is also limited by the physical size of their home – saving them more money.

In 2007-2008 many of us found ourselves trapped in upside-down mortgages or in foreclosure. We had grown complacent and convinced that home ownership came with few risks. Now that the bubble has popped and has little possibility for re-inflation, we now understand the true value of paying our dues up-front instead of mortgaging our futures.

By sharing their story on television, Carl and Hari are showing the world an option the majority may have not considered – an option that values frugality, saving, and financial freedom. If you’re feeling the financial pinch yourself, consider extreme downsizing and living simply.

In my book, Tiny House Floor Plans, I show many examples of tiny houses just like this one. I also just finished a house plan for an 8′ x 20′ tiny house on wheels, which is just one foot shorter than the house pictured below.

You can follow these folks at TinyHouseFamily.com.

Read more about this family at AndersonCooper.com. Photo credit AndersonCooper.com.

 

Tiny House built using SIPs construction

Very Cool Build. I have been contemplating using SIPs to build and this guy just went and did it. I am impressed.

http://tinyhouseblog.com/sips/tiny-sip-house/#more-23600

Tiny SIP House

by Kent Griswold on May 31st, 2012. 13 Comments

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by Art Cormier

My name is Art Cormier and I decided to build a tiny house this last fall. I realized I had been living in large space, but only using a small portion of it. I began to research floor plans online and decided to start with the basic layout of Jay Shafer’s Walden (Tiny Tumbleweed Houses).

The thought of framing up such a small space and subjecting it to the stresses of transport on a trailer seemed daunting. S.I.P. (Structural Insulated Panels, SIPS.org) panels seemed like a good option.

With the panels each surface would be one piece, making the construction easy. S.I.P.s allow someone without extensive building skills to put together a sound structure. This was my first experience using S.I.P.s and there is much detail of the process on my blog, tinysiphouse.blogspot.com.

 

The completed house feels roomier than I anticipated. Getting rid of extraneous things must have had something to do with it. I did not sacrifice anything other than square footage for my tiny house, in fact I am quite comfortable. I hope that my experience with my house might inspire people both to downsize and to consider S.I.P.s

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