Upcoming Workshops: Building & Tiny House Basics

The Pedalpalooza ADU and Tiny House Tours on Saturday were great fun. Now I'm working with PAD to gear up for three exciting workshops in the coming weeks: Tiny House Work Parties are small group workshops that provide supervised, hands-on tiny house construction experience before your start building your own house. Experience and enthusiasm are contagious, and as you help put someone else's house together, you'll gain the skills, confidence, and excitement to you need to get moving on your own tiny house dream.

On Friday, July 5th PAD is hosting a work party to build the foundation of an 8-food Don Vardo that Dee Williams will take across the United States during the book tour of her memoir due out in 2014. The foundation is the most unique part of building a tiny house on wheels and helping Dee build a tiny house is a truly unique experience.

On Saturday, July 6th PAD is hosting a work party to construct the walls and roof of a 16 ft tiny house designed by Kate Goodnight, a graduate of PAD's Tiny House Basics Workshop and author of the awesome tiny house blog Naj Haus.

The weekend of July 20-21 PAD will host a Tiny House Basics Workshop, which is an introduction to Tiny House Design & Building. This workshop is comprehensive but entry-level, introducing you to the unique design and building principles that apply to a tiny house on wheels. It will include: how to properly anchor a stick-built structure to a trailer, considerations for utilities, and navigating codes, insurance, and regulations. The workshop includes a tour of a tiny house where the topics we've discussed are brought to life.

You can register for workshops on PAD's website.

Pedalpalooza ADU & Tiny House Tour Recap

Yesterday was an epic day of small houses. Kimber and I coordinated the Pedalpalooza Accessory Dwelling and Tiny House Tours all in one day so that people who are interested in both tours could visit a variety of small spaces. It was great fun! (But you don't have to take my word for it. You can read Audrey's recap at Trying on Tiny or read more at Daedalus Project.)

We started out the ADU tour by exploring a basement apartment that was constructed by energy efficiency expert Derin Williams of Shelter Wise. As a special bonus we got to see Casa Pequena, the tiny house which was constructed in 2 days in April. Next up was a 320 square foot backyard cottage built by Walt Quade of Small Home Oregon, which serves as a sister-in-law suite. Walt also showed one of his tiny garden cottages and one of his teardrop trailers. Then we headed to Granny’s Garden Cottage, which was My Summer Garden Cottage last year. It was great to see my old digs again and to see how Bruce & Carolyn’s gorgeous garden is growing this year. We made a quick stop at Cully Grove to see the progress on this cohousing community for 16 families.

Then we were off to Kathleen’s where we got to see an owner-built ADU still under construction and learn how this basement apartment provides flexibility for her and her parents. I especially appreciated how they maximized usable space and daylight. Next we stopped at Sabin Green to see how Eli Spevak of Orange Splot created a community of four houses by renovating an existing house, converting its garage into an ADU, and building another house next door with an ADU behind it. We wrapped up the ADU Tour with a visit to Ruth’s Garden Cottages, another Orange Splot infill community, which utilizes detached bedrooms to provide simple and cozy housing for 3 couples.

We were lucky to have knowledgble tour leaders including: Martin and Shannon who are the new owners of Ruth’s Garden Cottages, Kol Peterson who teaches a class on building an ADU in Portland (stay tuned for the next one in October) and Jordan Palmeri who coordinates the Space-Efficient Housing Working Group that put on Build Small, Live Large last October.

Between rides Kimber and I biked back across NE Portland and ate a picnic lunch on the lawn at Rigler school. Our first stop for the Tiny House Tour was the home of Audrey & Thomas who blog at Trying on Tiny. Next we headed to Walt Quade’s place where his garden cottage was on display (but people also got to see the ADU and tear drop trailer, of course!) Then we were off to Ruth’s Garden Cottages to show how tiny houses can interact with their neighbors. We wrapped up the Tiny House Tour at Caravan – The Tiny House Hotel. There were only 4 stops on the Tiny House Tour this year, but riders got to see 7 mobile tiny houses as well as innovative ways to cluster tiny houses.

It was especially fun for me to see Caravan, not only because I’m stoked about the first tiny house hotel in the country, but because I helped with the construction of two of the houses there. My Summer Dream Job last year was doing interior and exterior finish work for a tiny house on wheels for Orange Splot. The tiny house was my practicum project for my Certificate in Sustainable Design and Building from Yestermorrow. But since I didn’t do the final touches it was fun to see how nicely they’d finished out the house with kitchen cabinets and the kitchen sink, a panel over the electrical box, a ladder up to the loft, and a gable end detail. Deb did a lovely job of appointing the tiny guest house with clever furniture so it can now serve four guests.

Last fall I also helped with framing, insulating, and sheathing for a Shelter Wise tiny house which uses the Miter Box plans (center in the photo to left). However, I hadn’t seen it completed and it is stunning! Between Andra’s design details and Derin’s meticulous craftsmanship this house blends sophistication with zen simplicity.

We had about 100 people join us for each of the two tours, traveling from as far away as Vancouver, British Columbia and Los Angeles, CA to be part of the rides. I enjoyed hearing people’s design ideas and their insights as they explored smart small spaces. I look forward to keeping in touch with many of the great folks I met yesterday and seeing them at upcoming workshops, potlucks, builds, and happy hours.

Pedalpalooza ADU & Tiny House Tours on Saturday, June 29th, 2013

Last year, in conjunction with Orange Splot, I coordinated the Pedalpalooza Accessory Dwelling Tour and Tiny House Tour, which each drew around 100 riders. This year I’m co-coordinating with Kimber, who has completed the Oregon Tradeswoman pre-apprenticeship program and now helps out with Portland Alternative Dwellings once in a while.

We decided to host both tours on the same day this year so that people who are curious about small spaces can see a wide variety of them in real life. The tours are guided by a fabulous bunch of small space builders, designers, owners, and inhabitants, so it will be a great chance to ask questions. We have a great line up again this year.

On the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Tour, riders will see:

• A super energy-efficient basement apartment built by Shelter Wise
• A backyard cottage built as a sister-in-law house by Small Home Oregon
• An eco-friendly and accessible granny flat in an idyllic setting, which was My Summer Garden Cottage last year
• A basement mother-in-law which provides flexibility for an extended family
• A set of houses with ADUs that create a little community called Sabin Green
• A house with two detached accessory structures in a garden setting called Ruth’s Garden Cottages

On the Tiny House Tour we will showcase:

• A tiny house built for a couple and their cat
• A garden cottage by Small Home Oregon
• The world's first tiny house hotel called The Caravan, which features 3 tiny houses (one of which I built last summer as my Yestermorrow Practicum project!)

Those who choose to join us for both tours are in for an epic adventure!

I’m still in touch with many people I met during the tours last year, so I’m looking forward to meeting this year’s riders. We have received more than a dozen inquiries about the tour, many of them from folks who are coming from out-of-state for the tour. There are no RSVPs required, so come join us if you’re able!

• Pedalpalooza ADU Tour (9AM-1PM), staring point Shelter Wise’s ADU (2726 NE 66^th Ave, Portland, OR 97213)
• Pedalpalooza Tiny House Tour (2PM-5PM), starting point Rigler Elementary School (5401 NE Prescott Street, Portland, OR 97218)

Tiny House Fair: Day 3

Day 3 of the first annual Tiny House Fair started off with a panel discussion regarding the alegality of tiny houses. To the best of our knowledge there isn't a zoning code in the country that directly addresses "tiny houses." Most municipalities would probably consider a tiny house on wheels a custom built travel trailer (whether or not it will be considered a recreational vehicle by insurance companies and banks depends on certification though). So in many places the only part of town where you can legally live in a tiny house is an RV park and many cities have restrictions on the maximum time you can stay there.

However, people around the world have become advocates of tiny houses for financial, social, environmental, and lifestyle reasons. There's also a groundswell of support for tiny house communities, so many people are working within our existing codes and figuring out ways that we can amend code to better suit our needs. It was, as you might imagine, a fascinating conversation with more questions than answers.

Following the morning panel, some of the participants headed out for a tour of local tiny houses. The folks who stuck around got to hear Dee Williams of Portland Alternative Dwellings discuss some of the sticky wickets of the tiny house world (building code, financing, and insurance). She also covered structural considerations for a house on wheels that undergoes hurricane and earthquake conditions when it hits the road.

After lunch I spoke about code and legal issues, including some of the legal ways people have found to live in tiny houses and some of the next steps we might take as advocates of small spaces.

Next Jay Shafer joined us to talk about Resizing the American Dream. Here are a few of my favorite lines from his talk:

• "The Tiny House Movement is more than cute houses and quirky people. It's subverting consumerism."
• "When it was about use value not resale value people built houses according to their needs."
• "The Small House Movement is about people living in the amount of space they need."
• "Tiny houses are self-portraits with innovation to meet individual needs."
• "It's all just about what's necessary. Eliminate everything else."
• "When necessity is allowed to dictate the form of things, they're beautiful!"

The Tiny House Fair officially wrapped up when the tiny house tour and Jay's talk were completed, but several tiny house advocates continued the conversation over dinner (at American Flatbread - shout out to Billy for insisting that we go there!) and then around the conference table. We are eager to see how the Tiny House Movement evolves.

I'm honored to have spent the weekend in the presence of such fabulous folks. I met people from across the country who are designing, building, dwelling in, and advocating for tiny houses. Our ranks included building inspectors, lawyers, carpenters, inventors, and educators. Collectively we have an enormous amount of knowledge and enthusiasm and I hope we can direct it in the best possible ways to support simple, affordable, sustainable housing options. Meanwhile, my celebrity friend crushes have only been reinforced by discovering how fun these folks are in real life!

I'm already looking forward to the second annual Tiny House Fair which is slated for the West Coast next summer!

Tiny House Fair: Day 2

Dustin and Deek Diedricksen of Relaxshacks kicked off Day 2 of the Tiny House Fair by sharing tips for building creative small shelters with salvaged materials. In addition to laughing hysterically  because these guys are just so darn funny, I found myself marveling at clever ideas (stretch band bookshelves, a salad bowl sink, and windows built from serving trays, entertainment cabinet glass,  and front loading washing machine port holes). I also loved the vocabulary lesson. Deek uses the phrase "space-efficient" just like us Portlanders. But he also uses the following new-to-me terms which I intend to begin using immediately:

• "the hot dog approach" - using the whole piece of lumber or every part of a found object
• "ground bound" for wee structures attached to a foundation instead of a trailer, skids, or a tree
• "free-form building" for tackling a building project with no plans
• "turnitecture" for transforming furniture

I wasn't surprised that Lloyd Kahn is one of Deek's greatest inspirations. Still, it was nice to have Deek share a reminder that sometimes the design for a structure presents itself when a great found object beckons. My own tiny house design evolved from a window I found one day when I wasn't looking.

Later in the morning Abel Zimmerman presented tips on tool use for finish carpentry. Check out Zyl Vardos to see his beautiful work!

After a phenomenal lunch (did I mention the food here is mindbogglingly good?!) Alex Pino of Tiny House Talk offered practical tips on parting with our stuff. Here is a sampling of Alex's pithy wisdom:

• "Tiny houses are a way of meeting our basic needs so we can contribute to our world"
• "If you're trying to get rid of stuff, open a drawer and figure out what to get rid of... or, better yet, decide what to keep"
• "If it's a valuable item, donate it to museum & give it to the world. They'll take good care of it & you can go visit."
• "Ask yourself 'why do I have this? do I use it? how can someone else use it?' Then shut up and listen."
• "What do you really love? A tiny house should help you get what makes you happy."

His talk sparked some good suggestions for downsizing from the audience. Dee chimed in with a reality check: "When we go to bed at night and get up in morning all we really have is our simple beating heart & whoever is leaning into us." True, that.

Later in the afternoon Mariah Coz presented information about the solar system for her Comet Camper. We had a chance to tour her place and a handful of other tiny houses here for the fair.

After a scrumptious supper we had 11 amazing presentations in what we think may have been the first ever Tiny House Pecha Kucha. With only 20 slides each and 20 seconds per slide it was a fast-paced glimpse into topics ranging from chicken coops to structurally insulated panels. Between great photos and renderings, laughter and goosebumps, it was a powerful session and I have a hunch it will be the highlight of the weekend.

Nevertheless, I'm thoroughly looking forward to today! I know there are more good conversations in store for all of us.

Tiny House Fair: Day 1

Ah, it feels good to be back here! During my very first Yestermorrow course (Ecological Design in the Built Environment - the 3 week Core curriculum for the Certificate in Sustainable Design & Building) my friend Shannon White said "I think Vermont is my spiritual home." The sentiment resonated then, but even more now, with the feeling of homecoming when I arrived at Yestermorrow again yesterday afternoon after nearly a year and a half away.

I loved wandering around campus yesterday and rediscovering this magical place. It was nice to see that although some great changes have been made (there are a few new cabins and the fruit trees in the edible landscaping have doubled in size) most things are just as I remember them. Those things that aren't exactly the same are improved from being well loved and well cared for: a fresh coat of plaster here, a lovely patina building up there, etc.

I pitched my tent near Dee Williams and Joan Grimm of Portland Alternative Dwellings and Tammy Strobel and Logan Smith of Rowdy Kittens. After a nap in the sunshine to make up for that red eye flight I headed down to the giant tent set up to accommodate a dining area for the unprecedented 120 guests on campus for the Tiny House Fair. I miss my old perch on a stool in the kitchen where I could heckle Heidi (Yestermorrow's amazing whole foods chef). But I got to make new friends yesterday. I had the pleasure of finally meeting Elaine of Tiny House Community, Brian and Lee of Boneyard Studios. It's so fun to meet people I've been reading about and communicating with and to see that they're even more amazing (how is that possible?!) in real life. I enjoyed talking to Patti Garbeck who teaches carpentry here at Yestermorrow and will be co-instructing the Tiny House Design-Build class this coming September.

Brian and Lee did a great presentation last night about Boneyard Studios, telling the story of how they're creating a showcase of tiny houses in Washington, D.C. I loved hearing about their meet ups, work parties, and garden projects.

There's a great line up of speakers scheduled for today:

• How to Build Your Own Home for a Lot Less (using free or recycled materials), Derek (Deek) Diedricksen of Relaxshacks
• Clever Cabinetry and Finish Carpentry, Abel Zyl Zimmerman of Zyl Vardos
• Progressive Sharecropping with Tiny Houses, the "Gardeneer" concept, & the Destination CSA, Peter King of Vermont Tiny Houses
• How to Free Yourself From Your Stuff, Alex Pino of Tiny House Talk
• Building an Ecovillage, Gwendolyn Hallsmith of Headwaters Garden and Learning Center
• Composting Toilet Options for Tiny Houses, Abe Noe-Hays of Full Circle Compost Consulting
• Designing and Building a Tiny House Q&A, Dan Louche of Tiny Home Builders
• Small Scale Solar Power for Your Tiny House, Mariah Coz of the Comet Camper
• Design and Construction for Specific Climates, Abel Zyl Zimmerman of Zyl Vardos
• Tiny House Pecha Kucha - 12 presenters each show 20 slides of their tiny houses

I don't know how I'll decide what to attend since I don't want to miss any of it, but I'm glad they're videotaping most of the sessions so I can catch them virtually afterwards. If you'd like to follow along today, follow me on Twitter @littlelifepdx!

Off to the Tiny House Fair

If you've been following along on my Little Life adventures you've probably noticed I've been lax about blogging these days. The past three weeks have been a whirlwind. I graduate from Portland State University today with a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning. But I'm skipping the graduation festivities this weekend to speak at the first ever Tiny House Fair at Yestermorrow. I know my classmates will take pictures and eat cake for me, so I feel safe leaving the wrap up in their hands. Instead I'm taking this commencement thing really seriously and getting started with new adventures! In the coming weeks I'll share more information about my new sustainable design consulting company Niche Consulting LLC. Meanwhile, watch for updates this weekend from the fair!

I've just arrived at the Burlington Airport and I'm thrilled to be back in Vermont. Dee Williams and Joan Grimm of Portland Alternative Dwellings will be fetching me soon and we'll head to Yestermorrow to get settled in and meet everyone. There's an incredible line up of speakers, including several other tiny house dwellers, designers, builders, and bloggers. There are also 100 participants signed up and I'm horribly excited to meet them! We're going to have such fun geeking out about nano houses.

I haven't been to Vermont since February 2011 when I wrapped up the last of my coursework for my Certificate in Sustainable Design and Building. But I've been in touch with the fine folks of Yestermorrow via my practicum project (building a tiny house on wheels). I also skyped in on the Tiny House Design Build course last year and I've recently been asked to be an instructor for upcoming Yestermorrow courses. I couldn't have been more thrilled to receive that invitation. I love Yestermorrow and can't wait to set foot on campus again.

Here's to commencement! Hip, hip, hooray!

Reciprocal Admiration

Yesterday I received my first fan mail via the Postal Service and it made my week. Rediscovering that inspiration goes both ways was both humbling and reenergizing. So I responded with fan mail of my own.

This lovely little note came from an 18-year-old woman who is so creative that I want to be like her when I grow up. When Addie attended our PAD Tiny House Workshop in April I was impressed by her reasoning for building her own tiny house. Before even graduating from high school this young woman has recognized that living in a small, simple home will enable her to save money, retain locational flexibility, and use her artistic talents to create a place that truly fits her and feels like home. I wish I’d been half as wise as she is when I was her age. And half as talented, too.

During our workshop Addie was sipping out of a wide-mouth pint jar that was etched with a cool vintage-looking picture. I’m a huge fan of wide-mouth pint jars. In fact, they're the only thing I really have a collection of at this point in my life. So this beautiful jar caught my eye right away. Over lunch I asked Addie where she found it and she told me she’d made it. Then I had to know all about the process and Addie happily obliged me. She explained she’s been selling these beautiful jars on Etsy as one of her fundraising strategies for the construction of her own tiny house.

I turned to the person on my other side at our lunch table and mock whispered, “The woman who made this mason jar is going to build a tiny house. It’s going to be a work of art and I can’t wait to see it!” I told Addie that I, too, am focused on keeping my expenses down so I can get my tiny house built soon. And that as soon as I’m settled into my tiny house I’ll be commissioning her to make me a whole batch of beautiful mason jars.

Addie had already secured herself a place on my growing Tiny House Heroes List.

So I was delighted to open the package that accompanied Addie’s note and find her business card and one of Addie’s beautiful mason jars. This was a very thoughtful gift on Addie’s part since this jar won’t count in My 200 Things Challenge. I’ve explained in Who’s Counting Anyway? that I’m counting my mason jars as a set rather than including each individual jar on My 200 Things List. So I’ll be parting with one of my other mason jars to make a spot for this special one. (Speaking of which… it’s getting to be time for a re-count. I was a little over 200 items last time I checked. I had 203 items at the time!)

Needless to say, Addie’s mason jar has become my instant favorite and my new to go container. I’ll be carrying soup and leftovers for lunch in this pretty jar and it will be a constant reminder of Addie and the other tiny house folks who inspire me.

If you want to buy an etched mason jar to add a touch of beauty to your kitchen while supporting an incredible woman’s tiny house fund, check out Addie's Etsy site. And if you want to learn more about Addie's reasons for going tiny and a write up about her stay in the Bayside Bungalow, check out Addie's post Why Tiny? on her blog Slice, Serve, Savor.

Thank you Addie!

Bettering Things

Yesterday was a good day for Rainy Day Catch Up and I decided to make a couple of the things I own a little better. Since I’m doing the 200 Things Challenge I figure I better really like the things I own and I better make them work well for me. So yesterday I spent an hour bettering my bike lock, my broom, and my ostrich egg lantern.

I recently acquired a new bike lock because the lock I bought last fall was driving me crazy. I decided to purchase a combination lock this time so I won’t have to deal with a bike lock key anymore. (Even thought this is one less thing for me to think about, this doesn’t count as one less thing since I count even the lock as part of my bike. I explain my rules for counting for My 200 Things Challenge in Who’s Counting Anyway.) However, I preferred the lock holder for the old lock because the little metal bracket attached to the lock itself snapped tightly into the holder on my bike. I found it was much less likely to fly out of the holder when I go over a bump than the new one. So I modified the new lock to accept the metal bracket by slicing away a part of the rubber and adding a gasket. It only took a couple minutes to create my ideal bike lock.

I also recently bought myself a broom since I didn’t own one. I lived without any carpets for several years so I bought myself a Bucket Head vacuum cleaner when I moved into the yurt, which had rugs. This worked pretty well for me, except that the rugs contributed to the Moisture Management problems I was having. A few weeks ago I decided it was time for Spring Cleaning the Yurt and I removed the rugs. But then I needed a broom. I decided to buy myself a kid-size broom but it was just a little too short, even for me. I realized I could probably find bike parts to extend the handle of my little broom. My local bike repair shop hooked just happened to have exactly what I needed and $3 and 3 minutes later my little broom is better than ever.

Two years ago my little sister and I traveled to South Africa and we both brought home ostrich egg lanterns. My sister found hers right away but it took me a long time to find my giraffe lantern. We were Packing Densely but we managed to carefully transport our lanterns home. Unfortunately, once I tried using my lantern the first time I realized that there were too few holes providing oxygen for the lantern to work with a candle. When I switched to a little light bulb I found there still wasn’t enough light emanating from the lantern for it to really be interesting. So I bought myself a 5/32” masonry drill bit this weekend and enlarged the holes in my lantern. Now I can really enjoy my lantern. I’m even planning a special spot for it in the tiny house I’m designing for myself.

Cooking Al Fresco

Every Sunday my workshop team meets up for a working meal. We alternate between brunch and supper and we take turns hosting. The last time I was responsible for cooking for my team I was Living Large by housesitting so I had plenty of room to cook and host. When I lived in the Bayside Bungalow last year I was able to host a Dinner Party for Six, but here in the yurt that would be pretty uncomfortable. So this term I put off hosting until the weather warmed up enough to could dine outside. Fortunately, this weekend we had splendid weather so I offered to host brunch.

I set up milk crates and strung my hammock between the posts of my grape arbor so we’d have outdoor dining space. As I got my ingredients out to start cooking, I realized that in addition to dining outside I could also do my cooking outside. This is one of the advantages of my plug-and-play kitchen. I keep a one-burner electric cooktop in My Kitchen Cupboard and I usually place it on top of my mini fridge to do my cooking. This morning I brought my cooktop outside and plugged it into my power strip just inside the door. I used my outdoor shelf as my countertop and it worked splendidly.

I did have to remember to keep everything covered so that seedpods blowing in the air didn’t settle in my pots. But it was lovely to cook outside in the fresh air and breezes. This will be especially nice as the weather warms up and it gets too hot for me to want to cook inside the yurt.

I have always loved dining outside, but I hadn’t really thought about outdoor cooking as an option (other than grilling and camping, of course!) Now that I’ve discovered how nice it is to cook outside at home, I’ll plan an outdoor cooking set up for the tiny house I'm designing for myself. This is, of course, a seasonal activity especially in the Pacific Northwest, but for those days when it’s possible, it’s so delightful!

As part of My 200 Things Challenge I’m living with only two plates on hand and I didn’t feel like digging my others out of my storage tub in the shed, so we improvised. Two people got plates, two got cutting boards, one got a baking dish, and one got a pot lid. We giggled about our interesting dishes, but we’d done the same thing the week before when another of my group mates hosted, so it didn’t seem too strange.

I cooked up huevos rancheros with a delicious salsa verde from the farmers market and fresh homemade guacamole. For dessert (since all our brunches involve dessert, of course!) I cooked up a strawberry rhubarb compote (also with fresh local ingredients) to drizzle over vanilla ice cream.

Hooray for cooking fresh food in fresh breezes!