TINY HOUSE IS FOR SALE!
Email me with any inquiries: matt@justfinedesignbuild.com

settling in

been living in the tiny house for 8 months now, haven't gotten to work on it much in the last few months, but it's in a good place for now

Trimming out the windows makes such a difference

tiny voids: the importance of empty space in the tiny house

As I go about the design build process (as a teacher of mine once said, it's design then build then design then build, not clearly delineated and distinct) i've noticed a theme with the built-in furniture and interior, which is that I usually try and subtract from the volume of space that an objet takes up: the stairs and the desk for instance use the houses' structure (stud wall) as supports so that it can be visually light and floaty.  I've also gotten to the point of having all of my day to day things inside the house, and I'm left with some voids, some empty space. There's a voice in my head that says "it's a tiny house, you have to use ALL of the space," but when i think about it more, I've noticed that I like being in my house so much because of the voids: in my opinion, having empty spaces and 'unutlized space' is what makes living in a tiny house bearable, and enjoyable.

I don't want to ruffle any feathers in the tiny house community, but to be honest I have not enjoyed any of the Tumbleweed interiors for precisely this reason. The interiors are too bulky, and they are over using the space.  There has been an absence of places that can become pools of airy light, for ideas and feelings to circulate through the house. I'm sure there are lots of Tumbleweeds out there that feel just right to me - I just haven't been in them.

Here are some of the latest photos. There's a new cantilevered staircase going up to the loft (ash stringers with cherry and walnut treads), and one of the cushions for the couch is done.  Also made a little contoured poplar stool. Next up is a handrail for the stairs and interior trim! I'm hoping to do it in such a way that it blends into the wall. 

One legged table/desk

 I finished the desk/table. Well, it's almost finished, gonna make a drawer and separate filing cabinet too to replace the metal one that's under there. As usual, the tiny house is a place for me to experiment on ideas/techniques that i've never done before. I've talked a lot of shit to my students about staining wood (why not just start out with the color wood you want?) but this time, I stained the ash with india ink. I love the grain of ash (plus it's way cheaper than walnut) and wanted to preserve it while coloring it evenly and cleanly. I'm not gonna lie, i love what the india ink did, and it's super cheap and easy to apply.

 The apron detail was a chance to geek out: rather than continue the apron all the way to the wall, I cut it short and put in the universal sign for a drawing where you can infer the continuation of a certain line/gesture. Because i mounted ledgers on the wall, and because the table only has one leg, i didn't need the apron to go any further, so i decided to be playful and let the apron be continuous only in the imagination. The joint is a mortise and tenon and the leg is jut a piece of cherry tapered in two directions - was some tricky angle finding but what fun.

Damn, now i have to make a chair for it. . . 

tiny updates! I finally got the rest of the siding on, though i still have quite a bit of trim work to do, but the exciting thing is that the front stairs are in, and the top tread extends farther to be a bench and a place to put plants AND THE TINY PORCH SWING! I'm hoping to come up with a landscape plan for the front yard, and make some window boxes to fill with herbs for the exterior.
Also, I made a tiny window so i can see the street from my bed. Still have to trim it out though


Next week I think I'm gonna be in the shop working on the desk/dining table. I have my design finally and I am ready to crank it out, i'm thinking cherry leg(s) and a walnut top.

thanks for reading! I'm gonna stew over some more reflections about living tiny to write about too, just been so busy with non tiny house related stuff. . .

i finally finished the tiny couch frame. It's a corner couch, for two (maybe three) and my friend tamar is gonna make the cushions. The frame has cherry legs and drawer faces, milk painted plywood frame, cedar drawers (so things smell nice!) and a secret corner storage compartment.