Our tiny home experience was terrific, so much so that we weren’t very motivated to move.
We began our search with plenty of time to find a place that was the right fit. We spoke with realtors, met with landlords, searched social media and real estate websites all to find just the right place. Guess what, there was no place that was just right. There was no home that could match our tiny home experience. They were all too large, way too overpriced, awkwardly in need of an update, or lacking privacy. We had been spoiled and we’re going to have to settle, at least for a little while.
Our six month adventure living in a Tiny home taught us how much more we could enjoy our lives. We started our adventure wondering if we could sustain this “bohemian” lifestyle for a full six months and ended it wishing we could stay longer. It’s difficult to explain to… basically everyone around us, that we are more happy in beautiful surroundings than being surrounded with beautiful “things”.
After a lot of disappointment, we finally found a place that could satisfy most of our needs. We found our new home through referral and friends— the best way to find anything. We were hard-pressed to find another tiny home in the area, but there were apartments galore. After weeding out ominous landlords, dilapidated residences and extremely overpriced real estate, we choose our new home.
At about 1000 square feet, our new home may seem small to most, but we found it really spacious after our 250 square foot adventure. It feels refreshing to be able to stretch out a bit, but at the same time it feels like a lot of unused space. Personally, we don’t need a lot of open space inside our home to enjoy living. However, when it comes time to entertain a group of people indoors, the larger open space is helpful. This is definitely a determining factor for anyone thinking of downsizing. You definitely need to include guest capacity in your design if you plan on entertaining indoors at all.
Family muscle and a car was all it took to move us out of our tiny home. We couldn’t believe how much stuff we had in our tiny space. We even discovered the minimal amount of items we brought to our tiny home still had a decent percentage of items not used. This was a scary thought knowing we had a 10’ by 10’ storage unit of “things” waiting for us to empty into the new apartment.
The dreaded task of emptying our storage unit entailed renting a box truck and employing additional family and friends for four labor intensive, non-stop hours. All I could think about was “I’m getting rid of this as soon as it’s out of here,” for just about everything I was hauling. As boxes were stacked inside the new apartment, I was filled with dread to have to go through and unpack all of this stuff I hadn’t even thought about for the past six months. These items were already weighing me down.
On a lighter note, once I separated what needed to go and what could stay, I looked forward to the “possible” use of some cherished items.—my porcelain tea sets, punk and house vinyl from the 70’s to 90’s and my vintage teddy bears. I suppose I’m not ready for a minimalist lifestyle, only a simpler one.
I wonder how many of you have chosen a minimalist or even simpler lifestyle (please share your thoughts and experiences). I am often surprised at the comments made by my friends and relatives who scoff at my minor collections or boxes on moving day. I guarantee not one of them could literally fit all of their belongings in a 10’ by 10” room with 8’ ceilings. This would probably make for a great reality game show—families rifling through their home to pick and choose what they can keep (furniture and all) and it can’t exceed 800 cubic feet. 😂
Our six months spent in the tiny home afforded us terrific family travel and great use of personal time. We hope to continue this lifestyle into 2019 with the exploration of Northern California and more of the Northeast coast, especially Maine. Carpe diem!