Designing a Life; a Tiny Home: Ms. Gypsy Soul

On Tiny House Expedition‘s tiny house road trip stop to Charlotte, NC, Alexis and Christian sat down with the vibrant Jewel Pearson, better known as Ms. Gypsy Soul. Jewel shares insights into her journey to tiny living, including the ups & downs of her build, working with the city and finding the just-right parking spot. Her tiny life is much more than her house, it’s her key to a freer way of life. Includes a tour of Jewel’s beautiful tiny house!

Jewel is tiny house pioneer, speaker, consultant and a member of a collaborative project, Tiny House Trailblazers, highlighting tiny house stories of people of all colors and providing a forum for telling the stories of the movement from the lens of people of color.

SimBLISSity Blue Sapphire Tiny Home for Sale

The tiny homes by SimBLISSity might be some of the most favorite designs out there. At least they are for HGTV and FYI. The SimBLISSity homes have been featured on several episodes of Tiny House Hunters as well as Tiny House Nation.

Byron and Dot Fears run SimBLISSity and recently let me know that one of their homes, named Blue Sapphire, is currently for sale. The house was built for a client who was not able to take possession of it and now the 25 1/2 foot long home with SimBLISSity’s beautiful details is up for grabs.

The Blue Sapphire is a contemporary model built on a 24-foot Trailer Made trailer. It has blue metal roofing, gray siding and a “two-bike garage” attached to the back of the house that can be used for bikes or for storage.

The interior of the home includes an L-shaped sofa unit with storage underneath, a propane fireplace, washer/dryer combo located in the stairs that head to the over 11 sleeping foot loft with plenty of headroom. The living area also has maple hardwood flooring and a mini split heat pump and AC unit.

The kitchen includes butcher block countertops, Formica cabinets, black composite sink, refrigerator and freezer, gas range and a tankless water heater. The bathroom uses the blue metal roofing as a surround, and a Nature’s Head composting toilet. SimBLISSity builds their homes in the colder climate of Colorado and built a chase around the home’s plumbing rather than putting it into the walls.

The ceiling has a distinctive blue-stained beetle kill pine made from trees that have already been infested by the mountain pine beetle. The home is currently being sold for $75,000.

Byron and Dot explained that while many people build tiny houses, they love to build tiny homes.

“We do like to go overboard on things and design for discerning people who recognize the finer details,” Byron said.

Photos courtesy of Byron and Dot Fears

Tiny House Community: 5 Benefits Women Get from Living in Our Village

Kevin Cavenaugh King of Sandy: Hookers and Cocaine

Kevin Cavenaugh is a locally famous builder. He’s soon going to be even more famous. His developments, which have become more unique, more successful and more innovative, have caught attention of other developers, the media and investors. Kevin’s latest development ideas are taking aim at solving the housing crisis in America. He’s not alone, as previous Tiny House Guests are doing the same. But Kevin’s approach is one of the most interesting ideas we’ve seen in awhile. And he has millions behind him. Will it work? We think so. Take a listen.

Raise The Roof On Your Tiny House

Choosing the correct roofing for a sticks ‘n bricks typically involves going to one of the big box stores, picking out a great asphalt shingle you like, maybe making a few color choices, and then having them installed. Installation is fairly straightforward too in that you throw down some felt paper, maybe chalk some lines, put on a shingle, bang * bang…nail them on, and repeat! But at 200lbs. – 350lbs. a square (100 square feet) and about $25/30 per bundle (or $75/90 per square), they aren’t always the best deal or the easiest to install. Not to mention most architectural shingles are only rated up to 130mph winds. The point is, as with everything, what you may do for a sticks ‘n bricks you may not want to do on your tiny house. So then what? How do you raise the roof on your tiny house. So glad you asked!

Let’s look at the options. If you want a historical reproduction house you could go with thatching. One run in with a big, bad wolf and your whole house would blow right down, including the roof. Not to mention they are not exactly fire resistant. You could go with cedar shakes or shingles but they are incredibly expensive and require just less care than a toddler does. They have to be maintained regularly to prevent prevent moss, mold and mildew growth.

Then there is tar. You could put tar on your roof but besides turning your tiny house into a rolling hot box or causing third degree burns during installation, the weight alone makes it an undesirable material. Shingles, we talked about. So why not metal roofing? After all, doesn’t a tiny house have to have metal roofing in order to be called a “tiny house”? After having lived with metal roofing for several years I decided in the future I wouldn’t do it again. While metal roofing is wildly popular now and available in a number of colors and even crimp patterns, as well as being durable and highly wind resistant, it is pretty expensive, has to be protected from corrosion, and can be quite difficult to install DIY. In fact, we hired the pros to install our roofing!

Now that we are anchored down on a small farmstead we are preparing to build a small barn to house our tools, feed, scrap wood, etc. It is truly our first building since the tiny house and I am all too often reminded of the decision that have to be made. One is roofing and living in eastern North Carolina we have to be aware of the conditions a roof can face. I initially thought metal but then I remember seeing a demonstration of a material at one of Deek Diedriksen’s workshops give by Roy St. Clair, a Sr. Sales Manager at Onduline North America, Inc. The demonstration was for a roofing product called ONDUVILLA 3D Shingles. Made with at least 50% recycled fibers (paper, cardboard and fast food receipts) and impregnated with asphalt, the shingles are lighter than the competition, more affordable, and just as durable. In fact, the shingles are rated at 150mph winds!

What I find to be most attractive about ONDUVILLA (other than the look of them altogether) is that they can be installed (or applied, you could say) by the average DIY person. In a post on tiny-house-roof.com Jasmin McLean, a tiny house owner, said, “The best part? Despite having “zero construction experience, the only tools you really need are a ladder, chalk line, box cutter, measuring tape and drill. Anyone can install this roof.” According to sources ONDUVILLA installation requires you to snap a horizontal chalk line on top of your membrane to place the first row of shingles. Then you like the next rows up (best to work from the bottom to the top).

Needless to say I am excited to begin our barn project the first week of May and get this material out of their packages and up on the roof. Stay tuned for a short video on the Tiny r(E)volution YouTube channel showing our progress.

To learn more about the ONDUVILLA roofing components, and to purchase ONDUVILLA shingles and accessories, visit them online. To see other tiny housers who have chosen this material visit Tiny House Giant Journey, TinyHouse43, Wanderlust House, or Jasmin McLean.

By Andrew M. Odom for the [Tiny House Blog]

Freedom Yurt Cabins and the Tiny House Blog

In my experience writing about Tiny Houses over the last decade, I have seen hundreds of beautifully crafted and elegantly designed tiny houses. The Tiny House movement has succeeded in grabbing the attention of millions in this country and around the world.

However, I’ve come to the conclusion that, while their appeal is widespread, tiny houses on wheels may only ever be a reality to a small percentage of the population. If there were a structure that offered people a bit more space, flexibility of design, and was affordable for the masses, the Tiny House Movement could finally have a legitimate way to appeal, realistically, to the average American. I have found that structure in the Freedom Yurt Cabin. The Freedom Yurt Cabin is a hard wall yurt which consists of insulated walls and an integrated floor system which are a big improvement over traditional fabric Yurts.

At this time the Freedom Yurt Cabin is a semi-permanent unit and can be placed as such in different locations. Freedom Yurt Cabins are also working on other options so that you are not just purchasing a shell that you have to build out on your own. Coming soon are interior modules such as a kitchens and bathrooms that you can add to the original purchase of the Yurt Cabin.

The innovative minds over at Freedom Yurt Cabins are also planning to release a Yurt Cabin model which conforms to the International Residential Code (IRC). This certification will make this new Yurt Cabin into a fully functional home. It will be built on a a standard foundation and approved much more widely than traditional fabric yurts or tiny houses on wheels.

Freedom Yurt Cabins and Tiny House Blog are excited to announce a collaboration that will bring more exciting photos, videos, and stories to the Tiny House community. Freedom Yurt Cabins are leaders in building attractive, sustainable structures that offer great value to anyone interested in an off grid getaway or permanent Yurt home. In cooperation with Tiny House Blog, they will look to bring their vision of affordable lodging to the Tiny House and Alternative Structure communities.

• Readers of Tiny House Blog can look forward to seeing first-hand how Yurt Cabin owners build and outfit their Yurt Cabins all around the world.
• If you’re interested in seeing if a Yurt Cabin would be right for you, please contact Kent Griswold, kent@freedomyurtcabins.com

Simblissity Blue Sapphire Tiny Home for Sale

The tiny homes by Simblissity might be some of the most favorite designs out there. At least they are for HGTV and FYI. The Simblissity homes have been featured on several episodes of Tiny House Hunters as well as Tiny House Nation.

Byron and Dot Fears run Simblissity and recently let me know that one of their homes, named Blue Sapphire, is currently for sale. The house was built for a client who was not able to take possession of it and now the 25 1/2 foot long home with Simblissity’s beautiful details is up for grabs.

The Blue Sapphire is a contemporary model built on a 24-foot Trailer Made trailer. It has blue metal roofing, gray siding and a “two-bike garage” attached to the back of the house that can be used for bikes or for storage.

The interior of the home includes an L-shaped sofa unit with storage underneath, a propane fireplace, washer/dryer combo located in the stairs that head to the over 11 sleeping foot loft with plenty of headroom. The living area also has maple hardwood flooring and a mini split heat pump and AC unit.

The kitchen includes butcher block countertops, Formica cabinets, black composite sink, refrigerator and freezer, gas range and a tankless water heater. The bathroom uses the blue metal roofing as a surround, and a Nature’s Head composting toilet. Simblissity builds their homes in the colder climate of Colorado and built a chase around the home’s plumbing rather than putting it into the walls.

The ceiling has a distinctive blue-stained beetle kill pine made from trees that have already been infested by the mountain pine beetle. The home is currently being sold for $75,000.

Byron and Dot explained that while many people build tiny houses, they love to build tiny homes.

“We do like to go overboard on things and design for discerning people who recognize the finer details,” Byron said.

Photos courtesy of Byron and Dot Fears