Tuesday
Nov132012
This Tiny House on Wheels Began With the Small House Movement
November 13, 2012 
Irwin Weiner ASID - Massive Victorian homes and their contemporary counterparts, the suburban McMansion, take lots of land, energy, and raw materials that aren't in keeping with our more frugal and green times. Back in 1997, architect Sarah Susanka started the "small house" movement when she published her book The Not So Big House, and the movement has taken many forms. It's a lifestyle movement embraced by today's Millenials - scale back on possessions; it's a minimalist decorating movement; and it's a reduce-your-home's-footprint movement.
Click on the photo to learn more about this other tiny house on wheels. (photo: Stephanie Diani for The New York Times)Today's featured video shows contractor Tory Smith (whose contact information is at the end of the video) discussing a tiny house he designed for a newlywed couple - and it's on wheels, making it a take-anywhere, completely portable housing solution. Note that the not-so-big-house movement is now miniaturizing to so-called "tiny homes." The interior is a revelation, finding nooks and crannies for every basic living function. And you must admire Tory's reuse of antique building materials. We often forget that the greenest thing we can do in our homes is to reuse and recycle something old into our remodeling and design schemes. Thank you, Sarah, for creating a vibrant movement that tells us "less is more." Click here for more information on Sarah Susanka and her range of not-so-big books.
