Ooops! Time flies when you're having fun...

Back after a hiatus of distractions, I realize that my work on this house has more to do at the moment with sorting, purging, organizing, photographing and fundraising with my huge portfolio of artwork, and otherwise preparing for a big move to a tiny house, than it does with the actual building.  Kyle is plugging away in between raindrops, snowstorms, furnace-replacements and trips to a certain college in Kentucky.  He has the double-insulated coveralls, not me!! 

So I will just fill in some background information on our design decision-making process, more or less starting with the following:

Here is a smartphone picture of the study plans for the now discontinued EPU Tumbleweed Tiny House model.  Credit for the plans, and for absolutely wonderful, enthusiastic help and question-answering goes to www.tumbleweedhouses.com !   

Kyle and I attended a workshop in June 2013, given nearby, to get started on our design process.  It was very helpful as an introduction to the tiny house movement, and gave us lots of ideas.  We made enough changes in our design that until now I was unsure as to whether I could call my design an EPU or not.  But having seen that many other Tumbleweed House builders have modified aspects of their plans, I have chosen to reveal (drum roll, please) Tumbleweed Tiny House Company's EPU as the design of my house, as well as TTH as the source of friendly and cheerful design and building advice (via email and the old-fashioned telephone!)  

Apparently there is a location out there in Sonoma, CA., where all these enthusiastic folks are building houses, designing houses, giving building advice, sending books and plans and DVDs, and signing new enthusiasts up for (currently discounted) workshops. It seems to be a hotbed of ideas and activity about the small/tiny house movement.  A very fun website to check out (no I am not being paid to toot Tumbleweed's horn -- it really is fun). 

So, if there is any chance you can see the details in my smartphone picture, here goes.  Although I have kept the general layout of the bathroom and kitchen areas as positioned in the bow (top of picture), I have shifted the entry door from being centered in the stern to being on the starboard side, forward of the wheel well, right where the stove burners are in the picture. And aft, instead of a porch, that space has been enclosed as part of the interior, and will have a sort of window seat with a pullout bed.  There will be a large double window in the stern (see picture of stern window in some previous post or other).  

From inside the house the window will be framed by the seat/bed, a small storage loft at the height of the header, and shelving built against the port and starboard walls, facing in. (This may be the only real storage for BOOKS! And no, I am not getting a you-know-what yet -- I still like reading a real paper book.)

Above the forward half of the first floor will be a loft, with two dormers, increasing the usable space by a lot; these dormers are taken from another Tumbleweed design (for a different house plan).  

I think that better be all for today, since my sorting is calling me. But more exciting pictures are to come!  As of this posting time, Kyle has framed up the walls, framed in the windows, gotten at least the ridge beam and two sets of rafters up, and is working on constructing the dormer framing. WOW! Also look for a do-it-yourself paper model project posting soon!