Building a tiny house

 We are building a house in our spare time. It has taken us a while since our spare time has not been so free the last year. However, this spring we got moving along at a good pace and this fall its been more like breakneck pace. We are not physically moving our residence though. This cute little house is a ‘tiny’ guest house on our farm.

We had some goals when we started this house:

1. We needed to use supplies on hand

2. We wanted it to be a guest house that might double as an Air B&B someday

3. We would like to use it to minister to others

4. It needed to be rustic

5. We could not spend much money

6. It needed to be able to sleep quite a few people comfortably

as many of our guests might be larger groups

7. Our guests needed to be comfy

Psalms 127 “Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.”

When you start a house of any sort, but especially one where you are using what you have on hand, the first step is drawing the plans according to what you have available to use. Our original idea was to build a true “Tiny House”. They are usually about 6 to 8 foot-wide and can set on a trailer. However, our boards were 12 foot long. We already owned the boards and did not want to cut all that scrap waste, so our house became 12 foot wide. We assembled our ideas and our supplies, took stock of what we had and started saving for the rest.

Luke 14:28-30 “Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it? 29 Otherwise, if he lays the foundation and is unable to finish the work, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, 30 saying, ‘This man could not finish what he started to build.’”

This verse does not really refer to building, as it is a parable told to help us consider the cost of following Christ. It does however have a valid point about counting the costs before you start.

Next, to save money and achieve our rustic look, we repurposed what we could. The ceiling was covered in rusty corrugated tin metal from an old, blown down hay barn on our property. The walls were covered with the boards salvaged from our son’s old stockade fence panels. The paint was from the seconds aisle where they place the paint that is a mistake. David watered it down and whitewashed the boards with that. The light fixtures are left over chicken feeders from the barn. The flooring was passed to us when our parents redid their home, removing the bamboo flooring and replacing with ‘wood’ tiles. We used the bamboo through most of the house and the extra tiles on the bathroom floor.

David went as far as to cut cedar trees down for the porch posts and finish out a tree slab for cabinet tops featuring a live edge. We got creative in using the scrap boards to finish the bathroom walls. We used metal ‘washtubs’ for the sinks. I watched garage sales for our rustic, cowboy décor. We outfitted it with simple furnishings that we hope will be welcoming to all who visit. We have this project 95% complete now and the excitement is building. We cannot wait to host friends and family.

One of the MOST important features of our new house is to honor the LORD. We want every part of our home to reflect CHRIST.

Joshua 24:15 “But if it doesn't please you to worship the LORD, choose for yourselves today: Which will you worship--the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living? As for me and my family, we will worship the LORD."

May your home convey the same message friends…