Niche Design & Decluttering Workshops

Two years ago I downsized from a 2-bedroom bungalow to a tiny house on wheels. A year ago I downsized again to a 12-ft diameter yurt and embarked upon My 200 Things Challenge. These days I live in a 130 square foot tiny house on wheels and I've made space-efficient housing both my livelihood and my lifestyle. I've quit counting my possessions, but I'm mindful everyday of What My 200 Things Challenge Taught Me. Now I'm excited to offer a 1-day Tiny House Design Workshop to help people new to design capture their tiny homes and a Decluttering Workshop series to share the tips and tricks that have helped me in my right-sizing journey. Please join me for one of these workshops if you're interested in the Little Life!

Tiny House Design Workshop

If you want to design your own tiny house but you've never designed anything before this workshop is for you! In this 1-day workshop we'll cover programming, bubble diagramming, basic drafting techniques, floor plans, elevations, and design considerations for tiny spaces. You'll leave with a design concept for your tiny house and the techniques you need to capture the desired look and feel. Appropriate for design newbies whether they plan to do their own design or hire a designer. Register for the Tiny House Design Workshop through Niche Consulting LLC.

Unstuff Your Holidays: A Decluttering Workshop

Are you dreading the accumulation that always happens during the Holiday Season? Do you already feel like you have too much stuff? If you want to focus on your family and friends instead of your stuff this holiday season, this workshop is for you. We'll address our relationship with stuff, discuss needs and wants to figure out what really matters, set priorities, and evaluate our possessions. We'll identify old habits and clutter magnets and tackle problem areas in our homes. Then we'll develop organizational systems and new habits to reduce clutter. In this 1-day workshop, we'll cover everything from keeping track of our keys to developing a wardrobe full of clothes we love. Register for Unstuff Your Holidays through Niche Consulting LLC.

What My 200 Things Challenge Taught Me

A package arrived in the mail yesterday and I added two new items to my possessions without adding them to my inventory. I haven’t been counting since my last inventory of my possessions, when I moved into my Home, Sweet Pea in August with 190 things. But receiving that package reminded me that I’ve learned a lot about my relationship with stuff since I embarked upon an adventure in radical downsizing two years ago.

I’ve found that My 200 Things Challenge has made me a better minimalist. I am less attached to my possessions, but more pleased with the things with which I surround myself. I am more likely to loan something out. I am less worried about wearing something out because there’s a new excitement about acquiring something new. I am more likely to decorate with fresh flowers or fall squash. I only wear clothing that I feel comfortable in. I own few possessions that I don’t use on a daily, weekly, or at least monthly basis. I don’t have to shuffle things around as much to get to the other things I need. I no longer own things that frustrate me because they are broken because I have repaired, replaced, or purged them. I am more particular about what I allow into my home, which means I no longer take something just because it was free. I am more likely to consider whether or not I really need something before I acquire it. I am more likely to get rid of something I’m waffling about. But most importantly, I give less attention to my stuff and more attention to my experiences. If this sounds good to you, please note that I will be teaching a workshop on downsizing and decluttering in Portland, OR in November and December. I encourage you to contact me if you'd like to sign up!

I had heard about the 100 Thing Challenge several months before my move to a 12 foot diameter yurt and I realized it was a whole different way of looking at what I owned. When I began my downsizing process the year before my focus was mostly on volume. As I shrunk my footprint from an 800 square foot 2-bedroom house to a tiny house on wheels called Bayside Bungalow, the question I kept asking myself was “Can I fit this into the tiny house?” I was amazed at how much I was able to fit into a tiny house on wheels. The house fit me and all my stuff because I lean on the density side of the Packing Lightly vs. Packing Densely scale. But it wasn't just stuff. I discovered the Tiny House Sleeps 5 Comfortably and I did plenty of Entertaining in the Tiny House.

So, when I first heard about it, the 100 Thing Challenge, like tiny homes themselves, seemed too radical for me. But, just as I started wondering what it would be like to live in a tiny house once I learned about Dee Williams and her little house, once I learned about A Guy Named Dave and his 100 Thing Challenge it captured my curiosity. I found myself wondering if this thing I was holding/using/fixing would be one of my 100 things. So I read more on Dave’s website and then read his book on my kindle. (My favorite part is when Dave talks about how we tend to own several of something and none of them are just right.) As I read up, I realized that Dave had crafted his own rules about how he would count his possessions and some of them seemed were pretty lax. For instance, although Dave limited himself to one really nice pen, he counted as just one thing his library. On the other hand, my friend and tiny house dweller Tammy Strobel counted her camera and its two lenses as three separate things on her list as she downsized to 72 Things! I realized I would be more willing to hold myself accountable if I made up my own rules, so I jotted them down in My Things Challenge: Who’s Counting Anyway?

I moved into the yurt with 198 Things. Instead of just asking myself if something would fit the space, I started asking myself if it fit my life. Was it worth counting? There was a patch last winter when I was Taking Stock Without Stocking Up since my New Year’s Re-Inventory revealed that I had “slipped” to 214 things. I combed through my possessions and purged some things, dipping to 197 and then adding 6 more when I went in search of The Minimalists New Clothes. But since I couldn’t figure out what else to part with, I decided that it was okay to have 203 things. It was right around that time that I realized the number wasn’t so important. What was more important was that I’d gotten the intent of the challenge. I’d downsized till I just couldn’t figure out what else to get rid of. Then I lived with those items to see how it felt. When I did my inventory during a bout of Perfect Packing Weather in August I had just 190 things! So I ended My 200 Things Challenge with fewer things than I’d started it with, which I considered quite a good sign.

I’ve decided that for now I’m not going to track my possessions. I’ll devote that time and energy to other efforts. But I’m so glad I took on My 200 Things Challenge and I’m grateful for all it taught me.

Tiny House Cleaning Check List

In general, I've found it's easiest to clean a tiny house from top to bottom (literally!) and from back to front. So this order may not work for you, but here’s how I usually go about cleaning a tiny house when I’m doing a deep clean. Maintenance cleaning is super quick, but a tiny house deep clean usually takes me about an hour. (NB: I have two pairs of sheets – if you only have 1 set you may want to save making the bed for last along with replenishing the towels and TP!)

Here are the steps I go through when doing a tiny house deep clean:

1. Remove and shake rugs outside
2. Do a quick sweep of floors to not track dirt around (and dump sweepings in compost or trash)
3. Open windows and tie back curtains
4. Get pillows and blankets out of the way and strip the bed(s)
5. Grab towels from bathroom and kitchen
6. Start laundry
7. Tidy up and put everything that has escaped its place back where it belongs
8. Make bed(s) with fresh sheets (see my Tips for Making a Loft Bed below)
9. Do dishes and get them air-drying
10. Switch laundry to dryer if it’s rainy or hang laundry if it’s sunny
11. Dust art, books, games, etc.
12. Wipe down all flat surfaces in kitchen with spray and rag
13. Clean shower
14. Clean toilet and/or empty compost toilet
15. Sweep floors thoroughly (including the dust bunnies behind furniture)
16. Mop floors if necessary
17. Put dirty rag into laundry bin
18. Tie up trash bag and replace with new one
19. Empty trash bag in garbage, recycling in recycle, compost in compost
20. Wash hands!
21. Put rugs back
22. Retrieve and fold clean laundry (this may have to happen later if you’ve hung it to dry in the sun!)
23. Refresh bath towels, hand towels, dish towels, bath mat, and toilet paper roll
24. Settle down for a well-deserved hot or cold drink!

Tips for Making a Loft Bed:

1)   Find the corners of the fitted sheet that correspond to the top two corners of the mattress BEFORE you bring the sheet up the ladder so you don’t have to figure it out up there.

2)   Fold the flat sheet the long way and bring the top edge up the ladder, placing it in the center of the bed. Unfold the sheet at the top and then unfold as you go, working your way down the sheet as you work your way out of the loft. Repeat for any blankets.

3)   Put everything a little closer to the head of the bed than I needs to be at first so that you can smooth out the wrinkles by tugging on it.

Coming Full Circle... and Moving Forward

Two years ago this week I moved to Portland and this week I’m Housesitting the Tiny Barn at the location where my first tiny house was parked when My Tiny Adventure Began. So, in a way, it feels like I’ve come full circle. Once again the raspberries are dripping off their bushes and the tomatoes are vining as tall as the apple tree. Once again the school bells are ringing and there’s an excited chatter of children freshly back to school. Once again the mornings are starting with a smidge of crispness and the Canadian geese are honking on their southern migration. It’s nice to be here again, in this oasis of a garden, at the transition time between summer and fall.

And yet, so much has changed in 2 years, too. This garden has become even more glorious in two years. The raspberry canes are taller, the bamboo is thriving, and the day old chicks we slipped under a broody chicken (see April Fooling my Hen) are providing plenty of eggs each day. The tiny house I lived in here is back up in Olympia where Brittany Yunker is renting Bayside Bungalow out as a tiny cottage on wheels.

Meanwhile, the tiny house I’m caring for here this week is the Tiny Barn, which wasn’t yet a figment of anyone’s imagination this time two years ago. I helped my friend develop her design and boneyard materials the winter before last. Over my spring break that year I helped the owner and some other friends of hers construct the shell of the Tiny Barn in a week long tiny house building blitz. Her friends finished it up beautifully, so it’s fun to stay here in the same spot but in a delightful new house. And, of course, I have greater appreciation for this little house now that I’ve had the chance to live in other tiny houses in the past two years, including A Tiny Move for a Tiny House, My Summer Garden Cottage, My Home Sweet Yurt, and more recently Home, Sweet Pea.

Additionally, this week I’ve been site managing for Caravan – The Tiny House Hotel while Deb and Kol are on their honeymoon. The country’s first tiny house hotel wasn’t yet in the works when I first moved to Portland. Now I get to show off Caravan's Tiny Houses while I tidy up and visit with guests when they check in. They’ve come from all over the world to stay here and many of them stay specifically to try out living in a tiny house. In fact, I’m always a bit surprised when I’m talking with guests about tiny houses and they say “Oh, tiny houses are a thing?” Um, yes, perhaps I’m just caught up in this little world, but I’m pretty sure tiny houses are a thing.

While I’ve been in Cully this week I’ve had the chance to visit with several of my tiny house friends and make a few new ones. Only one of them had a tiny house two years ago and now I have six friends in the neighborhood with tiny houses!

A group of us gathered at Caravan – The Tiny House Hotel earlier this week to discuss our dream of creating a Tiny House Community here in Portland, perhaps developing something similar to A Vision for Tiny Cohousing. Then a couple of us made a trip to the permit counter at the Bureau of Development Services to explore what the options might be and last night we visit a potential site, met some new additions to Portland's tiny house community, and toured their tiny abode. We have a long road ahead of us, but it’s exciting to see how far we’ve come in the past two years as the Tiny House Movement Gains Momentum.

Home, Sweet Pea

Yesterday a handful of friends helped me move My 190 Things to my new home, Sweet Pea. We made the move in one trip and it only took a couple hours, though it would have been quicker if we hadn't gotten stuck in rush hour traffic. I'm grateful to the friends who were willing to schlep boxes and sit in traffic in the summer heat in exchange for beer and pizza in the garden afterwards! Thanks, friends!

Sweet Pea is the smallest of the three peas in POD49. (The other two "peas" are 2-bedroom bungalows, home to my fabulous neighbors. Check out this Oregonian article about POD49 to learn more.) I'm so excited to introduce you to this jewel box of a house! These gorgeous photos were taken by talented photographer (and fellow tiny house dweller) Chris Tack of Tiny Tack House. You can see more of his brilliant work at Tack Photography.

Sweet Pea was designed by Dee Williams and built by master craftswoman Katy Andersen. And since you may want one of your own once you've seen it, I should mention that the Sweet Pea plans are now available on Portland Alternative Dwelling's website!

The Sweet Pea has a side entry with French doors that open out onto the porch. To the right is a window seat with a bump out over the tongue.

The house was built out to the edges of the wheel wells so it's extra wide. The walls are tall, too, so the sleeping loft is especially roomy. I found that I can orient my bed either direction because the loft is so large, so I've turned it so that I can look straight out the skylight. I especially love the view of the bamboo from my bed!

The kitchen has metallic countertops and a butcher block for chopping. It's fully set up for cooking with a propane range, a mini fridge, a sweet little sink, and a range hood. I love the built-in pantry where I can put all my mason jars. I'm really excited to have a proper kitchen again. I made do with My Kitchen Cupboard, but having running water and a gas stove again is definitely inspiring me to cook!

The bathroom is equipped with an Airhead compost toilet and a shower/tub combo. Even though it is too warm right now to take a bath, I'm excited about the prospect of taking a bath on a cold day this fall! After living in my Home Sweet Yurt for ten months I will always be grateful for having hot running water in my living space! I'm glad I tested the limits of my minimalism and that I will not take for granted the resources available to me.

I've loved spending my morning finding a place for everything so that everything can be in its place! I'm finding there's plenty of space to spare. At 120 square feet, plus a sleeping loft, Sweet Pea is much more roomy than the 113 round foot yurt. And it's so impeccably crafted that I'm sure I'll learn a lot from living here that I can use on my own build. I look forward to having this be my Home, Sweet Pea, until my own little house is complete.

Perfect Packing Weather

It’s Transition Time and I’ve now caught up on sleep enough to tackle the next steps. This morning is grey so it seems like the perfect whether to bustle around the house, organizing and clustering in preparation for my move into the Sweet Pea in Pod 49 on Monday. A lot of people I know are transitioning right now, too. I helped a friend move last weekend and yesterday had breakfast with a friend who was in the midst of packing. So yesterday evening I was feeling inspired to start packing myself and this morning I've continued.

One of the things I’m discovering, however, is that it’s tricky to pack two days before a move when you don’t own much more than you use! Many of the items that surround me are things that I actually will use in the next two days. I’m finding that packing in advance is especially difficult since I don’t have a good place to put the bags I’ve already packed! My floor space is mostly dedicated to circulation and there aren’t any counters. I’m making do by putting everything on top of my dressers and My Kitchen Cupboard.

As I sorted through my dresser I pulled up My 200 Things inventory spreadsheet again because I was curious to see where I’d land.

I began My 200 Things Challenge in September when I moved into my Home Sweet Yurt with 198 Things. Over the past 10 months I did my best to not acquire new things. There were a few items I picked up and a few I let go. In January when I did my New Year’s Re-Inventory I discovered I’d slipped a little. Part of it was that I realized there were some things I hadn’t counted in the first place. I was at 214 Things. So I did some Taking Stock without Stocking Up and got myself down to 197 things. But then I went shopping for The Minimalist's New Clothes in February and found 6 great items so I ended up at 203 things.

I was pretty content with what I had at that point. So I decided that it was okay to have 203 Things. After all, as I explained in My 100 Things Challenge: Who’s Counting Anyway? for me the challenge isn’t so much about the number as it is about the intent. The goal was to be more mindful of my possessions and to consider everything I own more carefully.

When My Tiny House Adventure Began, I was thinking of my stuff in terms of volume. I’d been living in the 832 square foot house I own so I was trying to figure out which items would fit in the 121 square foot tiny house I was renting? When I began My 200 Things Challenge I began thinking in terms of count instead of volume. Suddenly it wasn’t about whether or not something would physically fit within the space but whether I wanted and needed it there at all.

So I haven’t been real precious about the exact number. I could have been stricter with myself, but it just wasn’t that important to me to be precise. I had plenty of other things to focus my attention on. Nevertheless, I’ve found it to be a useful exercise. I am more contentious about what I bring into my home. Because my new year’s resolution was to go paperless, I’ve been Strategizing Digitizing, Getting All My Docs in a Row, and especially contentious about not letting more paperwork into my life. I find that these days I’m more likely to consider whether or not an object fits into my life, rather than just whether or not it fits into my space. Therefore, I feel like I’ve succeeded in My 200 Things Challenge, regardless of the number.

But in case you’re curious, I AM keeping track. I’ll report on Monday what my count ends up being!

Now it's turning into a beautiful day and I'm off to Caravan - The Tiny House Hotel! This weekend I'm site managing at Caravan while Kol and Deb are out of town. I think it will be lovely to sit under the canopy between tidying up Rosebud and checking in tonight's guest. I'm so glad the weather is cooperating with my best intentions these days!

***

Update on 8/6/13: The yurt came partially furnished so there are are eight items I’ve been living with this year that I’m not taking with me: the bed frame, the mini fridge, the nightstand, the table, 2 chairs, and 2 water jugs. I've decided to not count these items on my updated list. My final count? 190 Things. You can see My 190 Things List here.

Transition Time

It’s August 1^st and today marks the first day of the rest of my life. Perhaps I’m being dramatic, but today feels like a pivot point. It seems I often set myself up so that several major things change all at once in my life, but this particular moment in time feels more extreme than usual.

My last three shifts went like this:

1) When I first moved to Portland My Tiny House Adventure Began right between my grad school orientation and the first day of classes. I left the last orientation activity, drove up to Olympia, and the next morning we drove Bayside Bungalow down to Portland. My sisters arrived that evening and helped me move in. We ate dinner at the Grilled Cheese Grill (which is next door to Caravan – The Tiny House Hotel – things seem to come full circle!) The next day I settled into this charming little tiny house on wheels. And the following day my Masters of Urban and Regional Planning coursework began.

2) The day before my 29th birthday we got the Tiny House on the Road Again and returned Bayside Bungalow to its bayside location in Olympia. So I had began A New Year in a New Home. I spent my birthday settling into My Summer Garden Cottage, while continuing My Summer Dream Job: Design Building Tiny Houses.

3) In late September I Downsized from a Tiny House to a Tinier House and moved into my Home Sweet Yurt the weekend before starting my second year of grad school. It’s been a great ten months here in the yurt. I’ve enjoying going through (almost) a full set of seasons here.

The past 10 days have been a time of big transitions. I celebrated another revolution around the sun on Monday, July 22 with A Big Birthday Bash at the Tiny House Hotel. A week later on Monday, July 29, I turned in my final project for Urban Design Methods and finished up my masters coursework. (I celebrated by contacting Rob at Iron Eagle about my tiny house trailer order!) Tuesday and Wednesday I wrapped up my work with Intrinsic Ventures as the Planning & Communications Coordinator for their Ford District properties. This coming Monday on August 5^th some friends are helping me move from the yurt to a new tiny house on wheels, The Sweet Pea in Pod 49. I’ll be doing sustainable design consulting through my company Niche Consulting and working with Dee Williams and Joan Grimm of Portland Alternative Dwellings.

So this morning, after 10 hours of sleep, I woke up ready for Lina’s Next Adventure. But first… a break. My to do list is a mile long, but I’m giving myself the day off today. I love the idea of finishing everything on the to do list and then being able to relax, but it turns out I never do seem to finish everything on the to do list. There are too many opportunities, too many ideas, too much potential for the list to ever be empty. So I’m trying to teach myself to relax sometimes anyhow. I find that even if the things I’m doing are super fun, I don’t really feel like I can unwind unless my time is unscheduled. So I’m giving myself a secular Sabbath today. Nothing scheduled. I’ll base my actions on my whims.

This is sustainability, right? My health and happiness depends on my ability to recognize my own limits and to live within them so that I can thrive. I’m so curious to see what the day will bring! It's drizzling today for the first day in months. I may get out there to explore yet, but right now curling back up with my kitty for another nap sounds awfully nice!

My Storage Locker

During my first year of graduate school I gained access to a locker in the urban planning building, which was a big help. I was living 7 miles from campus in the Cully neighborhood and commuting downtown by bike or bus, so it was fabulous to not have to schlep everything every day.

This week as I wrapped up my coursework, my FINAL final project was to clean out my locker. When I did, I discovered that over time I’d collected quite a bit of stuff. I also realized I wasn’t counting these items in My 200 Things Challenge. So I'm writing all about it to clear my conscience.

My locker became a repository for things that I used when I was on campus (textbooks, snacks, my chalk bag for trips to the climbing wall, etc.) But I had a bad habit of stashing stuff here that I intended to send to someone but never seemed to find the time to actually pop in the mail.

I was also startled to discover how much paperwork I'd collected over the past two years. My new year's resolution was to go paper free so I began Strategizing Digitizing. All my paperwork went into a file in my locker to be scanned (at some later date, of course, when I had time.) By the time I looked at that daunting stack of paperwork I decided I can't possibly need it all. I spent an hour Getting all My Docs in a Row and narrowed it down to just a small collection of documents that I really need. I’ll be scanning documents in the next couple days while I still have access to a high speed scanner.

In the end, there were just a few items to take home. A box of envelopes. My gym gear. Some uneaten snacks. And a gift (from last year!) that I need to mail (not pictured because that would ruin the surprise!) as soon as my sister Heidi sends me her mailing address (nudge, nudge!)

Simple Living vs. Intentional Living

This post has been lingering in draft mode, but I feel compelled to share it today because I just read Kate Goonight's post on Naj Haus called Doing Justice to Complexity. It resonated with me because she writes about how complexity and intention help us understand ourselves better. Thank you Kate for articulating so beautifully why we do difficult things that help us examine our intentions and get better at figuring ourselves out!

Someone dear to me recently pointed out that my so-called simple lifestyle isn’t always convenient – or even simple, for that matter. And he has a good point. In my attempt to simplify there are many things I’ve added into my life. Several of them actually make my daily life more complex.

For instance, I because I do not have access to laundry facilities where I live I make a trip to the Belmont Eco Laundry every week or so. This entails the following actions:

1)   Filling either my 35 or 50 liter backpack with laundry (depending on whether or not I’m washing bedding)

2)   Biking 15 minutes to the Laundromat (or bussing on rainy days)

3)   Running a load of laundry through the washer and dryer

4)   Loading my backpack back up

5)   Biking or bussing home

6)   Putting my clothes away

The trip takes me about an hour and 15 minutes. On rainy days it takes an hour and a half unless I time the bus really well. During this time I cannot make myself a lunch or tidy up my Home Sweet Yurt. However, there is free wifi at the Belmont Eco Laundry so I often catch up on emails, do research, or prep a blog post. (I’d also like to point out that the only steps unique to my laundry set up are steps 2 and 5 when I’m transporting myself and my laundry to and from a washing machine and dryer, though since I'm not home my multi-tasking ability is limited.)

There are weeks that I cram too much into my days and do not allocate an hour and a half for my laundry so I get behind on it. And although I haven’t quite pared down to a minimalist wardrobe, I do not own enough clothing to go very long without doing my laundry. Getting behind makes life more complex because it’s harder to transport two loads of laundry by bike or bus.

Would it be simpler to just do laundry in the comfort of my own home? Absolutely!

So maybe it’s a misnomer to call this simple living. Perhaps it would be better to call it intentional living or mindful living. I have become more mindful of my living space and more intentional about my daily activities because of living in a tiny house. When I fetch water or fill up propane tanks I’m more conscientious about my resource consumption. If I ever catch myself feeling sorry for myself when doing my chores I remember that people the world over work much harder than me to do their laundry, acquire their water, and heat their homes. I find that living the way I do puts the inconvenience into perspective. It helps me remember that unlimited hot running water, in-home laundry facilities, and central heat are luxuries available to only a small fraction of the people on the planet.

I’m not saying that those of us who have access need to deprive ourselves of conveniences. After all, many appliances and technologies were originally designed to simplify life. But I do think we should be mindful of how we use these tools since many of them have also added complication and waste. We can be more creative about using resources efficiently and sharing more of them. When I had my very own washing machine in my 2-bedroom bungalow I could do laundry without going out in the rain or getting out of my jammies. But my fancy frontloading Energy Star washing machine only ran 2-3 hours a week. The rest of the time it sat there, waiting for me. It was convenient. But it certainly wasn’t efficient.

Now I share a washing machine with hundreds of other people. We’re participating in the sharing economy by using the Laundromat. We aren’t responsible for owning the machines, but we make good use of them. The owner of the facility presumably makes a decent living by providing this service to us.

I Love My Laundromat, but I’ll admit that it would be really nice to have laundry facilities even closer to home. This is one of the reasons I like the idea of living in a Tiny House Community (especially Tiny Cohousing). I love the idea of sharing a washer and dryer, a full-sized oven, and a hot tub with other like-minded people. I like the notion of continuing to be mindful of living space, resource consumption, and daily activities while also participating in community and having access to technologies that make life simple and convenient.

There are people all across America trying to get tiny house communities started. Are you part of one of these efforts? If so, what tools and facilities you plan to share amongst the members?

Tiny House Fair: Day 3

Day 3 of the first annual Tiny House Fair started off with a panel discussion regarding the alegality of tiny houses. To the best of our knowledge there isn't a zoning code in the country that directly addresses "tiny houses." Most municipalities would probably consider a tiny house on wheels a custom built travel trailer (whether or not it will be considered a recreational vehicle by insurance companies and banks depends on certification though). So in many places the only part of town where you can legally live in a tiny house is an RV park and many cities have restrictions on the maximum time you can stay there.

However, people around the world have become advocates of tiny houses for financial, social, environmental, and lifestyle reasons. There's also a groundswell of support for tiny house communities, so many people are working within our existing codes and figuring out ways that we can amend code to better suit our needs. It was, as you might imagine, a fascinating conversation with more questions than answers.

Following the morning panel, some of the participants headed out for a tour of local tiny houses. The folks who stuck around got to hear Dee Williams of Portland Alternative Dwellings discuss some of the sticky wickets of the tiny house world (building code, financing, and insurance). She also covered structural considerations for a house on wheels that undergoes hurricane and earthquake conditions when it hits the road.

After lunch I spoke about code and legal issues, including some of the legal ways people have found to live in tiny houses and some of the next steps we might take as advocates of small spaces.

Next Jay Shafer joined us to talk about Resizing the American Dream. Here are a few of my favorite lines from his talk:

• "The Tiny House Movement is more than cute houses and quirky people. It's subverting consumerism."
• "When it was about use value not resale value people built houses according to their needs."
• "The Small House Movement is about people living in the amount of space they need."
• "Tiny houses are self-portraits with innovation to meet individual needs."
• "It's all just about what's necessary. Eliminate everything else."
• "When necessity is allowed to dictate the form of things, they're beautiful!"

The Tiny House Fair officially wrapped up when the tiny house tour and Jay's talk were completed, but several tiny house advocates continued the conversation over dinner (at American Flatbread - shout out to Billy for insisting that we go there!) and then around the conference table. We are eager to see how the Tiny House Movement evolves.

I'm honored to have spent the weekend in the presence of such fabulous folks. I met people from across the country who are designing, building, dwelling in, and advocating for tiny houses. Our ranks included building inspectors, lawyers, carpenters, inventors, and educators. Collectively we have an enormous amount of knowledge and enthusiasm and I hope we can direct it in the best possible ways to support simple, affordable, sustainable housing options. Meanwhile, my celebrity friend crushes have only been reinforced by discovering how fun these folks are in real life!

I'm already looking forward to the second annual Tiny House Fair which is slated for the West Coast next summer!