Final FINAL floor plan

Revision #927834 has finally been Dad-approved!  For your viewing pleasure:

I've kept the basic elements from the last plan, but the new arrangement has actually given me more usable space.  The 6" lost from an interior wall makes a huge difference when you are designing such a small space!  I've been able to add a small hall closet for coats and such, as well as a pantry closet next to the laundry area.  The addition of a pantry means I can get away with less cabinets (thus less $$$).  I decided to go with a rolling island behind the couch, which will have enough space to hold all of my pots and pans, and will give me an extra work space.  I also envision being able to roll it out of the way (like in front of the laundry) if I need a bit of extra floor space for entertaining or a big project.  See that room in the bottom right?  That's the guest room for everyone that comes to visit!

Now I'm sure some small changes are still possible, but I was really determined to finalize a floor plan so I can start working on electrical and plumbing plans.

The Complete Guide to Wiring

Karl and I just ordered this book after we perused it at Barnes & Noble.  Looked like a really good manual for someone that has no concept of what they're doing!  Lots of full color photos explaining exactly what to do.  I'm anxious for it to come in the mail so I can go over it with my dad, and maybe feel a bit more confident in doing this ourselves!  I'm hoping Karl will take the lead on most of the electrical stuff, as he's already knowledgeable about car wiring.  I, on the other hand, can barely hook up a TV anymore.  In my defense, I have never had to touch a single plug for anything in the 3.5 years Karl and I have lived together. 

Hope everyone had a nice Mother's Day - better remind Karl to call his mom tonight!

Final floor plan (maybe?)

This is the plan for my one floor, 768 square foot cabin.  My current cost estimates are around $30,000 to build and completely finish.  I hope to be able to stick to that budget by finding some things below the estimated cost to balance out the things that end up being over.  Things always end up being more expensive than you think, but I am still so excited!  

Quitting my job is the other huge reason that I am excited to move.  Sometimes it seems like each day at work drains the spirit out of my soul a little bit more.  Maybe I'm being idealistic in thinking that leaving my job will improve my life so much, but I guess I will just have to see.

Today is May 1st, so that means I'm leaving next month!

Tiny Houses = Living Simply

I think I may have redesigned the floor plan for the cabin about 87 times...  I'm back to one floor now, and I increased the footprint to 24' x 32'.  Construction logic states that it's cheaper to build up, than out, but I'm not so sure how true that is for smaller houses.  Increasing the footprint by 8' is likely going to be a lot cheaper than adding an entire second floor, and actually results in a similar amount of usable space.  Building stairs to code takes a LOT of space!  I think a lot of us are used to steps that are a bit steeper and narrower than what is currently required for new construction.  I was losing almost 75 square feet just by putting stairs in! So the current plans afford me 768 square feet for a kitchen, dining area, living room, bathroom, laundry room, and two bedrooms.  Don't forget to cram some closets in there, too - doggie food and a vacuum has to go somewhere!

So, depending on who you ask, my little cabin in the woods might qualify as a 'tiny house,' or maybe just a 'small house.'  By comparison to some hardcore tiny house-ers, our cabin will be a mansion!

Although, I am now completely sold on the concept of building one of these on a trailer rather than shelling out $80,000+ for an RV:

So for any of you that haven't heard of the tiny house movement, there are tons of blogs and websites dedicated to the people living ultra simply.  It does make you wonder, how much do we really need?  How much furniture/clothing/stuff do you have in your house that you probably wouldn't notice if it went missing?

Sure, Karl and I could borrow a couple hundred thousand dollars and build some big house with lots of rooms we probably wouldn't go in (other than stuffing some useless junk the closet of course).  We could then pay a ton of money to heat it, and furnish it, and maintain it, and continue to slave away working to pay for the big stupid house that we don't even use because we're too busy working just to pay for it.

Or...

We can go low key.  Live simply.  Keep the things that are important to us and forget the rest.  Spend more time together, doing things we love, and with friends and family.  Limit our expenses to the things that matter and stop the incessant consumerism that is so harmful to our planet.  And stop slaving day in and day out while life passes us by.

Of course, I may be a bit more of a hippie tree hugger than the average Joe.  But I really encourage everyone to make an effort to live simply.  It's an achievable goal, while the constant more more more will never be enough.

So this is what I've been working on...

I've been on my computer for several hours each night, but I've been so busy trying to figure out how to build a cabin, I haven't had any time to post!  I made up some floor plans tonight, so I can show what I've come up with:

First Floor

Second Floor

The plan is for a 24' x 24' footprint, with two stories and a plain gable roof.  I've had some pretty intense building sessions with my dad, and I'm actually feeling surprisingly confident about Karl and I doing this ourselves (with some help from his dad, of course)!  Money is always an issue, so I'm trying to keep it as low cost as possible.  Most of the walls on the second floor wouldn't likely go in when we're building.  I don't mind if the upstairs is one big room if it means we can get some more important things accomplished.  Utility hookups are going to be our major expense - In Alaska, you aren't even guaranteed access to electric on any given lot!  Luckily, the area we're planning to search for land will probably have power lines, but water or natural gas is highly unlikely.  This means a really expensive cistern and bulk water delivery (rather than a really REALLY expensive well digging), and probably a pellet stove.  I kind of want a wood stove really badly, but they just aren't that efficient and can't burn unattended as long as a pellet stove can.  Check pellet stoves out here.  Kind of fits into my goal of being as environmentally friendly as possible - most pellets are made from scrap wood or sawdust.  Unfortunately, I haven't found one at less than $1500...  I'll try to document the building plans as I go, so everyone else can save up and build their cabin in the woods, too!