Daphne’s Caravans
Pictured here is a collection of gypsy caravans camped out at NERO Canada. If you’d like to build one of these tiny homes yourself Daphne’s Caravans can help. They have a growing online forum that they call The Caravan Workshop where you can connect with other caravan owners and builders. They can also be hired to consult on your project. The most interesting thing they offer is the Caravan School which is essentially a 10-day building workshop intended to jump start your project.
Learn more at Daphne’s Caravans.
Strawbale Construction Portal
One of my regular readers, Mark, sent me a link to this great Strawbale construction portal. The website is packed with great information including some plans. Below is an example from a set of free plans they offer for a 10×14 strawbale building. Mark is working on converting them to metric and is considering building one himself. Thanks again Mark!
Green Hamlet – Ecovillage of Natural Homes
Oliver Swann, the fellow behind NaturalHomes.org, sent me news today about progress at Green Hamlet, an ecovillage under construction in Pupki, Poland. They have planning permission to build four buildings but the best news is that tiny homes under 35 square meters (376 square feet) can be built without official permission. The larger buildings will serve as the shared spaces (main house, barn, meeting hall and workshop). The smaller buildings will be constructed using natural building methods like cord wood and straw bales.
In July 2010 four 5-day construction workshops will be lead by Tony Wrench. You can see the natural houses Tony builds on his website, That Roundhouse. Below is a short video that shows the step-by-step construction of a cord wood roundhouse with a reciprocal roof.
While cord wood roundhouses don’t suit all aesthetic tastes they are a remarkable example of truly sustainable architecture and that a home can pretty much be built out of anything. For more information about the upcoming workshops visit the Green Hamlet website. Thanks for the tip Oliver!
Vermont Tiny House Workshop
Peter King at Vermont Tiny Houses will be offering a tiny house building workshop on July 11th and 12th, 2009. He’ll be teaching tiny house design and basic construction skills; all experience levels are welcome. The class will build a 12′ by 16′ tiny house with a loft and a 12/12 gable roof. Most of the lumber will be pre-cut and ready for assembly so participants will get to see a complete tiny house go up in two days.
You’ll learn floor framing, wall raising, door and window installation, and exterior sheathing. Alternative design options will also be discussed including wall and roof sheathing, door and window selection, heating sources, water, septic, electric, garden, and greenhouse. Continue Reading »
Dee’s Workshop was a Smashing Success
A couple weeks ago Dee Williams mentioned to me that she and KT Anderson were going to host a one-day tiny house building workshop up in Portland, Oregon. It turns out the workshop was a big success and Tammy and Logan from RowdyKittens made the trip up to Portland and took these great photos. Dee also sent me a couple photos. When Dee and KT are ready to do it again I’ll be sure to announce it here on Tiny House Design.
