I’ll be giving you glimpses into my tiny home a bit at a time in the weeks to come. I want you to see that it is perfectly possible to have a practical AND beautiful home that is tiny in stature but big in living. Not that I want you to join in the tiny home movement. Simply so you can rethink how many THINGS you have and are taking care of. And maybe, just maybe…reduce that stuff. So you can DO more with your people. Those people are what it is all about, after all.
So, I don’t think of my home as a tiny home. I think it’s simply small. But, according to definition, is anything under 1000 square foot is a tiny home. Therefore, Nate, Katie, Levi, and I live in a tiny home. With Newton, the dog.
There is absolutely no question that living in such a small space has brought challenges along with it. But, it’s brought a great sense of accomplishment. We are spending less time taking care of stuff and more time having fun.
Today I want to show you our kitchen nook/dining room. This little space serves multiple purposes in one tiny area. We eat here, we do homework here, I work here often, this serves as the game table, we make terrariums on this table, I even photograph recipes in this nook.
I am a huge fan of corner nooks for use in small spaces. They save space and seat a number of people while looking beautiful and tidy.
I created this nook with an IKEA bench that hs served multiple purposes for us, as well as an old church pew that I simply adore. Those two benches make up the corner seating. Right now I am using a round table that I found for $100 dollars at a local vintage shop. It’s not idea for this space but until I find something better…it works. I adore the treatment of the top with it’s green, blue, and white!
I employ vintage folding chairs for the additional dining space (I also have one being used as an end table in our bedroom to be pulled into the dining room when needed) because they are sturdy, look good, portable (we often take them outside in the summer!), and inexpensive.
I’ve added a narrow vintage cabinet to give us storage for our linens, alcohol, wine glasses, and more. I like this cabinet because it is small in stature but gives the dining room all sorts of charm.
That ladder. I have gotten a gillion comments about that guy. Let me tell you about it…
I simply loved it and didn’t want to get rid of it when we needed to edit down our belongings. So, I found a home for it. And I utterly love it in the dining room to show off my favorite cookbooks (although I am still on the hunt for one more fantastic one!). I have learned small homes do NOT require every. single. space. to be used for storage. In fact, you’ll notice that the top of the liquor cabinet is used purely for my favorite art pieces, vintage silver salt and pepper shakers, and greenery. Nothing practical about it.
As renters, we can’t do much with the structure of the space. But, we DID change out the light and use a command hook on the ceiling to move the light over to the corner. Immediately the space looks more updated and personalized. Adding our own decor, color, and fabric adds more personalization and comfort.
Another renter trick…dowels and command hooks for curtain rods. The curtains in this space are purely decorative and mounted with a cheap dowel and clear command hooks. This temporary option cost me about $8.00 for both windows.
Tip:
To make them function, I could have used a longer dowel to move the curtains across the window.
We took an afternoon with family members and made terrariums for the centerpiece. I am not about having decorative items for no purpose. So, we made an activity out of making living terrariums for each member of the family (Nate & I share one). Putting the jars onto a wooden tray (found at a thrift store) keeps it looking clean, purposeful, and moveable.
Did I convince you that a small space can be lovely and purposeful? Are you on board with living in a tiny home? Maybe not. But, I surely love this space and love having my morning coffee in this space each day!