Build Tiny + Boneyard Studios – 2 Workshop special!

That’s right, Build Tiny and Boneyard Studios have teamed up to offer a tiny house workshop special. Attend both workshops for only $500.00! See the workshop page for more info.

Planning and building go hand in hand so why not some great instruction on both?

The Boneyard Studios/Open Source Tiny house workshop offers instruction on how to design and plan your build. Here is what they have to say :

“We believe tiny house workshops should be like tiny houses: small, intimate, and designed to your individual needs.

You will not be sitting in a conference room with 80 – 100 people.  Our workshops have no more than 30 participants, are led by two professionals  in the building and design industries who have experience building and designing several tiny houses and the co-founder of the country’s first tiny house community.  You will receive a survey to fill out before the workshop so we can tailor components of the workshop to your specific interests.  You will walk away with materials to help you plan your build – materials planning worksheets, a criticial path project plan for a tiny house, base drawing plans, and other planning materials. These are all shared with you in hard copy and digitally after the workshop.”

After attending their workshop students have been very excited about how to take the next step. That is where Build Tiny comes in. We will teach you about the tools and the skills needed to help you continue on your tiny house journey.

We stick with the same intimate phisophy. Attendance is limited so everyone gets a chance to use every tool and to become comfortable with each task. On site camping and group meals provide an environment that fosters networking and some pretty awesome discussions.

If you are thinking of building a tiny house these two workshops will provide you with plenty of hands-on experience in both the planning and build phases so that you will be better prepared to go out and Build Tiny!

 

What does Build Tiny mean?

When Nathan Cluss (check out his FB page) painted the Build Tiny wall he asked me what does Build Tiny mean to me. I told him that was a complicated question and that I would get back to him with my answer. Here it is.

Build Tiny is more than one thing. It is a company and it is a concept.

The company is here to build quality tiny houses as well as to provide a place people can come to gain confidence and knowledge which they can apply to their own build. I hope people view Build Tiny as a place they can come to ask questions and share ideas.

The concept of Build Tiny has been with me for much longer. It permeates my thoughts and actions in everything I do. It is the base from which I view the world. I suppose it could be thought of as building a tinier carbon footprint.

Now let me say that I am definitely not the poster child for green living. I live in a large house and drive a diesel truck. So how can I state that I am building tiny?

Well, because each day I try to do better than I did the day before. I work in the construction industry and my truck is a necessary evil. On some days it is larger than I need and I feel guilty driving it around. On other days I am thankful that I have such a large vehicle so I only need to make one trip to the recyclers or the Restore. I also make sure my truck is properly maintained to assure that the emissions are as low as possible and I plan my trips to minimize my driving.

As for the house, I bring in more people. Because my house is larger than I need, I have other people living here. Some live here all the time and others just pass through when they need a place to stay during a transitional time. I have room for tiny houses to be parked and to work from home building tiny houses or specialty pieces for other houses. I try to use my house and property to help as many people as possible. This does not lower the resources needed to maintain my house, but it does make the consumption of those resources benefit more people.

As for my building, I spend time thinking through every design looking for ways to minimize material usage, maximize existing resources and to work in a manner that promotes efficiency. I attend classes to continue my education and keep up with the latest sustainable building practices. Any waste that is generated is sorted to either be recycled, repurposed, composted or, as a last resort, discarded.

None of these things are going to set me up for any green living awards, they are just little things that I do every day that I believe make a difference. And that helps me to feel better about how I live my life and keeps me on track to continue to Build Tiny.

 

Welcome 2014! We have plans for you.

Now that the holidays are behind us and winter has settled in, it is time to plan! This time of year with the colder temperatures and shorter days I find myself more willing to build less and plan more. I like to spend time in my warm, quiet office drawing up plans for current and future projects. It is never too early to start working out those details that will be part of your next project.

2014 A little time with a pencil can save a lot of time with your other tools.

A little time with a pencil can save a lot of time with your other tools.

Some of the things I am working on are:

  • Putting together another Build Tiny workshop. Please check out the workshop page for more info.
  • Talking to my SIPS supplier to decide where I am comfortable with price vs service. They offer a range of services when manufacturing their panels and each aspect has an associated cost. A little math now can let me go forward with my ordering knowing that I have explored my options and am confident in my decisions.
  • Gathering pictures of trim samples to show customers. There are many different types of trim styles and materials available. Good pictures and/or physical samples are a great way to assure that my customer and I are on the same page. Trim can also be stained or painted during bad weather and set aside until needed. No need to lose build days just because your tiny house is not yet dried in.
  • Researching local mills to find one that has some salvaged barn wood to use for flooring. I am hoping they will also have some rough sawn lumber to create a false beam.
  •  Reading to do to keep current on the changes in codes and requirements. As monotonous as that sounds, it is rewarding when I find that there is a new way to do something that will result in a better product. Even after many years in the trades there is always more to learn.

So that is how I am spending the indoors hours. But the reason I choose to make my living building is because my favorite place to be is outside with my tools in my hands. So don’t be surprised if even on these cold winter days you still find me out there putting my plans into action!

Build Tiny Facebook Contest Last Day

Today is the last day you can enter to win a FREE ticket to our 3 day workshop. Simply go to the Build Tiny Facebook page and post a comment about why you want to attend. Entries close at 5pm est. We will go over the entries at that time and select a winner. The winner will be notified tonight!