7 Things to Love About Living Tiny!
I’ve lived in a tiny house for 8 years now and absolutely love it. I love everything about it. I can barely think of a day I haven’t loved it… except maybe after 2 weeks of solid rain, suffering from a small case of cabin fever.
A lot of people considering living the tiny life worry if they’ll be able to do it. So, I thought I’d share some of the things to love about living tiny when you do decide to take the plunge….
1. It’s Made Just For You
Even if you don’t design your own tiny house, you can choose from a large variety of designs that will specifically suit the way you live your life. Do you like to cook or do you prefer to eat out? Do you work from home? Do you like to eat on the couch or at a dining table? Do you spend a lot of time in the bathroom getting ready or are you more wash and wear? Are you a couch person or a bed dweller? The way you live will determine the design you choose. When you live in a house that’s made just for you, it doesn’t have to be huge. You effortlessly flow through the space that you have … because it’s designed to perfectly suit your needs!
2. Everything is Beautiful... and Practical
Small spaces tend to necessitate clever design. As a result, really good tiny house designs are often more thought out than your average piece of architecture. Every nook, cranny and storage solution is considered and capitalised upon… every window, every view, every light fitting, every appliance is made as beautiful and practical as possible. I think everything about my house is beautiful and I love how practical everything is. It has all been considered – from the placement of the electric sockets to the way every cupboard and drawer opens. There is so much balance and symmetry and it’s also just super cute!
3. You Only Keep Awesome Stuff
I don’t’ know how many times people have come to my house and said ‘wow, you have more storage than I do!’. A lot of times. Having said that, one of the joys of living tiny is the necessity of minimalism. There’s a definite limit to how much stuff you can fit in your home. As a result, you tend to only buy and/or keep things that either bring you great joy or are very useful and valuable to your life. If something is rarely used then it's bound to be given away or sold, unless it’s super sentimental or profoundly beautiful. As a result, your house is filled with only really awesome stuff that you absolutely love! Pretty cool.
4. Everything has its Place
Every single awesome thing we own has a special shelf or drawer or box where it lives with other awesome things… in a place that makes sense for the way we use it. And this constantly evolves. When we get something new, we need to create new space and the organisational system is reviewed, revised and improved. There is something profoundly satisfying and relaxing about living in an organised space where you know where everything is and where it goes back to once you’ve used it. Or maybe that's just me?!
5. It Gives You Freedom
Every way you look at it, tiny house living gives you freedom – geographical, financial, time and lifestyle freedom. You have the freedom to move if you absolutely have to. For example, in 2022 it flooded where we live for the first time, ever. If we need to, we can move our house to higher ground in the future… but our neighbours can’t. The tiny house has given us financial freedom and freedom from the rental market. Land rent is minimal and our energy and water bills are tiny. It’s given us lifestyle freedom because we can still afford to live in the heart of our town and super close to the beach while many of our friends are having to move miles away just to afford rent. It’s given us time freedom because we don’t have to commute, don’t have to earn as much money to pay the rent and cleaning and maintaining the house takes no time at all. And it’s given us freedom from stuff. As they say, if you have too much of it… it starts to own you!
6. It Improves Relationships
As a couple living in a bigger house, you can get away from each other. In a tiny house, you can’t. There’s no place to hide so you’re kind of forced to deal with your stuff. In a good way. You learn to trigger each other less and when you are triggered, you learn to manage and calm your emotions more quickly. You also get a little better at tuning into each other and giving each other space when you need it. For example, in the mornings, my husband and I will unconsciously take turns at giving the other space downstairs so we can have the bathroom to ourselves (the smallest room in our house). When we’re both working from home we’re getting good at communicating when we have meetings or a looming deadline so we can stay quiet or put on a set of headphones and give the other peace. I think overall it’s forced us to communicate better than we would have otherwise and to be more respectful of each other’s time and space.
7. It Gets You Out in Nature
You hear this a lot and this has definitely been our experience! Even though we’re on a suburban block, our house is in nature and it’s designed to bring the outside in. We have huge doors and windows, amazing views and we’re completely surrounded by trees. Our house feels like it’s part of the garden. Due to our lower cost of living, we don’t need to work as much so have more time to spend in nature. We go to the beach and get into the ocean most days. And we’re also regularly inspired to get out and about. Even though our tiny house is the best… it’s still tiny and sometimes you crave space or a change of scene. So you get out in nature. You get that space and then you return to your lovely, tidy, organised, cosy home… made just for you!
So that’s just seven things to love about living tiny. There are many more but seven is a good number for a list, don’t you think?!
What about you? What do you love, or think you’ll love about living in a tiny house?
At Uber Tiny Homes we have a range of awesome tiny house designs to suit your way of life... with more coming soon! We also offer a Custom Design Service if you have some ideas and are after a little more creative control. Why not draw on our experience to help design your home!