Storage solutions in a tiny house. Part 1

Hi all!

Now, one of the things that pulls my heart towards the tiny house lifestyle is the necessary move of downsizing the things you have around you so as to comfortably live in such a small space.  I love the idea of having minimal physical belongings so I can concentrate my energies on more long important things like building relationships and having adventures, even just being in the present moment. However my move towards this way of life does not mean that I want to go without.  I love comfort and a beautiful space around me and one of the biggest joys in my life is to make things and to craft, and that means STUFF!

It was only when I really started researching into other people's tiny houses that I felt that we could comfortably fit our lives into our own tiny house.  There are so many amazing tiny houses out there with ingenious storage solutions to house the 'stuff' that makes life fun!

In Part 1-3 of 'storage solutions in a tiny house' I would like to share with you some of the ideas that I have found along the way that we may like to incorporate into our tiny house.


Part 1: STORAGE STAIRS

These crazily clever contraptions come in all shapes and sizes and are starting to become far more common in tiny houses then the original moveable ladder that many of the early tiny houses i've seen came with.  Storage stairs were not invented by the tiny house movement and have in fact been used for many years within the japanese culture, where they are called Tansu.

For me personally they make so much more sense then a moveable ladder as they allow for so much more storage and use space that would generally be left empty anyway for ease of movement with the ladder.   Many people who use the storage stairs concept within their tiny house storage the majority of their possessions within this small but cleverly designed area.

Below I will show you some awesome storage stairs that I have found whilst researching our own tiny house as well as some basic design sketches.  People have really gone wild with this concept!

These 2 photos above show antique traditional Tansu stairs from Japan

These 3 photos above show the custom storage stairs made for the tiny house ''Lucy'' in New Zealand

These stairs are more based on a ladder design were little floor space is needed and there is still useable storage space.  A great idea alongside other storage ideas if floor space is at a premium.

 I love the use of book storage within this storage stair design.  Tom and I do not own many books anymore so this probably wouldn't be necessary for us but it's still a cool design idea.

 Clothes storage to the max with these easy to access sliding draws and hanging space for clothing too.

 This is fantastic for an at home office idea.  I love the desk space and the open shelving, not so great if your aim is to declutter but an awesome solution to a useable work space within a tiny home!

 Again, another idea for a sliding draw storage stair, with little floor space needed as it is set between the counter and a dividing wall.

 Open clothing and shoe storage within this storage stair design.

 This is a clever idea for a reasonably small storage staircase.  Cupboard doors allow a clean space with plenty of hidden storage areas.

There's just so much space here! I think Tom and I could easily fit the majority of our essentials in this design, especially once we have downsized further.

In my eyes it makes total sense that Tom and I will incorporate some form of storage stair in our final design.  I particularly love Shane and Tom's design in their tiny house ''lucy'' (photos 3, 4+5), for even though the stairs do take up a fair amount of floor space there is just so much space available within that area.  I've even had the idea of creating a cupboard space within our stairs to house a small washing machine so that we do not have to hand wash our clothes or take trips to a Laundromat.

Below are a few design sketches for some of the storage stair concepts shown above.

 A basic ladder style storage stair

A design sketch for a storage stair with rolling drawers.

A traditional japanese tansu style storage stair concept

The basic cupboard dimensions for the storage stairs inside the ''Lucy'' tiny house.  There are also 3 small cube shaped boxes that sit within this design also.

I hope you all found this post useful! 

Until next time, 

Bex

Tiny house loft spaces I love.

Hi there,

Today I will be sharing with you some of the awesome loft spaces/bedrooms that I have found whilst researching our tiny house.  It's amazing to see just how cosy and user friendly these little spaces can be.

Growing up I begged for a loft bed and I have vivid memories of being age 8 and staying up late into the night watching my parents sweating over building me my brand new bed.  That night, I slept high up in the sky for the first time and it was a dream come true.  There's something majestic about sleeping up high above everything else.  I felt so safe up there and loved the awesome cubby spaces that I could create under my bed with all of my stuffed animals and books.

I still get that buzz when I look at the amazing loft bedrooms that people create in their tiny houses.  Some of the storage solutions that people come up with in such tiny spaces is nothing short of genius.

Below I will share with you some of my fav loft spaces i have found so far.

This tiny house loft is from the tiny house named ''lucy'' that was built in New Zealand.  I love the use of white paint and dark wooden floor boards, but there doesn't seem to be any storage up here.

This is one of my fav lofts that I have found so far, a great example of a shed style roof on a tiny house.  Lots of light and head room on one side.  I also love the shelving unit to one side and big window by your head, ooh and the wooden floor with white walls.

This is far too cramped for me but I love that window!

This shelving unit is a great idea though I wonder if it would be better to have it on one side instead of blocking off the line of sight all the way through the tiny house.  It may make the main room seem smaller?

 This is just beautiful, great use of dormers and the windows are perfect.  I would love this as a loft!

 Another view of a shed style roof that works great in a loft!

A great view of the overall space of this tiny house.  Not sure if they have an inside bathroom or not and they have really prioritised head space in the kitchen which impacts the space in the loft greatly.

Great storage in a tiny house loft with a sloping roof.   A nice amount of wood too, not too much.

A huge skylight would be so amazing, especially for warm summers nights!

 A great idea for storage space without blocking out the line of sight or light to the downstairs.

 This is just beautiful, so cosy! Can't see much storage up here.

 Lily Duval's sweet little tiny house with a sloping roof.  Her tiny house is not max size either!  Again all of her clothes storage is downstairs.

 Such a modern set up, and a nice shed style roof too.

 I love this tiny loft space, it would be amazing to have an extra loft space over the top of the sofa area that would be a spare bed for guests or kiddies.  Many tiny houses have storage lofts so would be easy to make one that would house a single mattress!

A really interesting shaped roof.  Love the big window and patchwork quilt for a pop of colour.


I hope you enjoyed this post, there are just so many options for what to do with your tiny sleeping loft.  My research has shown me that I would love to have head room in our tiny loft, preferably with some form of storage for the majority of our clothes so the downstairs is not too cluttered.  I also would love a lot of light to enter via the loft either from long windows along the sides or some kind of skylight.

Until next time,
Bex