Tag Archives: house

The Small Life: Hannah’s Tiny Toronto Loft

Hannah's Loft 1
Living and embodying the small life doesn’t have to mean living in an Airstream. Living small is living below your means and living in a space that’s physically smaller than average, but full of heart. That’s why I was so excited to hear from Hannah and see her tiny loft. Take it away, Hannah!

Bedroom in the loftMy name is Hannah I live in Toronto. I live in a 584 square foot loft. I have recently decided to simplify my life. It is definitely is not as simple as living in Airstream, but I have downsized my living and I so happy with it. I downsized for many reasons. I downsized because I get so distracted and annoyed when things are not at their place. I also realized I’ve been wasting so much energy and time on daily basis just for THINGS around me when I could’ve spent the time and energy on the stuff that I actually enjoy. I couldn’t keep up with having my surroundings the way I wanted. It was messy and I wasn’t happy.

Loft Kitchenbathroom in the loftSo I decided to get rid of all the extra things. I have done the 30 Day Minimalist Challenge. And I think I’ll do it again.

Hannah's Toronto LoftI feel like the less stuff I have, the more space opens up in my mind. Now I spend less time on cleaning; it only takes me 20 min to clean the entire loft. I have more time to spend on myself and I am thinking of starting a blog with my best friend.

Loft view

If you like to live like a queen in Toronto, check out these amazing Yorkville condos for rent.*

Thanks, Hannah! Hannah has even taken living frugal to the next level. You can rent out her gorgeous loft on Air B&B. In fact, a couple friends and I hope to stay there this summer! You can also check out Hannah on her Facebook page. -Melanie

*This is a sponsored post, but all opinions are my own.

Our 1978 Airstream Sovereign Land Yacht: The Exterior Tour

Airstream through the trees copyI’ll be the first to admit that we didn’t do much to the outside of our Airstream. We washed it, polished it and put it in it’s permanent home. We didn’t feel the need to acid-wash it and make it super shiny. It just didn’t fit our style.

Airstream in the woods copyWe did put a lot of work into the land that the Airstream is parked on. We had to clear brush, lots of poison ivy (George got so sick!) and even cut down a few trees.

Airstream in the Pine Trees copyThe second-most frequently asked question I get is: “Do we own the land we’re parked on?” Kind of. We live on land that has been in my husband’s family for over 80 years. Part of the land is wooded and part is farmed. We earn our keep by helping out around the property– chopping firewood, cleaning the barn and feeding the animals.

Airstream and Garden copy

The first-most asked question I get asked is: “Do you actually live there?” Yes! We live here full-time. In the event of an emergency, like a hurricane, we have relatives we can visit nearby, but we’re in the Airstream during the heat of summer and the cold of winter.

An Airstream in the pines copyGeorge with Airstream copyAnyway, since the Airstream is so small, we’ve tried to make the exterior equally as nice as the interior. George surprised me one day by laying the rock path to the house. He also built a natural rock fire pit from rocks on the property after I talked about our friends’ fire pit for 2 weeks. I think he did it just to shut me up. 🙂

Airstream Outdoor Setup AMB

When it’s nice outside, George and I like to break out the lawn chairs and a few beers. We’ll often cook dinner on the fire and eat in the outdoors. It sounds corny, but living this way has really made me appreciate nature.

Airstream Sovereign Tag copy Back of the Airstream copyAirstream Front View copy

door to Airstream copy Succulents Outside the Airstream copyThanks for touring my humble abode this week. And Happy Friday! This weekend I plan on doing what I do best, just hanging out around the ol’ Airstream.

Got any weekend plans? Let me know about ’em in the comments!

love,
melanie

Our 1978 Airstream Sovereign Land Yacht Remodel: The Interior Tour

Airstream RemodelAirstream RemodelYesterday I showed you all the before and after shots of the Airstream, well, today I want to show you a few glamour shots. We live in the Airstream full-time, so not only did I want the Airstream remodel to be functional, but I also wanted it to feel warm and cozy. (Even in the winter, when it isn’t so warm!) We had a tight budget, so we built most of our furniture. We bought very little for the Airstream, instead we used the things that we already owned.

In the shots above you can see our copious amount of handmade pillows. One of my favorite things to do in the Airstream is curl up in the queen-size bed and watch a movie.

Airstream Remodel

Airstream RemodelGeorge does all of his art work from the trailer, so we knew it was important for him to have his own space to work and conduct all his business. 

Airstream Kitchen RemodelAirstream Kitchen and Sitting Area Remodel

Fiestaware in the Airstream copy

Although the kitchen is small, I’ve managed to squeeze out some killer meals in there. Sometimes when the space is feeling too cramped or hot to cook, we’ll go outside and cook right over the fire— camp style.

Airstream Bench Remodel Airstream bench remodelThere for a while, the bench was something we didn’t use much. But since George built me a mini-desk, I’ve been sitting (and napping!) on it constantly. Again, it’s got plenty of homemade pillows and we covered the bench cushion in vintage fabric.

Custom Drawers and Shelves in an Airstream remodelRecords in an Airstream Pictures in the Airstream Record player in an AirstreamWhen we first designed our the Airstream, I had grand dreams of open shelving. We had open shelving for a few months until I just couldn’t stand the clutter anymore! I’m a minimalist and I love a clean space, but George is an artist and needs a lot of stuff for his business, so we decided to compromise and build drawers from reclaimed barn wood to hide our junk.

Bathroom in an Airstream remodeled Bathroom in an Airstream remodeledI like to think that I’m not prissy, but I couldn’t live with a composting or camper-style toilet. Just couldn’t do it. That’s where I draw the line. But since we are parked and hooked up to a septic system, a real toilet wasn’t a problem. Thank god.

What do you think of our little home? Let me know in the comments!

love,
melanie

Road Trip Day 3: Key West, Hemingway House

Hemingway balconyWhen George and I decided to make a stop in Key West, I knew we had to visit the Hemingway house. I’m not the biggest Hemingway fan, but I was an English major and I’m a total cat lady.

6 toes!

6 toes!

hemingway catDo you know about Hemingway’s cats? Apparently when he was alive he had a whole menagerie of animals. His sons even kept raccoons as pets! But the most famous of his animals are his cats. His cats’ descendants still roam the property today. The cats are said to be lucky because most of them have 6 toes.

Hairy TrumanI was dying to get one of the cats to sit on my lap and bring me good luck. But like most kitties, they wanted nothing to do with me, the human. The cat pictured above, named Hairy Truman, let us pet him so that quelled my inner cat lady a bit. The 40-or so cats roam the property freely and pretty much have it made.

Hemingway BathroomThe architecture of the house is as equally stunning as the cats. I was dying over the tile in the bathroom (pictured above.)

The chair in which Hemingway wrote.

The chair in which Hemingway wrote.

Hemingway's bed, complete with a cat!

Hemingway’s bed, complete with a cat!

Hemingway House Entrance

Have you ever visited Hemingway’s Key West house? Did you pet the kitties?! Let me know in the comments!

love,
melanie

Things I Miss About Traditional Housing

Our untraditional home

Our untraditional home

I love living in an Airstream. It’s seriously one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, but it’s not all rainbows and butterflies either. Shelli, who blogs over at The Laughing Nanny and also lives in an Airstream, got me thinking about the things I miss about traditional housing. This list isn’t all inclusive, obv. On different days I miss different things. But here’s what I’ve been a missin’ most.

1. Long showers. The water heater in our Airstream is super small, so a lady only has time to shave one leg before the water turns cold. It’s not a luxurious situation. And at this point, a tub seems like a far away dream.

2. A big stove. We’ve made the best out of our cooking situation, but I still miss having four, fast, gas burners to heat up my food.

3. The ability to close off a space. Since we don’t really have any separate “rooms” in the Airstream, when I get up, George wakes up and when George want to stay awake at night, I have to stay awake. It’s been an adjustment to have to really adapt to each others’ schedules, but we’re making it work. (As Tim Gunn would say.)

4. House-chore free weekends. Before the Airstream, we rented, so we didn’t have to take care of home chores like painting, spraying for bugs or fixing appliances. We still have a super long to-do list and I’m pretty sure we always will have something to fix on the old Airstream. No more house chore-free weekends for us.

5. Closet space. Our closets are pretty much nonexistent. I miss being able to neatly fold my clothes and not have to fold them three times to jam them in an airplane-like overhead compartment.

I love being a negative Nancy but the things I miss about traditional housing, in no way out way the things I don’t miss.

Stay tuned for that post!

love,
melanie

 

A Faster Progression: Airstream Update

DSC_1143

How long does it take to get paint out of one’s hair? I still have paint in my hair from two weeks ago and I’m doubtful that it will ever come out. It took way more coats of paint to cover the walls than we expected. We had to use a primer, two base coats and a top coat to cover the icky, dated walls. But at least now the airstream now has a floor and painting is complete. We also installed a “real” toilet. No creepy camper potties for us! (TMI?) Anyway, what I’m trying to say is “we made some serious headway, people.”

If anyone is curious, we ended up using Kilz Premium as the primer, Valspar Contractor Finishes 2000 in Ultra White as the base coat and Valspar Paint and Primer in Ultra White as the top coat. We also put a coat of Kilz on the floor before we laid it to ensure the floor was sealed. If you can’t tell, I want the Airstream’s interior to be as bright white as possible.

Bed Build ProgressOur budget is getting a little tight as we are progressing through this project. Flooring is expensive! We chose laminate flooring to keep the cost down and keep the airstream light in case we ever wanted to tow it. And again, we had to buy much more paint than I ever imagined. It can be cheap, fast or good, but it can’t be all three– is that how the saying goes? Le sigh.

bathroom in airstreamWe’ll definitely be reusing old lumber from previous projects and trolling Craigslist for free stuff. My friend already found us a 3/4 size fridge for $75 bucks on Craigslist and I’m hoping to score a few more steals! (Gabby, you are awesome!)

Does anyone have any tips for acquiring free fabric or lumber? I need both! Let’s hear them in the comments!

love,
melanie

Living Small: The Beginning

airstreambefore1Remember how I told ya’ll living small was the answer? Well, when I meant small, I meant 31 feet of small!

This weekend George and I picked up our new-to-us home. We will live in this 1978 Airstream Sovereign for the next year to save money and get out of the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle. Is it an extreme scheme? Yes. Do I like to rhyme? Yes.

But seriously, folks, sometimes extreme schemes are necessary to make extreme changes. And you know what? I feel unusually calm about our plan– and I’m never calm about anything. I think this crazy ideas is actually going to work. By cutting out our major expense, rent, we will be able to save the majority of our paychecks. We will also cut out our water bill, (we’ll be using well water) and cut down on the electric bill.

We paid $5,000 for this beauty and we are planning on putting about $1,000 worth of renovations into her. We have already sold a bunch of unnecessary stuff to make up for the initial costs and in the next few weeks, we plan on selling a lot more at flea markets and online.

We will truly be living small and testing our ability to distinguish want from need. And of course, I’ll be posting our progress along the way.

Have you ever schemed up an extreme idea to save money? Did your plan work? I want to hear about it in the comments!

love and airstreams,
melanie

 

 

Home Tour: Bedroom

DSC_1028It feels like it has been raining for the last month. I have the hardest time getting out of bed when it is raining. Rain pitter pattering on my tin roof is one of the best sounds in the world. Since I’ve spent so much time there lately (and I’ve cleaned a ton!), I thought I’d share my boudoir with you! I don’t think it will ever get any cleaner, so I had to document the occasion.

DSC_1022George made the moon backdrop for our wedding. He free-handed it. That man is amazing.
DSC_1023 DSC_1024My dad made this nightstand in woodshop when he was 16. He gave it to my grandma, and after she passed, he gave it to me. It is one of my most precious things.
DSC_1026 DSC_1033I love our little bedroom and our home, but I do hope spring will show up soon! I need to get out of this house!

love,
melanie