nice article/small homes

[frazoo]

In fine homebuilding.  Also an article on underground houses in M.E. News. The small home article reminds me of the Victoria's models on steroids, kinda like the one posted here recently.  Nice to see more and more people thinking smaller in a world of excess.

frazoo

[rick91351]

In fine homebuilding.  Also an article on underground houses in M.E. News. The small home article reminds me of the Victoria's models on steroids, kinda like the one posted here recently.  Nice to see more and more people thinking smaller in a world of excess.

frazoo

Would you post the links please.  Or are they in hard copy.  M.E. News? (Mother Earth News)  This month for both issues?  We would be very interested seeing them.   

I am sort of wondering what smaller is now.  I know from what I am reading the bulk of what few are being drawn now are around the 1800 to 2100 sq ft range.  For our retirement home we shot for 1800 and ended up in the 2300 range the last I talked to our draftsman.   

Thanks
Rick

[frazoo]

Mother Earth October/November and Fine Homebuilding November issue.  Yeah, "small" isn't always so small (to me anyway).  Both of the houses in F.H. are 1400 sq./ft. including a basement area.  I believe they were designed to have around a 500 sq/ft footprint on their lot due to steep grade. 

frazoo

[mldrenen]

i was just thumbing through FHB in the grocery store this afternoon, and was intrigued by that article.  the homes were really well-designed and beautiful to look at.  i have to admit i was a little disappointed, though, that both homes were ~1500 sq ft and each had only a single bedroom.  i'd have found the article a bit more interesting and/or useful if at least one of the plans contained an efficient design incorporating multiple bedrooms into a house that size.

[Jeff922]

Yeah, 1500 sq ft should be an average sized home for a family with 2 kids.  I read somewhere about how homes are so much larger now than they were 30-40 years ago.  I can't recall the numbers, but it compaired the acreage of mature white pines required to build a home now compaired to then.  It's kind of scarry when you look at it in those terms.  But at least it is safe to say that the McMansion era is over.  Good ridance. 

[HomeschoolMom]

Here is the article in Mother Earth News http://www.motherearthnews.com/modern-homesteading/underground-house-living-z10m0vau.aspx

(I happen to have google alerts set to earth sheltered homes, lol)

[considerations]

I used to live in and around Portland Oregon which had thousands of WWII era homes still in use.  They were usually 800 to 1,000 sqft. One bathroom and 2 or 3 bedrooms.  The average number of kids in those days was 4.  People just didn't own as much "stuff" as we seem to now, and after the Depression, a house like this looked pretty darn nice.

[frazoo]

Back in the late '80's I worked on a project near Washington D.C..  I lived in a home of 1800 sq. ft. with 2 kids and thought we had PLENTY of room.  The child's bedroom in the home we were buidling was more square feet (footage?) than my whole house.  Yeah, we are a wasteful nation, and I fear the future effects of our over-indulgence.    Everyone I know thinks the wife and I are nuts for starting to build a 600 sq. ft. (including loft) house.  They just don't "get it".

frazoo

[rick91351]

This subject has really worked at us when we started our planing. 

I am sort of wondering what smaller is now.  I know from what I am reading the bulk of what few are being drawn now are around the 1800 to 2100 sq ft range.  For our retirement home we shot for 1800 and ended up in the 2300 range the last I talked to our draftsman.   

Thanks
Rick

Back in the late '80's I worked on a project near Washington D.C..  I lived in a home of 1800 sq. ft. with 2 kids and thought we had PLENTY of room.  The child's bedroom in the home we were buidling was more square feet (footage?) than my whole house.  Yeah, we are a wasteful nation, and I fear the future effects of our over-indulgence.    Everyone I know thinks the wife and I are nuts for starting to build a 600 sq. ft. (including loft) house.  They just don't "get it".

frazoo

One size clearly does not fit all.  Do I think you are nuts?  Heavens no.  On the other hand please do not think we are extravagant looking at something three times to three and a half times that size.  One of my hobbies is collecting books, and rare antique cups and saucers.  My wife and I both collect old family stuff, treasures and historical western artifacts.   I could fill your 600 sq ft with such.  In fact we are using this as a very good way to get rid of a lot of clinkers and books that we have no use for any longer.  Some of the books are now available as e-book or no longer current and some porcelain that just I real do not want to move and keep.

Point number two the home we are looking at building is on our ranch.  We will be not snowed in for but snow covered for about four to five months.  Many days below zero and it is hard telling just who or what will end up in the kitchen.  Might be a new born calf or a frozen motorist and their family, or neighbor and all at once, not to mention the frozen what you call it off the tractor that is now leaking on the floor.

My wive loves to sew and chip carves but wants to be able to get things out of the way.  We can expect our kids and grand kids for weekends or a week or two, they are welcome all summer.   Being snow covered for that much time my wife and I both need our space.  We get along real well. There is no one on God's earth I would rather fish, hunt, back pack and and build stuff together with than her.  (We met meet 40 years ago this year).  But there are times she needs to go her way and I mine.  I might not want to go out to the shop.  And she might not be able to walk out to the garden or orchard and there is four foot of snow.  Cross country skiing and snow shoeing is fun but....  And the damn snow machines stink up the air and are noisy. 

           

[altaoaks]

hey frazoo, i saw that FHB mag at the grocery store and bought it just because of the house on the cover, it is so beautiful, and i bet the victoria's cottage could be finished to look that great, but i was also amazed/shocked that it was 1500 sq. ft. with only 1 bedroom.  seems to me thats an average size home, not small.  it should be at least a 2 bedroom for its size. 

i guess since it has a small 500 sq. ft.  footprint they qualify it as a small house.  i was drawn to its appearance, saddened by the floorplan.

[Solar Burrito]

I used to live in and around Portland Oregon which had thousands of WWII era homes still in use.  They were usually 800 to 1,000 sqft. One bathroom and 2 or 3 bedrooms.  The average number of kids in those days was 4.  People just didn't own as much "stuff" as we seem to now, and after the Depression, a house like this looked pretty darn nice.

I still live in one of these "War boxes" as they are called in Seattle. Built in 1941 for Boeing workers. 720 square feet and works well for my wife and I.