The Joy of Tiny House Living. Chris Schapdick

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      Less is very often more.

      Going tiny is a process of self-discovery; it’s about figuring out what’s fulfilling in life to you, other than possessions. I’m sure you’ve already heard of the notion of experiences being more valuable than stuff. We all have stuff, but when you spend your money and time on more experiences instead of more stuff, you enhance your life. This trading of things for experiences is quite rewarding. And the side effect of prioritizing experiences over stuff, living clutter-free, for many people equates to living worry-free. There’s been a great deal of interest recently in books that help you downsize your possessions. Letting go of things and assessing what’s truly important to you is a process that you have to take on personally, figuring out where you fit into the minimalism spectrum.

      As we discussed in the previous section, tiny houses are a lot smaller, and therefore the things that you put into your tiny house have to, by their very nature, be important to you. Otherwise, there’s simply no room for them. As you go through this process of deciding what experiences you value, what it is you’re trading your possessions for, you will learn what’s important to you, find out who you are, define what you want from your life, and take steps toward that.

      Living Clutter Free: Downsizing

      How do you start down the path of living without clutter? Based on my experience, I advise you to do it slowly and take it one step at a time. One good way to start is to take just ten minutes each day to look around the space you’re currently occupying and find things that you don’t need. Sometimes these things are tucked away in a closet; sometimes they are shoved under a bed. Think about things that you haven’t used in a while (for weeks, months, or even years). We all have those items. If you haven’t used (or seen) something in months, do you need it? Seek out these unnecessary items and dispose of them, either by recycling them, selling them, donating them, or throwing them away.

      Here are a few focus areas you can tackle in your quest to downsize.

      Kitchen: Are there utensils and appliances that you don’t use anymore? Kitchenware is infamous for one-use tools; if it only serves one specific purpose, can you do without it? How do you, personally, cook? Think about how you prepare meals—and I’m not talking about meals that you make once a year on a special occasion. I’m talking about your everyday life. How many cups and mugs and plates and spoons and bowls and pots and spatulas do you have? Count them; the number may shock you. Do you need them all?

      Wardrobe: Clothing is another excellent place to purge. We all have those items that don’t fit us anymore, or that have gone out of style, but we still like holding onto them; they continue to hang in our closet year after year, untouched. Some of us have too many shoes, and we likely don’t need or wear all of them. We also have highly seasonal clothing only suitable for certain times of the year, instead of pieces that are versatile. Considering all of this, what can you get rid of?

      Media: Media takes up a ton of room in many people’s homes. If you have an extensive CD or DVD collection, could you switch to virtual copies or subscription services instead? This potential for space savings also holds true for books. I know many people like to have a book collection, and I’m no different in that regard; I certainly have more books than I need. More and more, though, I find myself either reading a book and then passing it on to someone else, or reading an electronic version of a book. Give it a try.

      We all have something like this clutter at home—and for some of us, it’s our entire home. Are you prepared to cut down on your worldly possessions to live tiny? Are you prepared to prioritize only what matters most to you?

      You may be proud of your music collection, and rightfully so. But consider going digital—media is one of the easiest categories in which you can reduce your possessions in order to fit into a tiny house.

      INTERVIEW WITH

ALEX EAVES

      Alex: I am Alex Eaves, and I am the Reuse brand owner, filmmaker, and 98-square-foot (9-square-meter) tiny house dweller living inside a used box truck.

       Chris: What made you choose a box truck versus any of the many other options that tiny living enthusiasts have available to them?

      Alex: I had come back from a concert tour in my Pontiac Vibe. I needed an upgrade; I was traveling in the Vibe around the country and sleeping in it sometimes. Derek “Deek” Diedricksen suggested the box truck, and as soon as he said it, I was like, “Oh man, that’s perfect,” because when I used to travel with vans selling merchandise, we would rent box trucks and sometimes sleep in them. We’d put a mattress or a big stack of T-shirts and sweatshirts on the floor and then sleep on it, so it was full-circle perfect. Deek went on to be instrumental as the co-creator and builder on this joint project.

       Chris: How long have you been living in this rather luxurious interior here in your box truck?

      Alex: It’s almost a year.

      Alex Eaves (right), the owner of the Reuse box truck tiny house.

       Chris: What’s the most surprising thing that you didn’t anticipate that you found out during this year?

      Alex: That the number one adjective people use when they come in here is “spacious.”

       Chris: Reuse is important to you. For your box truck, you used mostly, if not all, repurposed materials, correct?

      Alex: Yes, everything in here is pre-owned, used, upcycled, or repurposed, except for the caulking, the spray foam in the corners and around that glass door, the rubberized paint in the bathroom, and a few specialty screws. I created a documentary on the subject of reuse, which you can find at www.reusedocumentary.com. We’re also in the process of making a documentary about the truck.

      Front view of Alex’s box truck conversion.

      Alex Eaves’ box truck floor plan.

       Chris: There are clear advantages to using repurposed materials that immediately come to mind. But what’s СКАЧАТЬ