Tiny house, big freedom

photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com “I was almost a hoarder, I’m obsessed with clothes,” admits Jenkins, 24, a California-based Celtic harpist who says that moving into the small space has forced her to pare down her belongings and become tidy and organized. photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com But the shedding of things has been a welcome change. “Moving into the house was actually a relief because I could only take what I could fit,” she... more 

photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com “I was almost a hoarder, I’m obsessed with clothes,” admits Jenkins, 24, a California-based Celtic harpist who says that moving into the small space has forced her to pare down her belongings and become tidy and organized. photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com But the shedding of things has been a welcome change. “Moving into the house was actually a relief because I could only take what I could fit,” she explains. “It feels freeing to have only what I really need around me.” photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com Jenkins says she grew up in a small house with her family and shared a room with her sister, then went off to college, where she mainly lived in a dorm. Shortly after graduating, while living in a carriage house with her sister, she yearned for a place of her own. That’s when she came upon an online article about tiny houses. She was sold instantly. “It was just so practical for me, and it’s a nice byproduct that it’s environmental,” she says. “But the best thing about it is it’s totally mine.” less photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com “I’d never built anything, ever. I didn’t know how to use a saw. So it was intimidating,” she admits. But it also allowed her the freedom to have final control over the interior design, altering room and storage placements to precisely fit her own needs. photo by littleyellowdoor.wordpress.com The musician used savings to purchase a building kit from Tumbleweed Tiny House Company in 2011, less