320 Square Foot Home!

[PigsnieLite]

Errrr ... I think my bedroom is actually a little biggur than this. Waaaahh! {PLite looks guiltily around him and shoves Chairman Meow under a chair.}

[shoegirl]

Neat home! Those tiny homes are becoming popular here where I live! I'm not sure if they are the same square feet as the one in this video, but I know they are super tiny.

[PigsnieLite]

Could you live in one? Its so Tiny! Where will I put my books?

[shoegirl]

I think I could live in one. I wouldn't want to rent the land though, I would buy it! I think it would be very difficult for 2 or more people to live in one though. I think I would be more happy in a larger home though..

[Avril]

Looks like there is potentially more storage space under the house too.

I'd be happy in a place like that only if all my books could fit on Kindle.

[Avril]

Is this the 100 sq ft home?

Downsize with style and ease
Mary Costello
June 2, 2011 The Sydney Morning Herald


Photo Karie Hamilton New York Times

When downsizing you'll lose space, but there's no need to cut back on comfort or style in your new home.

Move My Home asked three experts in decor, design and decluttering for their best advice when moving to smaller living quarters.

Moving can be very emotional

Di McKenzie of Interiors Intoto in Mosman believes it's vital to be aware of the emotional aspects of the downsizing experience.

"Often the emotion can be overlooked, but we're dealing with homes, not just houses, and you don't want to make the transition to a new place any harder," Ms. McKenzie says. "Environment matters.

It's one thing to see your existing space all boxed up, but it's another to move into a new home and have that feeling of confusion when you have to start again, particularly with the elderly."

Di's clients include empty-nesters, people moving from a house to an apartment and older people moving into a retirement village.

"It's important to deal with the person who's downsizing - not their family members. They know what's important to them and they'll identify what they'd like to take. A move is always emotional because people become attached to their environment, no matter the age, and they've all got precious belongings.

The elderly tend to keep treasured items such as wedding presents or items bought on holidays because it reminds them of happy times.

"It can be devastating moving from a 4 or 5 bedroom house to an apartment, and it's coming up more and more with the wave of baby boomers. Boxing up their kids' bedrooms can be very emotional.

They can't let go of trophies the kids won when they were six. Those things are sometimes more important to parents than to the kids who are now 25 and on their grand world tour - they're not concerned about their bedrooms."

Moves triggered by family breakup can be particularly painful, but Di thinks friends and family can help ease the transition.

"Where people decide they can't live together any longer and are moving to separate homes, it's important that they walk into a space that has some homely touch - a bowl of fruit or some beer for a bloke - something that will make him pause and take in his new space and realise that this is a new beginning, and that there's a touch of humanity there already.

These are all things that people who care about them can help with."

Di advises movers to check available space at their new place before moving belongings.

"That seem pretty logical, but often people are in a hurry, and they just take everything and plan to sort it out later. If moving to an apartment, you won't have additional storage space, so you must be very sure that what you're taking fits or you'll have nowhere to put it.

Without proper planning it can be a disaster for the customer and the removalists, who may have nowhere to put it all if there's no storage room; and that starts you off on the wrong foot in your new home."
Deciding what to keep

Kerri Rodley of Domestic Downsizing in Norman Park Queensland encourages clients on the move to consider which items are important, useful or beautiful in their home.

"When it comes to downsizing, you must be very aware of what your goal is – to get rid of your stuff to create more space," Kerri says.

"The main questions I ask when helping clients to make decisions about their items are: do you love it? Is it useful? Do you really need it? If you can't answer yes to one of these questions it's time to let it go.

"I find that where people haven't moved for many years, they haven't really looked at their stuff for a long time. But when moving into a smaller space, you really need to do that. Walk around the house and put a sticker on the things you really love, things that give you joy when you look at them - that make a difference in your life."

Kerri has a creative solution where clients can't bear to part with items they don't need or want, because they have sentimental value.

"Let's say you're holding on to jumpers you don't wear because your mother knitted them for you. Are you honouring her memory by keeping stuff you don't like? Either pass them on to someone who will love them, or have things made into other things that you will appreciate.

"You could take a set of photos of the jumpers – close-ups highlighting a detail of the pattern or texture in each. Put them in a triptych frame and you'll have a lovely artwork - a series of different but similar things. That way you'll keep the feel of the jumpers, and of the craftsmanship. One picture of a jumper takes up a lot less room than 10 jumpers."

Kerri offers these additional tips for organising your new environment

Measure your furniture to see if it'll fit into your new space - particularly large items such as sofas and beds.Take the room measurements of your new space or check the floor plan. Don't forget about the location of doors and windows - a factor in furniture placement.

Assess how much of the new space is dedicated to storage to see how much you need to dispose of before moving. Don't forget hidden storage areas you currently use in your old place.

Decorating on a smaller scale

Melbourne interior design consultant and fashion buyer, Mimi Marti, has first-hand experience of downsizing. Mimi and husband Hans moved to a new apartment from a beautiful period home in Richmond.

"We'd lived in a double-storey Victorian home for 18 years, and now we live in a modern apartment with superb views over Albert Park," Mimi says, "It was a difficult choice to make, because we moved from a 35-square home to a 15-square home.

I often pass the house, but now have no feelings for it. And we still have a garden. We have a five and a half acre property in the country, which fulfils our space requirement."

As a collector of art and antiques, Mimi had the difficult task of deciding what to take with her and what to leave behind.

"We sold most of our stuff to neighbours who were moving to a larger home, and the rest at auction. Antiques are very hard to sell at auction, but you take the losses and make a new start.

"We had a couple of favourite pieces – one a 19th century French hand-painted armoire. I fell in love with it and Hans had it delivered as a surprise birthday present many years ago.

There was also a beautiful, antique gilt-framed mirror which I felt I needed to find place for, so I designed a hall table to go under it. I designed all the furniture for the apartment and had it custom-made."

Many of Mimi's clients have downsized and she knows how to make small living spaces inviting.

"Look at the sizes of the rooms. In a modern apartment there's often a wall of windows so you don't feel confined. It's that idea of the outside coming indoors that creates a sense of space," she says, "If it's a small area, stay with neutral colours and use accent colours.

If selecting carpet, don't go for very dark colours and keep the walls light. Often people make the mistake of choosing dark furniture. You can always add colour with other things.

"You can also change the look of a room without great cost by using brighter colours in summer and darker colours in winter, by moving your paintings around, and by adding coloured glass pieces and fresh flowers."

[PigsnieLite]

Hokay, now a 100 ft house is just widiculous. Might as well live in a tenty.

[dragrat]

A Teepee?

[PigsnieLite]

But the rain would come in! Eeeek! Id catch pneumonia, die, and the world would be an uglier place.

[sunfrog]

I've been think about tiny houses for a while now. My house will only be 225 sq ft. 15x15x15 and it will look like a cube. If you think about it you can cook, shower, and poop outside, Hawaii style. You only need one room to keep you warm or cold while you sleep. Using an outhouse would suck tho. How did cowboys do it in winter? I bet that sucked. Of course there's always this.



Portable toilet! ;D

[PigsnieLite]

OMG, I never thought of wearing a giant garbage bag! LOLL. ;D Think of all the people in the stands during the Olympic Opening ceremonies who would find this so useful! Mwahahahahahaaa! ;D The Japanese are just genioos!

[Avril]

Brilliant! Kitty litter for hoomans!

BUT IS IT BIODEGRADABLE?

Pigsnie, Freetoe - prease tlansrate!

[Frito Freddie]

LOL---I wish I spoke Japanese. I know only a few words. And I can read even less. Wart is the linguist in the family. And we have been wearing plastic trash bags for years! Though we use coffee cans. We have a huge family and we like to go out in little boats. The boys just pee over the side when they feel a need to. But the girls don't have that option. So we use the XXXL trash bags, stick a hole at the bottom of the bag, and pee in coffee cans which have sand in them so the pee doesnt splash.

[Avril]

Great idea.

When I lived on a boat (in NZ) we peed and pooed over the side. Even when it was snowing. Quite a challenge in the middle of the night.

[dragrat]

Oh the mental image...