Jenn’s Tiny House

Jenn’s tiny house on wheels in Olympia, Washington.

Here is my tiny house that I designed and then built with a huge crowd of friends. We started the build in 2011 and I moved in November 2012. My partner Kim was building another house with a similar design for herself around the same time, but it burned to the ground in a mysterious barn fire. Insurance was not available and she lost everything. I am sharing the pictures of my house in hopes of drumming up interest in Kim’s tiny house dream to rebuild. We created an online crowd-funding campaign called “Tiny House, Big Heart,” with the goal of raising enough funds for Kim to start building this summer. Check out our campaign that involves an amazing group of visual artists (Nikki McClure, Katie Baldwin, Tae Won Yu, etc.) and musicians (Kimya Dawson, Mirah, Rae Spoon, etc.)  collaborating on some exciting perks available to those who donate. There is also the chance to stay a weekend to 7days in Kim’s house once it’s finished!

Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoy living in this cozy home.

18 comments

  • Eric H. says:

    I really like this house. I’m saving up now to build one in the Olympia area as well. Is there a bathroom in this house?

  • Kacey Kelly says:

    Jenn-
    Yours is the most wonderfully perfect tiny house I’ve seen, and those images confirm my conviction that I can and will have my own tiny house here on the Mendocino Coast of California. Maybe I’ll achieve my dream of a Tiny House Village, too.

    One question: what brand of heating stove is that? Is it wood or propane or ?? I love the green color and the tiny size!

    Thank you for being an inspiration to so many; may you have many years of contentment in your home. -KC

    • Jenn says:

      Thank you KC. I’m glad you found some inspiration in my project. It was a long hard haul to accomplish this project but totally worth the sweat and tears. Good luck on your tiny house adventure!

  • Hi Jenn: What is the make and name of the celery green woodstove?

  • Jenn says:

    Hi KC and Pauline! The woodstove is manufactured in the US by Navigator Stoveworks in Washington state. The model is called “the little cod”. It’s a woodstove designed for boats but also used on land in small house applications.

  • Stacey says:

    Hi Jenn, Your tiny home is just beautiful; so cozy, and warm, and I love the floor plan as well! I can definitely picture being very content in such a space. To get an idea of size, how big is your house? And have you considered sharing the plans? You’ve done a really great job. Thank you, Jenn, and I wish you much happiness here!

    • Jenn says:

      Thanks Stacey. Glad you have found some inspiration in my tinyhouse design. After a year of living in it I am just as satisfied with the design though there are a few things that could be tweaked for even better effect. I have considered sharing my plans but currently they are just hand drawn on drafters tracing paper with lots of scratched out and rewritten measurements and such. I need a drafter to draw it up properly in autocad before i could offer it up to others. Its on the horizon but far down the line since that costs money to do. The house is about 135 square feet and plenty spacious. Mind you there is no bathroom inside. Portland Alternative Dwellings has a design for sale online that you might like just as well. It’s called the Sweet Pea. I’ve been inside it and it’s quite cozy and homey. Happy trails in your tiny house explorations! Also if you do Instagram, you can follow me at tinyhousebigheart There are tons more picture of my house and tiny house living there.

  • Julia says:

    Your tiny home is gorgeous and so inspiring! I’m trying to figure out loft sizes for my own build so hope you don’t mind me asking what the dimensions of your loft are? It looks so much wider and higher than any others I have seen. Also it looks like you have your mattress sitting on something – do you use a futon base or something similar? Hope all is going well for your partners rebuild.

    • Jenn says:

      Hi Julia. Thank you! Happy you like the tiny house. The loft is about 8 feet long and the interior width of my house is 7’9″. I built out to the edge of the wheel wells to widen the interior dimension by 12″. This requires a custom utility trailer for the foundation but It’s amazing what a difference 12″ makes. The interior space is so much more usable. Because of the wider house i changed the pitch of the roof to something a little less steep. I think its a 49.5 instead of a 45 deg angle. It gives the sleeping loft a bit more elbow room and a sense of spaciousness. Read Portland Alternative Dwellings ebook Go House Go by Dee Williams for more technical details on figuring out the loft space and many other tinyhouse details. It was definitely a resource during my design and build. As for the mattress, it’s sitting directly on the loft floor. I don’t have any condensation issues since I have a kitchen exhaust hood while I’m cooking and i properly heat my house so there is no need to put anything under my mattress. Many others have problems with condensation and mold on the underside of their mattress without the use of a riser to encourage air circulation, but i suspect their issues stem from to having an exhaust fan, adequate insulation, or adequate heating of the space.

      Cheers, Jenn

      Ps Kim’s build is coming along. We hope to be finished this summer!

  • ELRS says:

    Where on earth did you find such a tiny wood stove?

  • Steven says:

    Four words; You so nailed it.

  • Carole says:

    Congratulations! Even the cat seems happy.
    Very well done and inviting.

  • Cee Jay says:

    This is lovely. It looks small on the outside but big on the inside, so the space has been used very well. And the loft area is a great size too. A very nice place I would feel comfortable in living in, just like your cat (and where I have two of my own 😉 )

    From
    Cee Jay/Leigh on Sea, Essex, England, Britian.

  • Laura says:

    Just saw this post and your super cute tiny house- WELL DONE! I want to build one too. How did you find a spot to park it? It seems like that is the biggest issue with a tiny house.

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