Things We Can Learn From Micro Living

Credit: Timbercraft Tiny Homes

If there’s something that gets us excited, it’s when people are good at utilising space!

In 2015, micro living was the coolest of cool – but it never really took off in the UK. We think that’s a shame, because it’s an absolutely brilliant and incredibly cost effective idea.

As the size of a home increases, so do the costs usually. Vice versa; the smaller the home, the lower the cost. A 25 m2 home can not only accommodate all modern commodities, it’s cheaper, there’s no mortgage and it will force you to get rid off all unnecessary clutter you’ve got lying around ‘just because’.

Micro living, and living in smaller homes is part of a growing trend to slow down and take a few steps back from the busy email- madness and various social media addictions. If you’ve had enough of ‘things’ and the seemingly never ending rise in property prices, a smaller home might be right for you.

Living in a tiny home is not for everyone. But the ‘the bigger the better’ trend is becoming a bit over the top. We think, that we could all benefit from scaling down. It’s obviously not everything you can just get rid off, and that’s okay. One way to deal with this is to rent a storage space for old children’s photos, drawings, your old wedding dress and the bikes that are used twice a year.

If you’re not ready to take the jump and sell your 2 storage home, then here’s a few things you can learn from tiny homes and the people that live in them, because damn are they good at using every square inch!

Pocket doors

Normal doors take up quite a lot of space. This is critical when you’ve only got a small room. Have a look at the two identical rooms below. If you use a pocket door instead of a swing, you’ve almost got 1m2 of extra room.

Double duty furniture

In small spaces you’ve not got a lot of room, so you have to make the most of it.

“With the tiny house, you’re not building by the square foot. You’re building by the square inch” Doug Schroeder, Timbercraft

One way to optimise your space is double duty furniture. This can be anything from under the bed storage to stair drawers

Credit: Timbercraft Tiny Homes

Mirror for depth

If you’ve got a small room, then hanging a mirror can give the room some depth. While a wall is an abrupt stop to a room, a mirror creates an illusion of the room expanding even further.

Keepsakes

There will be things that are in the way, things that you don’t need on a day to day basis. There’s no need to keep these things around in the home, rent a storage space or liaise with someone who has an empty loft and get them out the way.

Clean lines with minimalism

If you want to live in a small space, or if you’re trying to make a room seem bigger than it is then you’ve got to get the hang of minimalism. Strip away everything that’s not needed on a day to day basis, and make sure clean, clear lines and simple

Credit: Decor Aid

½ floors are also floors

If you think in height as well as breadth and length, you can really take advantage of the space. The higher you can rise a bed for example, the more space you’ll have under it. If space is tight, getting your bed ‘off’ the floor can almost split the room into two.

Credit: Decor Aid

Are you ready to go off the grid or do you simply want to downsize? Get in touch and we’ll find a storage space that fits your needs