Tiny House Furniture










Inspired by Ana White's kitchen island, Mike and I built custom furniture for our tiny house kitchen. We knew that we need furniture that would be mulifunctional and inexpensive.  A counter, two benches, a water cooler stand, and a table {not shown}.  Each piece was made using salvaged 2x4's and 1x3's we had laying around out behind the barn.  The whole project cost us $14 for a premade counter top and $17 for a gallon of stain and paint, all from Restore.  

The counter fits in next to our dry sink, the two benches are tucked into the corner, creating a giant L-shaped seating area around the kitchen table, and the water cooler stand fits right under the stairs. The benches not only serve as seating for meals, but is the depth of a standard couch and gets used as a reading nook, extra sleeping area when cousins come to visit and storage for art supplies, games and work related items.

I really love building furniture.  It's wonderfully satisfying to build just exactly what we need.  Our last and final furniture project will be bunk beds for the boys.  Just as soon as we finish some other projects, though.  



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Tiny House Building :: Sheet Rock





These photos are from earlier this Spring, showing some of the progress we've made on the inside of our tiny house.  The downstairs walls are finished, but we still need to finish the loft.  It's so hard to get motivated to make a mess when you're living in the space, especially drywall, so we're trying to push through before winter makes it impossible to work in here.  Don't you just love this 1940's enamelware dry sink we found at Restore?  It's exactly what I was looking for to fit in this space and has worked out perfectly.  

The shelves are made from salvaged headers and pipe we found at the hardware store.  The instructions for these shelves can be found here.

Tomorrow, I'll share the counter and benches that Mike custom built for this wall.

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Pretending



Oh, it's been quite the week...

Mike left on an impromptu road trip for five days.  We were house sitting for my brother when he got the call.  His cousin was buying a new spray foam machine, but it was in Florida.  If Mike agreed to ride with, to keep him company, his cousin would spray foam our house for free.  I was really excited for him to see the countryside and for us to have a warm floor this winter.  I reminded him that this is the reason we chose this lifestyle.  So that when these kinds of opportunities arise, we're able to be flexible and take them! He wasn't sure it was a good idea to leave me and the kids alone in the middle of the woods, but I assured him we would be fine and to go have fun.  With one change of clothes, a toothbrush, and his pillow, Mike set out on a Saturday for a cross country excursion.

That's when it all went down hill.  Fast.

Cole got the flu.  Then Luke.  I pretended to be healthy.

One chick disappeared every morning for five days.

Seven of our eight newborn kittens died.

Our beloved old cat, Marco, died too.  Of old age, we think.

Then to top it all off, both of our vehicles broke down.  One ended up being just a dead battery, but still.

I'm glad that week is behind us.

Maybe we can just look at some pretty photos and pretend that none of it ever happened.
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Tansy and Bee Balm




This afternoon we're going to look at a woodstove we found on craigslist.  Our little boxwood stove got us through the winter but we really need something more efficient. The season's changing, I felt it come with the last full moon. The smell of the air, the rich golden colors of the wild flowers.  I love the wildflowers of August. Bee balm for slaves and soap.  Tansy for dye.   I think maybe I'll dye enough yarn for a sweater for me.  Yellow may be a welcome color come winter.  Have a wonderful weekend, friends.
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Mint



Mint.  I can see how quickly and easily this herb is going to take over the garden!  I'm slowly thinning out the herb spiral, hanging bundles from the rafters of the loft.  The house is smelling amazing!
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Simple Decreases




It hasn't been blocked yet, but Cole's hat is finally finished.  {I don't know about you, but my knitting mojo was in a seriously slump last month.} I settled on a simple decrease that I think works very well with the stitch pattern.  I'll be writing up the pattern over the weekend and needing test knitters.  If you're intersted in helping out, please email me at thesittingtree{at}gmail{dot}com for details.

What's on your needles this week?


{joining Ginny this week}
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Leather Britches





I'm kind of lazy when it comes to preserving food.  The heat and humiditiy of July and early August is about enough to do me in, never mind adding a canning bath to the mix.  No, you won't find me canning green beans, but without a freezer, what's a girl to do with all this garden goodness that I so desperately want to save for winter.  I started reading around about dehydrating veggies and it seems like just the right solution for us.  A solar dehydrator has been added to the list of projects, but I kind of doubt it will be done this year.  In the mean time, I found an old fashioned way of preserving green and waxed beans called leather britches.

Basically, here's how it works...
Pick the beans.
Snap off the ends.
Rinse the beans {if needed}
Cut a piece of fishing line about 24 inches and tie a small stick onto the end.  Most instructions say to just use a bean as a stopper, but mine kept breaking through the line.  Stick stayed put.
Thread a darning needle with the fishing line.
Sew through the middle of each bean.
Make a knotted loop for hanging.
Hang out of direct sun until completely dehyrated. {not sure how long, yet.} They were so pretty to look at that I've got ours hanging from the rafters in the house.

I'm planning to use them for soups and stews during the winter, so I'll let you know how it goes!

Have you ever made leather britches?






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