Picking Your Small House Plan

Selecting a future home that works for you is a challenge. It is not just what looks pretty and has the flow you like but it is also how the house will work for your everyday life. Before you begin looking for a plan take a few days and think about the regular tasks you do each day and what you need to get them done. Make a list to help you remember. If you are new to small house living then try to imagine how you could accomplish these tasks with less space and with less. Here is an example from my list.

Our Redesigned Bungalow Kitchen Elevation

Enough counter space to bake with kids and cook dinner (roughly about 36” of uninterrupted counter length)

Room to sit with a family of 4 plus 2 grandparents (how this was accomplished will be covered in planning and designing our small house later for right now I just need the space to be there.)

Laundry (notice it doesn’t say laundry room and I will show you how I maximize space for this later)

Guest space (again, this doesn’t say guest room since that is simply a room set aside wholly for guests, thus wasted space)

Pantry (we’re a family of four- nuff said)

Porch

General storage (off season, cleaning, financial papers, linens, entertainment, sports/yard toys, etc.)

Kid space (Not separate rooms but they will have their own space)

Porch (living small inside means getting outside more)

Dishwasher (not to be underestimated in small living)

Windows (make a room feel bigger)

Our Redesigned First Floor Plan with Furniture

Our Redesigned Second Floor Plan with Furniture

It’s also good to use Pinterest to best advantage in your search. When I started I would pin a house that fit most of my list regardless of the size and described features that I liked or didn’t in the pin description. Then I could revisit without having separate notes. Each night (or weekend depending on his work schedule, my husband and I would sit down and go over a few plans. He would veto and if I felt strongly I would lobby for a particular house. However, when he saw the Beekeeper’s Bungalow he felt as strongly as I did. I suspect we both fell in love with the exterior before we loved the interior but not too much longer. It had everything we needed or could be easily adjusted to fit. There was a good sized dining area that could have a bench to maximize dining space, a laundry area under the stairs and by the kids’ bathroom (bonus for bath time), there was storage under the stairs, closets and a loft area upstairs with sloped ceiling that could have built-in storage, the kids’ room was big enough for bunk beds for separate spaces and storage under, there was a big pantry, porches and windows (glorious windows!). The only thing lacking was guest space. However, with some careful planning I’ll show you later on how I managed to fit a great guest space into this wonderfully cozy house.

The hardest part was coming around to the idea of living small; smaller than we had ever considered, smaller than our friends and smaller than the majority. It is hard to go against such an ingrained American stereotype. When questioned I lean this retort: it works in Manhattan and London.

Gorgeous, Tiny NYC Kitchen from Pinterest

I can’t wait to show you how we plan to heat and cool our small house and it is only by rethinking the common method of heating and cooling that my husband and I came up with an economical, sustainable and space saving.

For more great small house ideas, check out our Small House, Big Style Board on Pinterest.

#DIY #Houseplans #SmallHouse #Buildingasmallhouse