Tiny Homes: Simple Shelter (The Shelter Library of Building Books)

Lloyd Kahn has a lot to answer for. He bumped us out of our housing preconceptions as shelter editor of Whole Earth Catalog, blew our housing views away with indigenous vernacular housing around the world in Shelter, excited and encouraged us with Home Work: Handbuilt Shelter, and enticed us further with Builders of the Pacific Coast. Now, about the time we have regained equilibrium and settled into an expanded comfort level, here he is with Tiny Houses. And he threatens us with Tiny Houses II. Incorrigible. There is no stopping such a man. If you visit his blog at [...] you will see that he is also into fitness, so it is likely we will have to adjust to many more books from him. He is a leading cause of the ongoing need to build more bookshelves.The size of new American homes nearly doubled from 1970 to 2010. With the real estate crash and continuing widespread unemployment there is a whole lot of wallet tightening going on. There is also a lot of rethinking about how to live. Many people are dropping out of the consumption game. Tiny houses are extreme examples of the trend. The smaller the house, the more likely it can be built without a mortgage. An ever-growing number choose to build and live in something that is not only less expensive to build but less expensive to heat, cool and maintain. The LittleHouses group, to which I belong, is both the largest and busiest of any Home Building Yahoo! Group.The tiny house trend is not confined to any one place, although areas of mild weather are generally more suitable than places with extreme winters because of more typically thin building envelopes, which limit insulation. There are exceptions and included here is a glorious stone and timber house on top of a Colorado mountain.Tiny houses require less land and in fact can be portable. Sections of the book are Tiny Homes on Foundations, Tiny Homes on Wheels, Tiny Homes by Architects, Prefabs and Kits, Earthy Materials, Treehouses, On the Road, and On the Water.Most won't live in tiny houses forever. They are most appropriate for singles. With significant others and/or children, there is insufficient room to suit most people. One answer could be connected multiples with one unit serving as kitchen and dining, others for bedrooms and living. Most could be anchored but one could be used for travel.This book is inspiring, uplifting and offers encouragement for a sane and fun way to make fewer dollars go further. Profusely illustrated with 1,300 illustrations, the price is about two cents per picture. Whether or not pictures are worth a thousand words, this book is a heck of a bargain.

This has a plethora of great photos and stories from many different styles of tiny homes. It is a great book to generate ideas and conversation. With that being said, here are some things about the book that you should know before buying:- This book is not intended to be a technical account of architectural styles - don't buy it if that's what you're looking for.- This book does not provide detailed plans or building tips.- As others have brought up, the photos in the book are not the highest resolution, but this did not detract from my enjoyment. Honestly, it is tough to notice if you are just flipping through.- I have never had a problem with the quality of binding or paper.To address some of the other reviewers who were wary of the reviews because they all mentioned the name of the author or publishing company: Lloyd Kahn is a well-known guy in the tiny house movement. I do not know him personally, but I saw him speak once (after buying this book), and I imagine that a lot of reviewers have seen him speak, resulting in a feeling of familiarity leading them to use his name in a review. I don't think it is a big deal. He has written and published a lot of books, so his name and the name of his publishing company coming up in reviews shouldn't be a surprise.Overall, buy this book if you want to look at a lot of cool pictures of tiny homes. Do not buy this book if you want a technical account of the architectural or building practices associated with the homes. It's a great book if you're looking for the former.

After eagerly awaiting the arrival of this book, I was NOT disappointed! It is packed full of beautiful full-color photographs on every page. Quality of the book, text, photographic elements and diversity of tiny homes and simple shelters is superb!Various types of homes, different locations, building materials and styles mean this will appeal to a large variety of people. From city dwellers to cave (and even tree!) dweller, there is something here for nearly anyone. Whether you are just curious, desire a spare space for some peace and quiet or searching for a full-time alternative way of living...this book is sure to inspire a multitude of ideas.There is a nice selection of pre-fab/kits and other options as well as significant treatment of recycled materials. Examples of tiny homes range from ultra modern to quaint, primative to luxurious little escapes.Size, price estimates and materials are all mentioned. This is not a blueprint book nor a dedicated "how to" but rather a complete overview with a plethora of examples that will allow anyone to plan the perfect tiny home of their very own.Interviews with tiny home owners and designers are both informative and intersting. The writing style is engaging and the visuals beautifully executed.Well worth the wait!

Better than a Google Search because it has a qualified person putting it together. One for the book, 0 for Google on this one! I've seen some of these homes reviewed online, but this gives new information, and almost all of the homes are new to me. Fantastic, and my kids like it too. Just had to sharpee over a couple of nudees. It will be a great coffee table picture book, just as "The Cabin" by Dale Mulfinger

こういう家の作り方があるんだ、という興味が湧きました。

auch mir gefällt das Buch ganz toll, und der Preis ist sehr fair.Das Buch gliedert sich in 8 Kapitel, siehe Foto. Und es kann über einen Code auf das iPad als App geladen werden. Das ist Toll. Ich finde es sind sehr sehr viele Informationen drin, aber wenn man den ganzen Weg gehen will, fehlen natürlich Grundrisse und Anleitungen, die man aber evtl. über die angegebenen Websiten findet.Sehr viel Lesestoff, bin froh, dass ich dieses Schnäppchen entdeckt habe :)

Ce livre permet une approche variée des tiny houses. On sort du modèle standard roulant avec lit en mezzanine. Il y en a pour tous les goûts, en bois, en boue ou en paille. Certaines constructions se trouvent en France. Très chouette!

I got this book to read over the Christmas break after reading 'Builders of the Pacific Coast'. I loved this book even more (although I do heartily recommend the former too)! Some reviewers seem to have missed the point. This is NOT a 'how to build your own house' book. It's a collection of lots of pictures & some details of unusual, quirky, thinking outside the box homes & structures which all have their small size in common. Many of the buildings featured do have blogs, websites or other information included for those who would like to learn more about, say cob building, straw bales etc & there is a directory in the back. Actually many of these buildings are site specific & use what was available to the builder -that's the point. What this book IS, is an opportunity to see pictures of inspiring buildings which you otherwise might never have a chance to see, an encouragement to have a go at creating something yourself & a starting point on how you might achieve that. Thank goodness for people like Lloyd Khan & all the people included in his books. I will look at this book again & again & I will look at potential, recyclable, building materials I might come across in a new light.