Craftsman Tiny House

The new Creatin' Contest kit is kind of awesome, I've got to admit.  I've gone to sleep thinking of all the things I could do with it.  And I think I've settled on my 'theme'.

I love tiny houses. The storage and use of space is something I really like.  I'm a sucker for built ins.  But this isn't quite a tiny house on wheels is it?  It's small but there's no way you could haul this across country like a modern nomad.

The name of the kit was suggestive, Craftsman Cottage, and got me thinking of all those gorgeous architectural details of a Craftsman Bungalow.  The stone porch supports, tapered columns, artistic windows... I really love how they look.

I mean look at this, isn't it gorgeous?

I love that front door.  And those windows!  The stacked stone!

I need to do a Craftsman bungalow...I really do.

And so I thought why not do a Craftsman Tiny House.  The kit is small enough that I wouldn't end up killing myself over the details.  And I could indulge in all those gorgeous finishes I love.

So... I bought some plaster flagstone from Miniatures.com in all three colors.  I really like how light they are.  I'm going to do a flagstone wainscoting up to the bottom of the windows all the way around the house, and then siding above it.

I fell in love with a door and ordered it when I wasn't sure if I could fix the one that came with the kit, just in case.  Of course Fran from Miniatures.com was awesome and got the broken parts replaced so now I have two doors.  This is what I ordered.  The picture is lousy but I love the two toned wood and it's similar in style to one of the house pictures I found.

I think I can get some very slender strip wood and do mullions on the windows, like this:

I don't want to do shingle siding like the picture above,  Just clapboard.  With a dark wood tone for the wood trim around the windows and a paler color for the mullions and inner trim.  Like the second picture only reversed.

The inside will be trickier.  But I want it to look like a Craftsman too.  The built ins Craftsman bungalows have really lend themselves well to tiny houses and the built in storage needed.

So the back wall that has no windows is going to get jazzed up. I hope.  With something like this:

I like the idea of a fireplace. Mostly because it would provide a source of heat.  And I could add some windows on either side of it.  Also with a chimney on top of the roof I could hide the battery for any ceiling lights inside of it.  See? Smarter than the average bear.

I'm not sure about doing a bench next to the fireplace or not.  Mostly because I'm leaning towards something like this for below the picture window on the front wall.

If I build out a seat, with shelves on either side, I could put storage under it.  Some pillows and then I don't have to find space for a sofa, it's built into the room.  Then just add a chair and a side table.

I also like the idea of a slightly defined entryway.  With the tapered columns from outdoors carried in, but asymmetrically.

I like the idea of a pony wall/built in dividing the front door from the living space.  Not a long one, just enough for some visual interest.  It'll make some extra storage too.

The tricky part of this whole thing?  It's gonna be building the stairs to the loft.  I want narrow stairs with storage cabinets built under them.  No wasted space.  Which means building lots of tiny boxes and fitting them with drawers or doors.

All of these are full sized stairs but you get the idea.

Flooring...I'm thinking simple hardwood.  I'd love to do an inlay like this:

Just around the edge of the room.  But I'm not sure if I really want to get that detailed.  It's a small house.  Too much of a good thing could be overwhelming.

Tile for the bathroom floor.  And a shower wall of glass brick.  I'm thinking of doing a sliding door like Fran did for the kit.  She posted a tutorial here.  It looks really cool.  But I want to be able to remove the whole wall so I can fiddle with the bathroom if I need to.  Maybe I could use the broken door and insert 'pebbled' glass so the bathroom gets more light?  That could be a fun look.

Adding three inches to the walls will give me a six foot loft at its highest point.  I'm thinking just over the kitchen, not the living room.

I'm not sure what to put around the edges of the loft. I don't want my homeowner to fall off, but I don't want to block the view too much either.  Maybe a short open railing?  Still working on that.

Also working on the kitchen layout.  No dishwasher, so we'll need a larger sink. Maybe a farm sink with an apron front? A small stove and an old fridge?  I love this for island seating.  Very space saving.

For lighting... well I'm working on it. I've ordered a lamp and a ceiling light and I might just have to make some more lights of my own.  Craftsman lights look something like this:

Gorgeous but not easy to find right?  Maybe I could find some 'stained glass' window inserts on Ebay and make a panel light out of one of them for the kitchen.  Lanterns might work for the other types... have to work on that a bit more in my head.

So those are my thoughts.  There sure are a lot of them!

What are your plans for the kit?