At Re-nest, we believe that choosing to live in less space is one of the greenest decisions you can make. Recently, we've helped a reader sort out how to live in 400 square feet. If you consider 400 square feet expansive, perhaps you might want to consider a newly built 250 square foot condo in San Francisco.
We also covered why you should wait before buying that LCD TV; Wal-Mart's decision to start selling more local produce in their stores; and the snappy, leakproof (and unobtainable!) SIGG lunch box. Links below the jump.
Well, "local" in the case of Wal-Mart means something else, but the decision to ship less food around is still a step in the right direction from an enormous retailer.
A supply glut of LCD TVs means you should consider delaying this potentially energy-saving purchase.
SIGG makes a great lunchbox that's something like a reusable sardine can. It's made of aluminum and leakproof, just like their water bottles. The trouble is that we can't find one we can buy in a store or online!
We're wondering if we could take the plunge: 250 square feet for just under $300,000 in San Francisco?
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250 sq ft? omfg r u serious? that's like the size of closet.
I found the SIGG lunchboxes on lunchboxes.com
http://www.lunchboxes.com/army.html
Less space means less to clean.
Duh.
the first link is missing!
Littlerock , i lived in less than 250sq ft for 2years (180sq ft exactly), and i'm not dead ;-) i wish i had this condo at this time (not the prize for sure)
Having lived in a 250 sq ft apartment for a year with my boyfriend and two cats, I must say...never again!
Except possibly that condo. My apartment didn't even have an oven or freezer and was possibly the worst layout anyone could come up with, ever.
Rivendell (http://www.rivbike.com) was carrying the Sigg boxes for a while but stopped. I want a sandwich sized one.
You guys are awfully lazy sometimes.
I have 480 sq ft and I love it. It was basically raw space that I got to configure myself, so I made every inch count. What makes it work? Leibherr skinny fridge, Meile 18" dishwasher, LG combo washer dryer in kitchen, a 25-ft floor to ceiling book shelf along the hallway, and a walk-in closet to store stuff. French doors out to a backyard almost as big as the apartment helps a lot. And high ceilings. I love it's compactness and efficiency.
I'm not sure I could do 250, though.
$300,000 for 250 square feet? That is too much!
Love the Sigg lunchbox though...have a Sigg waterbottle to go with them.
i live in a 400 square foot apartment. it is the perfect size yet my amount of stuff in my closets and bookcase and under-the-bed-storage make me feel as if i live in a tea cup. sniff.
My apt is <260 sq ft and it works (barely) but gets totally cramped when my boyfriend spends the night. I would never buy something that size - I imagine resale would be difficult.
What do you mean lazy? It says they're out of stock.
I live in ~330 sq ft. "Less stuff to clean...", nuh. I've lived here 13 years -- accumulation happens. I don't dare show my place to y'all. I need design help... but gotta find a place for everything first. BTW: I make regular trips to Salvation Army; I'm not afraid to toss.
I get by in 274 sq ft... It is all about editing, editing, and more editing. Anything that comes in, means something must go. I have told all my friends not to buy me things for my home as I have no space, and likely don't need it.
It also allows for the splurge on really nice furniture since I am not filling up a large space.
Devyn, can we see your space? I could use seeing the tips in action!
While I enjoy your site and have gleaned some great ideas from it, I am sorely disappointed to see you advertise Wal-Mart. Many stores/corporations maintain shoddy employee standards; however Wal-Mart remains the forerunner in blatantly unfair employee practices.
I would love to see you continue to endorse companies that make affordable furniture etc., while taking a stance against places such as Wal-Mart. It can be done.
Also, where can I find that picnic table??!!!
Sadiebeth:
Walmart
My Sigg Lunchbox fell apart on me & things never panned out well with customer service. Broke my heart.
When American 250sf condos are created with the ingenuity of -referencing perhaps Azby Brown's SMALL SPACES- mostly Japanese design, I'm in.
Smart design that doubles your living space: not just exploiting location and a certain financial target w/a 'shoebox: shower and oven included!' Blah.
Following up with an example of a NYC studio + desk space vs. the SF based 250sf Cubix for smart design/not just small condo; and while I am chagrined that I can't say what the square footage is here in NYC, a truth remains: one simply has to note the vast difference in forethought with regard to storage -which can be one's road to maintaining a small space with a feeling of calm - thriving in these small spaces/not merely enduring them for sake of location.
There are images rendered for the whole apartment, but the one that displays 'red volumes' shows clearly the integrated storage that is key. I call cheapo on Cubix. And nearly 12 hours has passed, I wonder if I shall sleep at all. Cursed heat! Thank you should you choose to indulge me in my carrying on.
For now I bring up the plummeting home sales, and I've a LOUD yelling stuck in my throat to: "Sell us the homes we want, sell us homes we can afford, sell us homes that make sense in our current reality!" I'll take on a loan of $50,000 for 'insert Small Home company name here'- and I like many from Tumbleweeds, Tortoise, Tiny Texas, Schwimmhausboot, Cusato-Jonas Wagell's Tiny, a Colorado Yurt or an über modern pre-wired w/ethernet Microhome over in Germany- and a little to help with a trade-in for a hearty energy efficient vehicle if they still insist on outlawing the smalls/keeping homes on trailers.
If they want buyers, stop cramming your $150,000 ($250,000 national average) impossibility/unwelcomed house into my life -as a single person, nary a cat underfoot: and I speak for many of my peers & friends as well in our late 20's to range of 40's. Save your lower middle class from serfdom and rental stress/instability, and not only will it YAY the economy should the loans be there- but SO many more of us would be free to go hog wild with the design we adore and yearn to enact as seen here on Apt Therapy/ReNest/etc...
Yeah, sleep, right...
We Myself, hubby, and 12 year old son) have a new tiny home of 340 sq ft- it is not my first, we lived in a tiny 400 sq ft home for 6 years in Ecuador before coming back to the US. We LOVE it. We are working hard to make our whole life simple, from work choices to living spaces, everything must be in harmony :-)
The pics are not very good - promise to work on it next week, but for now, you can see our tiny home here:
http://minkeebabygifts.blogspot.com/2010/08/our-tiny-home.html
http://minkeebabygifts.blogspot.com/2010/04/my-house.html
Hey Minkee, I feel like I totally know you from... Tiny House Blog? (I don't use 'Knifemouth' over there as a moniker) Regardless, you really show 'how it's done' and I am such a huge fan of your 320sf!
You're absolutely the folks I look up to and I am so happy for your happy! Congrats on your new home and a truly wonderful porch ornament (wink/smile)...
We live in a 275 square foot apartment with our 2 boys. (ages 1 and 3)
We have hosted groups of 10 or more adults plus a few children.
We have lofted our Queen size bed and have a sofa bed underneath for guests (we've had many!)
Previously, we were in a 2,000+ square foot house and were much less satisfied. We had a lot of stuff we didn't need and spent a lot of extra time and money caring for, heating, and cooling the space.
The biggest problem we have now is lack of green space and our windows are tiny and happen to be above the kids' heads which is ultimately why this space just won't work for us much longer.
Being able to efficiently manage our space and purging unnecessary items feels great! After being here for a year, I can say we will probably not ever seek to live in a house larger than 800-1,000 square feet.
Just a vote for the, "It's doable" camp.