Tiny House Inspiration from Verde Camp! Austin

We’ve found an Austin resident who has created inspiration in renovating not just one older home---but six! It's what he's done with these six houses that’s so intriguing, though…

In the SoCo area of Austin, there is half an acre of land with six adorably teeny houses from the 1930's located on it. The two-bedroom house and five one-bedroom houses have been turned into a funky, affordable, and ultra-cool alternative to the hotel, named Verde Camp. Instead of tearing down the original houses and starting from scratch, owner BJ Heinley and his wife have made smart and eco-friendly changes to the small structures, transforming them into private and comfortable guest houses for visitors to Austin looking for a more authentic stay while in the city.

Fully furnished, the units offer flat screen televisions, DVD players, free cable, free Wi-Fi, linens, towels and all sorts of kitchen pots, pans and utensils. Attention has also been paid to the outdoor areas of Verde Camp, with many of the houses offering comfortable spots for enjoying the Texas outdoors. We're pretty enamored with the idea of a cluster of charming houses available to rent, and from looking at the photos, we're sure guests to the space could find lots of small house organizing and design inspiration and ideas. Even if you have no plans to stay at Verde Camp, if you live in Austin you can still check out the property during one of their many Verde Camp Arty Parties, the next one coming up September 19th and featuring the work of Texas artist Patrick Phipps.

What do you think about the idea of Verde Camp? Are there any businesses similar to this one in your own city? If you came to Austin would you stay here? Let us know!

(Images: All taken from Verde Camp's Picassa web album)

What a charming little compound! I would definitely consider staying there when visiting Austin.

posted by purlgreyhound on August 31st 2009 at 7:46am
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Kudos to the Heinleys for creating such a character-filled compound (AND for leaving the lovely patina on those vintage scallop-back garden chairs)! I'd definitely stay there over any random soulless motel room. Could also be fun for a bunch of friends to get together and rent all the houses at the same time... charming spot!

posted by mirandabee on August 31st 2009 at 9:01am
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I would consider visiting Austin just to stay there!

posted by lemonadefish on August 31st 2009 at 9:02am
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now compare these lovely warm homes to the tom ford/karl lagerfeld fiascos. shows you that oodles of money does not equal oodles of taste.

posted by the polish chick on August 31st 2009 at 9:08am
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I'd visit Austin just to stay in one of these wee little homes, too. Beats a boring Holiday Inn any day!

posted by triedthistwice on August 31st 2009 at 10:01am
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That last photo is a great one.

posted by MODERnestS on August 31st 2009 at 10:39am
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Fantastic. Less can be so much more.

posted by sunan on August 31st 2009 at 10:55am
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How cute. I had a friend who rented a house in a similar setup... too small for everyday living, though! Good for vacationing.

posted by heather @ dollarstorecrafts.com on August 31st 2009 at 10:57am
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I love these and yes mirandabee exactly what you said.

posted by LoriSF on August 31st 2009 at 12:03pm
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It looks like Otherton to me! I like it though.

posted by culturep0p on August 31st 2009 at 12:35pm
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These types of Auto-Camps were quite common across the US before the advent of Motels in the Midcentury...
...it's nice to see one that's so well kempt and preserved.

A couple of great movies portraying folks staying in these types of accommodations:
"It Happenned One Night" (Clark Gable & Claudette Colbert"
and "Niagra" (Marilyn Monroe & Joseph Cotton)

posted by bepsf on August 31st 2009 at 3:00pm
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We stayed at Verde Camp (our group stayed in the front and back houses) back in the spring and I can vouch for both the awesomeness of the houses as well as the owner BJ who was incredibly hospitable and went way above and beyond.

posted by yougrowgirl on August 31st 2009 at 5:57pm
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It's adorable, what a great idea. I love the exterior color.

I love to stay in old fashioned "tourist cabins" but these new fashioned ones look very appealing too!

posted by Charlotte on August 31st 2009 at 6:39pm
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F**********

I want to live in those!!!

posted by dunklekatze on September 1st 2009 at 5:28pm
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Those pull out sofa's are beautiful, who made them? Where can I get one?! Same question for those bedspreads... I love them!

posted by kelharl on September 2nd 2009 at 11:55am
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I've stayed in the Mockingbird house at Verde Camp and can say that it was just as great as the photos depict. This place is so comfortable!! The location is great - walking distance to restaurants and shops. Verde Camp even has a fenced in dog run and a couple of the houses are pet-friendly so we were able to bring our dog with us.

posted by mopowers18 on September 18th 2009 at 9:27pm
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