Category Archive

living small

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Absolutely everything we own is in our car: Our life living in an RV full-time

My husband and I hit the road about three weeks ago to live full-time in an RV. Our plan is to travel around the Western U.S. (and a bit of Canada) for the next year. We are pumped! So we bought our RV from Craigslist. It is a 1989 Minnie Winnie, Class C style (meaning it has a bed over the cab), 26′ long. Her name is Daisy.

why guinea pigs are the perfect offbeat apartment pets

3 reasons guinea pigs are the perfect offbeat apartment pets

I’ve had all kinds of pets over the years — from cats, to goldfish, and everything in between. No matter how many other animals I’ve loved since then, I’ve always come back to guinea pigs. They’re a little more interesting than your run-of-the-mill hamster (in my humble opinion), and have a hell of a lot of personality. Best of all, they make a great addition to apartments or rental homes where it might not be feasible to adopt non-caged pets like dogs or cats.

Here’s why…

How do you have adult time when living in a small space with a kid

How do you have adult time when living in a small space with a kid?

My partner and I just moved into a 600-square-foot cottage with our one-year-old. Although there’s technically a separate bedroom, the wall doesn’t go all the way to the ceiling. So it may as we’ll be a studio for sound purposes. Is there a magic equation for living in a small space with a kid? Will we ever have sex again? And what can I do when I just really, really need some personal space?

living off the grid in small structures

I need realistic advice about living off the grid in small structures

I’ve always had the dream of moving around place to place in my own nomadic shelter.

Little Tokyo loft living room 1

This small-but-edgy loft demonstrates how to decorate a small space with a lot of character

We can all take a few decorating lesson from this small-but-edgy 610-square-foot loft in Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo. Let’s all check it out and learn how to decorate a small space with a lot of character.

Ariel remodel tour on Offbeat Home 42

Ariel’s whirling rainbow dream… after the remodel

Last fall, I wrote about how I was remodeling my one-bedroom condo to better accommodate my three-person family. Well, six months later, I am here to report back with our-post remodel home tour… it’s six months later because the 6-8 week remodel turned into four months of my family drifting around and couch surfing. We just moved back in a month ago.

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How to host a large dinner party in a small space

Last November I threw a potluck Friendsgiving. What made it a little tricky (and very nerve-wracking up until) is that I share a one-bedroom apartment with a platonic friend where I live in the living room. I was worried that we wouldn’t fit, or that we wouldn’t be comfortable, or that the pole would get in the way, etc. Here’s how I made it work…

Celestial Chair and rainbow table

The tiny, colorful studio apartment, that taught me a lot about who I am

Before moving here, I was living in a larger studio with my husband, but moving into this place alone I had to be even more choosy about what came with and what did not. This home has taught me a lot about who I am. I had been in a very codependent relationship, so it had been a long time since I had only needed to worry about myself. Being able to express myself through my space was instrumental in my journey to finding my own identity after I left.